330 



CRAKES. 



CREX, Bechstem. Generic characters. Bill 

 short, strong at the hase; culmen entering the 

 plumage of the forehead, its outline slightly 

 deflected to the tip ; maxilla angulated ; nasal 

 fossa broad ; nostrils pierced in its membrane ; 

 wings, at the carpal angle armed with a knob 

 or rudimentary spine, rather short, concave, 

 second or third quills longest; legs strong, 

 naked for a short space above the tarsal joint ; 

 anterior toes long, slender, cleft to their base ; 

 hallux short, articulated nearly on the plane of 

 the others. 



Types, C. pratensis^ porzana^ gularis, c. Cos- 

 mopolite. 



Note. Habits skulking ; chiefly aquatic ; breed 

 on the ground ; and lay numerous eggs ; noisy 

 and often nocturnal. 



