THE RAIL TRIBE 2213 



of the group. This bird, besides being found all over India, has a wide range 

 throughout Burma, the Malay Peninsula, Siam, and South China to Formosa and 

 the Liukiu islands. As might be expected, the plumage of a so widely-spread 

 species shows considerable climatic variation, examples from the dry plains ot 

 India having the prevailing color of the upper parts rufous; whereas in specimens 

 from the Malay Peninsula, with its heavy rainfall, the general tone is grayish 

 brown. In both sexes the upper parts are barred and marked with black, many of 

 the feathers being margined on the sides with whitish buff; while the chest and 

 breast are buff barred with black, and the under parts rusty buff. The female, 

 besides being much larger, has the middle of the throat and chest deep black, while 

 in the male these parts are white with narrow black bars. Mr. Hume writes that 

 " scrub jungle, intermixed with patches of moderately-high grass on dry ground, is 

 perhaps its natural home; but it may be met with anywhere in low bush jungle and 

 on the skirts of forests, and in inhabited districts greatly affects gardens, grass pre- 

 serves, and similar inclosures. It strays into stubbles and low crops in the morn- 

 ings and evenings, even remaining in these at times throughout the day, but more 

 generally retreating during the hotter noontide hours to the cover of some thorny 

 bush or patch of grass upon the margins. ' ' 



This distinct order includes but two families, namely, the rails, to which the 

 great bulk of the species belong, and the finfeet including only a few peculiar 

 forms with grebe-like feet, and no aftershafts to the contour feathers. Agreeing 

 with the game birds in the structure of their palate, these birds are most nearly 

 allied to the cranes on the one hand, an intermediate type being found in the 

 American courlan, while they are also more distantly related through the hemi- 

 podes to the true game birds. They probably represent one of the older and more 

 generalized types of birds. An interesting point is the large number of species 

 which, from disuse of their wings, have lost the power of flight, several of these 

 having become extinct within the memory of man; while with many others 

 their extinction is but a matter of time. The chief characteristics of these birds 

 are their long legs, elongated toes, loose and rather hairy plumage, feeble, rounded 

 wings, and short tail. The body is generally narrow and laterally compressed, 

 enabling them to thread their way among the reeds and grass with great ease 

 and rapidity; while the neck is long, and the head small, with a long or moderate 

 bill. A large number of genera, including nearly one hundred and eighty species, 

 comprise the family, but space will only permit mention of some of the more im- 

 portant types. 



The typical genus, including such well-known forms as the common 



water rail (Rallus aquaticus}, is characterized by the beak being 



longer than the third toe and claw, with the nostrils nearer the feathers at the base 



