202 



quickly back to its reedy and leafy retreat. A reed-covered backwater, on tlie upper part of Cook 

 River, partially over-grown with rank herbage, was a favourite retreat of this species. It is a 

 poor i\\er, and many of the specimens in the collection were captured by sporting or water dogs. 

 There is but little variation in a number of adult specimens examined from widely different 

 localities, but some have a narrow, irregular, whitish line down the centre of the breast. 



Stomachs of these birds examined usually contained the remains of water beetles and small 

 molluscs, mixed with a little mud. 



From Melbourne, \'ictoria, Mr. G. .\. Keartland sent me the following note; — " Lewin's 

 Water Kail ( llvpol.niidia hyacJivpus) is very similar in habits to the more common Pectoral Kail. 

 It is a trille smaller in size and darker in colour. I have shot several on the Yarra Flats, also at 

 Oakleigh and Beveridge. Mr. J. H. Syme obtained another at Killara. They are partial to 



dense cover, and run before a dog for some distance before 

 /' taking wing. If Spaniels are used they are soon flushed, 

 but with Pointers or Setters they lead the sportsman a 

 merry dance, and generally escape in the dense under- 

 growth. Their eggs are laid in a slight depression amongst 

 rushes or coarse grass, and the newly hatched young are 

 very dark brown, almost black." 



From Hobart, Tasmania, Mr. Malcolm Harrison wrote 



me as follows in January, 191 1 : — " Some years ago I used 



to find many nests of Lewin's Water Rail fHypotirnidia 



','A/' braihypiis) in and around the swamps on the Derwent 



,,; /V'^ River, from Bridgewater to Kisdon, more especially in the 



,.''' sjp ' latter locality, which was much favoured by them. They 



& are now, however, extremely rare, the cover having to a 



large extent been destroyed, and probably the domestic 

 cat following the ever increasing number of small holdings 

 may account also for their scarcity. I do not think it can 

 be the result of the work of collectors, few knowing of or 

 working the locality, and personally I have not touched a 

 nest since igoi, the last clutch of eggs taken by me being 

 in November of that year. The usual breeding months 

 here are September and October, and the clutch as a rule five, v/hile four or six are occasionally 

 found. Of the many nests of this bird I have seen, on two occasions only have I noticed 

 the latter number, which appeared to over crowd the nest. A peculiarity in the clutches is that 

 a whole set is rarely uniform. In a clutch of five two eggs will almost invariably be of a lighter 

 ground colour and less rich markings than the remaining three, having almost the appearance 

 of not belonging to the same set. From my notes it would appear that these birds lose no time 

 in their nesting arrangements. For instance, on the afternoon of the 24th September, 1899, I 

 noticed in the centre of a clump of cutting Rush ( Cladium psiitaconun ) a small space, into which 

 had been dragged by the middle (leaving the strands V-shaped) a couple of small wisps of band 

 grass. Thinking this might be the initial proceeding in nest building, I again visited the same 

 clump, and started from her nest a Kail which had been sitting on five eggs. This was on the 

 3rd October following, so that in the space of nine days she had completed her nest and laid 

 five eggs. I have reason to believe this species is more widely and generally distributed in 

 Tasmania than any of the other Rails or Crakes, as I ha\e both heard and at times flushed 

 it at widely apart localities in various parts of the State." 



While resident at Circular Head, on the North-west Coast of Tasmania, Dr. Lonsdale 

 Holden made the following notes: — "On the 28th October, 1886, I saw a black chick of 



LEWIN S WATER KAIL. 



