GALLINULIN.E. 719 



Length 12 to 13 inches; extent 20 ; wing 6§; tail nearly 3; bill 

 at gape l T ' n ; tarsus 1 T %; middle toe and claw 2 T ^. The female 

 is larger and somewhat richer colored than the male. The 

 young has the head and upper parts olivaceous brown ; the throat, 

 neck in front, and a spot beneath the eye whitish ; breast and 

 beneath, pale grey. 



The Water-hen is generally diffused throughout India and the 

 whole of the Old Continent, preferring small rivers, jheels, and 

 tanks bordered by a belt of shrubs and trees. It swims freely, but 

 when approached always retreats to the shore, and conceals itself 

 among the branches of trees or shrubs, which it climbs with great 

 facility, or among thick reeds. It runs with the tail erect. The 

 food of theWater-hen is chiefly vegetable, but it also takes aquatic 

 insects, larva?, and even it is said, small fish. It is considered good 

 eating by many. It generally makes a large nest of weeds either 

 floating or fixed to reeds and branches, and lays six to eight pink- 

 ish-cream or grey eggs, spotted and ringed with red-brown, 



906. G-allinula Burnesii, Blyth. 



J. A. S. XIII. ISQ—Gajra, Sindh. 



Small Water-hen. 



Descr. — Similar to G. chloropus, or intermediate to it and 

 Porzana akool; the head and neck are like those of the common 

 Water-hen, but the frontal plate is small or wanting", the outer web 

 of the 1st primary is white, and the outermost feather of the 

 winglet is also bordered with white ; the wing-coverts are dark 

 slaty ash ; and the under tail-coverts are white. It is smaller than 

 G. chloropus ; extent 1 8 inches ; tarsus 2|- ; mid-toe 2| ; claws 

 also shorter ; irides bright pale crimson ; legs and feet as in 

 chloropus, but the orange garter less developed. 



This species was discriminated by Mr. Blyth from a drawing and 

 some fragments of a specimen sent by Sir A. Burnes, from the 

 Munchur lake in Sindh. It appears to me rather a doubtful 

 species, but I shall retain it in the hopes of other specimens 

 turning up. 



