LITTLE CRAKE. 223 



knocked it down close to the river's edge, when the bird took 

 to the water and swam right across to the other side of the 

 Thames. 



The food of the Corn-Crake is varied, and consists of worms, 

 slugs, snails, small lizards, and also of seeds and plants. 



Nest. A simple structure of dry grass and plants, placed on 

 the ground. 



Eggs. From seven to ten in number. Ground-colour 

 varying from stone grey to greenish-white or huffish clay-colour, 

 with numerous dots and spots of rufous distributed over the 

 egg, the underlying grey spots very distinct and equally 

 distributed. Sometimes the rufous markings collect round the 

 large end of the egg and form a blotch ; but in many eggs, 

 particularly of the stone-coloured type, the spots are more 

 scattered and universally distributed over the surface. Axis, 

 1-4-1-55 inch; diam., ro-i'i. 



THE LITTLE CRAKES. GENUS ZAPORNIA. 



Zapornia, Leach, Syst. Cat. Mamm. & Birds, Brit. Mus. p. 34 

 (1816). 



Type, Z. parva (Scop.). 



The. small Crakes of the genera Zapornia and Porzana 

 differ from the true Crakes (Crex) in their long middle toe, 

 which, with the claw, exceeds the tarsus in length. The sexes 

 in the genus Zapornia differ in colour, and the secondaries are 

 conspicuously shorter than the primaries, falling short of them 

 by as much as the length of the inner toe and claw, so that the 

 wing is decidedly pointed in shape for a Crake. 



I. THE LITTLE CRAKE. ZAPORNIA PARVA. 



Rallus parvuSj Scop. Ann. i. p. 108 (1769). 



Crex pusilla (nee Pall.), Macgill. Brit. B. iv. p. 541 (1852). 



Porzana parva, Dresser, B. Eur. vii. p. 283, pi. 498 (1878) ; 



B. O. U. List Brit. B. p. 148 (1883); Saunders, ed. 



Yarrell's Brit. B. iii. p. 148 (1883); id. Man. Brit. B. 



p. 497 (1889). 



