RAILS AND CRAKES WATER-FOWL 153 



water in a dam, twenty yards or so from the shore, and 

 contained six eggs, varying from a greenish creamy- 

 brown colour, to a warm pale brown. The addled eggs 

 had a slightly greenish tinge, and were somewhat 

 blotched, probably owing to the action of the mud and 

 water. The nest was lined with a few of the feathers of 

 the ducks themselves. 



All the ducks seem to be very irregular in their breed- 

 ing habits, so far as season is concerned, and the probable 

 explanation of it is that they are double-brooded. Take 

 the White-backed Duck as an example : A. D. Millar 

 found nests in November, December and February, while 

 the clutch photographed was found on April 21, 1899. 



RAILS AND CRAKES. 



The Eails and Crakes are birds of retiring habits, 

 haunting the reed-beds and thickets in marshy localities, 

 and are consequently but seldom seen and little known. 



WATER-FOWL. 



The Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) the Kooi-bles 

 Hoender or Eooi-bles Riet-Haaii of the Boers is black 

 in colour, fading into a slatey shade on the under-surface. 

 Frontal shield red. Basal portion of bill red, remainder 

 greenish-yellow. 



This is a widely spread species, being also found in 

 Europe and Asia. Length 13 inches. 



The Lesser Moorhen (Gallinula angulata) is consider- 

 ably smaller than the preceding species, being only 9J 

 inches in length : it has no red on the lower mandible. 



