Bill long, very slender, flexible, nearly cylindrical, but towards the point tapering. Upper mandible with the dorsal line straight, excepting at the end, where it is a little curved, the ridge broad and depressed, the sides slightly sloping, the edges rounded, and inflected towards the narrow slightly curved, acute tip. Nasal groove long, linear; nostrils basal, linear, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle very long and narrow, the sides convex, the tip narrowed.
Head small, with the fore part high and rounded. Eyes small. Neck rather long and slender. Body slender. Wings long. Feet of moderate length, slender; tibia bare a considerable way above the joint; tarsus much compressed, narrowed before, very thin behind, covered anteriorly with numerous scutella; toes slender; first extremely small, free, with a slight membrane beneath; second slightly shorter than fourth, third considerably longer; toes all scutellate above, margined on both sides with lobed and pectinated membranes, which are united at the base, so as to render the foot half webbed; the outer web much longer than the inner. Claws very small, compressed, arched, that of the middle toe with a recurved sharp edge.
Plumage soft and blended. Feathers of the back, and especially the scapulars, elongated. Wings long and pointed; primary quills tapering, but rounded, the first longest, the second scarcely shorter, the rest rapidly graduated; secondary quills rather short and narrow, the inner tapering and elongated so as nearly to equal the longest primaries when the wing is closed. Tail rather short, much rounded, of twelve feathers.
Bill black. Iris dark brown. Feet bluish-grey; claws black. The general colour of the upper parts is greyish-black, the head lighter and more tinged with grey, the scapulars and some of the feathers of the back edged with yellowish-red, of which colour also are the sides of the head and neck; throat and sides of the upper part of the neck white. Wing-coverts and quills brownish-black, tinged with grey, the shafts of the quills, the margins and tips of the secondaries, and a broad bar on the tips of the secondary coverts, white. Tail light grey, the feathers margined with white, the two middle ones dark brownish-grey, the lateral upper tail-coverts white, barred with dusky. The breast and abdomen white.
Length to end of tail 6 inches, to end of claws 6 1/4, to end of wing 5 3/4; extent of wings 13 1/2; wing from flexure 4 1/2; tail 2 1/4; bill along the back 11/12, along the edge of lower mandible 11/12; tarsus 10/12, middle toe 10/12, its claw 2/12.
Adult Female. Plate CCXV. Fig. 2.
The Female is similar to the male, but the red markings are not so deep in tint.
Young fully fledged. Plate CCXV. Fig. 3.
The young bird has the markings similarly disposed, but the upper parts are in general of a dull dark grey, the red of the neck much fainter, and that of the scapulars much paler, and inclining to greyish-yellow.