RAILS. 39 
A. nitidissima of Mauritius, has become extinct within historic times. 
Of the Green Fruit-Pigeons Sphenocercus (2718 c), Osmotreron (211), 
(277 a), Treron (276), etc., a number are exhibited at the top of the Case, 
and, as will be seen, the harmonious colouring of some of the smaller 
species 1s wonderfully pleasing, and renders them almost invisible 
among the foliage of the trees. 
Order V. RALLIFORMES. Ratt-iiKe Birps. 
The members of this Order are all adapted for a life among thick 
undergrowth, such as is found along the banks of rivers, swamps and 
pools, or among long grass in drier places. The body is laterally com- 
pressed between the closely fitting concave wings, so that the bird is 
enabled to glide easily and stealthily through reeds and other cover. 
The legs are moderately long and the toes often extremely so. In spite 
of their apparently weak and unprotracted flight, many are migratory, 
and some, such as the Corn-Crake, are capable of making very long 
voyages. Nota few from long disuse of their wings have lost the power 
of flight, and of these, it may be mentioned, several have become extinct 
during historic times. Rails are mostly good swimmers. The eggs are 
numerous, generally from seven to eleven in number and double-spotted, 
Of the species exhibited in this Case only the more interesting can be 
referred to here. 
Family I. Ratiipa. Raits. 
The true Rails may be distinguished by the absence of a horny frontal 
shield or plate on the forehead and of lobate webs on the toes. They 
are distributed all over the world, being as a rule of sombre coloration 
and of very retiring and partially crepuscular habits. The Water-Rail 
(Rallus aquaticus) (298) and the Corn-Crake or Land-Rail (Crex crew) 
(312) are both found in Great Britain, the former as a resident, the 
latter as a summer visitor from South Africa. The Spotted (316), 
Little (815), Carolina (313), and Baillon’s Crakes (814) are also 
included in the British List, the former as a regular summer-visitor 
and partial resident. 
A number of large handsome Rails belong to the South American 
genus Aramides (806-808), three species of which are exhibited. 
The singular Wallace’s Rail (Habroptila wallacei) (805), from the 
forests of Halmahera in the Moluccas, and the Weka Rails or Wood- 
hens (Ocydromus) of New Zealand, are of special interest, having entirely 
lost the power of flight, and are in consequence doomed ere long to 
extinction. The common Weka Rail (O. australis) (804), a rather large 
bird about the size of a hen, is much sought after by the Maoris, both for 
[Case 22.] 
[Case 22.] 
