CHAPTER XXVIII 

 ORDER OF CRANES, RAILS, AND COOTS 



PALUDICOLAE 



THE name of this Order, Pal-u-dic'o-lae, means "marsh- 

 dweller," and the presence in it of the cranes is enough 

 to make it notable. It must be admitted, however, that from 

 the stately and commanding crane down to the humble coot, 

 the scared gallinule, and the diminutive rail, is a long step 

 downward. But it is inevitable that the efforts of science to 

 classify the birds of the world in as few Orders as possible 

 should bring together many widely divergent forms. To 

 have a greater number of Orders would be still more confusing 

 to the general student than the present number. 



In the Order of Marsh-Dwellers there are only two Fami- 

 lies which we feel called upon to notice here. These are the 

 Cranes and the Rails, Gallinules and Coots. 



THE CRANE FAMILY 

 Gruidae 



The cranes of the world form a group of about eighteen 

 species, which, in stateliness, beauty and oddity of habit, are 

 second only to the ostriches and their allies. Every zoolog- 

 ical garden which possesses a good collection of cranes has 

 good reason to be proud of it. The Crowned Cranes of Africa 



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