RALLID.E - TIIH (iALLINTLKS — loNOHNIS. 



383 



misvcrM'ly 



I. IhtiVini 



lii'c>\vni.»^li : 

 It ill (li'iid 



II, .H")-.!)! I ; 



of (irci'ii- 

 iHt, as lur 

 (•('iisii)ii:il. 

 •urriiit,' ill 



iiiikiii^' its 

 ol' April. 

 It usuiiU.v 

 ot with lis 

 and iilmii 



I Nor\v;iy. 

 the iMitiiv 

 iiiciitioiicil 



II noted 111 

 i\w biids 



)t a sin^^lf 

 •cnrri'iicc" 

 Iv. VanvU, 



;iiid was oliscrvcd to gather her large i'aiiiily under lier wings withont making any 

 distinetioii Ix'tween them. 



In Enghuid many I.and-lfails are shot liy tlie s]iortsmeii. and an; eonsiden-d most 

 delicate as artirles id' food. This Itird does not take wing very readily, and Hies 

 slowly, with its 'e"s hanging down, s(ddom going t'urtiier than the nearest phiee of 

 sli.'lter, and is rarely Hushed a .-.eeond time, 



Oeeasionally, when e.xpo.sed to dang' rs from wliich it is nnahhi to eseajie, this liird 

 will put on tiie .semlilanee of death, dis.se narrates a striking instanee, in whieh a 

 Ciirn-Crake had heen brought to a gentleman liy his (h)g, to all appearanee (piite dead, 

 .^itanding l>y in sUeuiie, he suddenly saw it open an eye. I let hen took it up: its head 

 ;e4,iiii fell, its h'gs dropped loosely, and it appeared to lie (piite dead, lie then 

 pill it in his pocket, and liid'ore long he fidt it strugglini,' to escape, lie took it out, 

 :iiiil it was again as apparently lifeless as Indore. Having laid it upon the ground 

 and retired to a distance, the liird in a few minutes warily raised its head, looked 

 around, and ran off at full speed, .lust li(d'ore these liirds take their dejiartiire, in 

 the fall, they congregate tiigether in large flocks. 



The gnmnd-eolor of the egg of this species, when fresh, is a pale reddish white, 

 spotted and sjieckled with ashy gray and a pale red-lirown. It measures — aei'ording 

 to ^'arndl — l.")!) inches in length liy l.l.'l inches in breadth. An egg in my collection 

 (No. 1;>.S'.)) — given me by J)r. Macdiman, and reeiiived from Mr. Doubleday — mi'as- 

 urcs J.oO by l.lO iuidies. lieingoviil in sliaiie, onP end decidedly tapering. Its ground 

 color is a light buff with a slightly reddish shade. Tke markings are few, si'attered. 

 and large, nowhere confluent, but larger and more numerous at the obtuse end, and of 

 ;i rich shade of dark red, with a tcMidency to brown. It is, in miniature, a fac-similu 

 (il the eggs of the common ICuropean tiallinule {(lnUlnala chloropus). 



-meadows 

 ■nee is iii- 

 .e or Corn- 

 so nearly 

 rd can !"■ 

 call is the 

 he season 

 il. besides 

 suddenly 



ill lizards, 

 placed on 

 , or clover 

 o be from 

 he young, 

 uire their 



Imen were 

 Ills, on the 

 Iven eggs. 

 Iteen eggs 

 lin that ol 

 jy-nine, all 

 them all, 



Gkxis IONORNIS, Ivkk in:\i!.\(ii. 



'1 rorphi/ntht, I5i.Yiir, Cut. R. Asiut. Sor. ]84i", '283 (tyin', P. rhhimiolnn, Blytu). 

 IiKioniin, HiacuKNU. Sy.st. Av. liS.'iii, |i. xxi (tyi"', Fiiliat iiidi'linicti, Linn.). 



/. 1)111 I'll iiivii. 



' The interrogntion-mark hciv implies the douht existing as to whether the Indian bird is congeneric 

 with the American .sjieeies. Should such prove to be the case, which we do not regard probable, our bird 

 woulil stand as Porphyrula martinica. 



