BRITISH BIRDS IN SOUTH AFRICA 



be very rare in its occurrence. It winters certainly in 

 North Africa, and there is no reason why individuals 

 should not occasionally migrate south of the equator. 

 Baillon's crake, a handsome species, which occasion- 

 ally breeds in Britain, is often plentiful in South Africa 

 in the more marshy parts of the country. It is very 

 difficult to flush, and thus escapes frequent observa- 

 tion. The landrail, or corncrake, so familiar to our 

 farmers in summer and to sportsmen in September, is 

 well known in Natal, but rare in Cape Colony. Its 

 preference for Natal is easily accounted for : that colony, 

 with its heavier rainfall and more abundant vegetation, 

 affords a much more attractive feeding-ground than the 

 drier regions of Cape Colony. 



The British moorhen is well known in South Africa, 

 where it breeds in February and March. Curiously 

 enough, however, the number of eggs produced — 

 usually from two to four — is less than is the case with 

 these birds nesting in Europe, where from five or six 

 to as many as eight and ten eggs are produced. 



Among grebes — the crested grebe, the eared grebe, 

 and the little grebe or dabchick, all British birds — are 

 found in South Africa. Passing to sea-birds, the storm 

 petrel, or Mother Carey's chicken, a fairly well-known 

 British species, is, according to the late C. J. Andersson, 

 common upon the south-west coast of Africa. Among 

 gulls, the common skua, the pomatorhine skua, and 

 Richardson's skua occur both in Britain and South 

 Africa, the latter being quite common in Table Bay 

 during the summer months. Among terns, the Caspian 

 tern, common tern, Sandwich tern, whiskered tern, and 

 white-winged black tern (the two last named only rare 

 British birds) are all well known in South Africa, some- 

 times, as in the case of the white-winged black tern, 

 inland, but more often upon the coastline. Finally, it 



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