d40 CLASS AVES. 



them home at the close of night. It is from this circum- 

 stance that Latham has named it the Faithful Jacana. 



Megapodius is a new genus, recently discovered. M. M. 

 Gaimard and Quoy, attendant naturalists on the expedition 

 rotmd the Avorld by Captain Freycinet, in the month of De- 

 cember, 1818, found in the Papuan islands a bird which in 

 their opinion presented many relations with Menura, and 

 which also seemed to constitute a passage between the gal- 

 linas and the grallae. Our author, however, at first, and like- 

 wise M. Temminck, rather referred it to the former of those 

 orders ; and the latter considered it as the representative of 

 the tinamous in the hot regions of the old world. Our 

 author, however, in his last edition, has transferred it to the 

 grallas. The name megapodius has been given to the genus 

 in consequence of the size of the feet. 



The Megapodius Freycinet is very common in the island 

 of Guebe, where it appears to live in a state of semi-domes- 

 tication. The humid woods are its habitual dwelling. Its 

 walk is slow ; and the feet being thrown backward, the body 

 is continually projected forward, which gives a vaulted or 

 arched appearance to the figure of the bird. It nearly sl^aves 

 the ground in its flight, which is but of short duration. Its cry 

 is a sort of clucking. The eggs, of a pale brick colour, or that 

 of coffee Avith milk, are oblong, and disproportionately bulky 

 -compared with the size of the animal. An individual of this 

 species lived for several days on board of the corvette Uranie. 

 There are some other species, concerning the habits of which 

 we find no details worth adding to the above. One of these 

 we have figured under the name of M. Reinivardtii. It 

 is the M, a pieds rouges of Tem., and is described at 

 page 401. 



• The name of Rail {Rale, Rallus) appears to be attri- 

 butable, according to Buffon, to the disagreeable cry uttered 

 by the land rail, which resembles a rattling in the throat 



