244 EALLIDJE EALLUS 



670. Ballus cserulescens. Kaffir Rail. 



Eallus caerulesoens, Gmel. Syst. Nat. i, p. 716 (1788) ; GiiU, K. Vet. 

 AJcad. Handl. StocMi. ii, no. 10, p. 54 (1858) [Knysna and Oudt- 

 shoorn] ; Layarcl, B. 8. Afr. p. 337 (1867) ; Gurney, Ibis, 1868, p. 

 471 ; id. in Andersson's B. Damaral. p. 316 (1872) ; Ayres, Ibis, 1873, 

 p. 283, 1874, p. 107, 1877, p. 351 ; Barratt, Ibis, 1876, pp. 183, 213 ; 

 Holub d Pelzeln, Orn. Siid-Afr. p. 295 (1882) ; Sharpe, ed. Layard's 

 B. S. Afr. p. 610 (1884) ; Sharpe, Cat. B. M. xxiii, p. 25 (1894) ; 

 Shelley, B. Afr. i. p. 175 (1896) ; Woodivard Bros., Natal B., p. 168 

 (1899) ; Beichenow, Vbg. Afr. i, p. 275 (1900). 



Eallus aquatious {neo Linn.), Gurney, Ibis, 1859, p. 249 [Natal], 1868, 

 p. 261 [Damaraland] . 



Description. Adult. — General colour above dark brown, darkest 

 on the wings and tail and becoming a dark slaty-black on the 

 crown ; sides of the face, neck and breast dark slaty-blue, becoming 

 white on the throat ; flanks, thighs and abdomen black, trans- 

 versely banded with narrow bars of white ; under tail-coverts 

 white; axillaries and under wing-coverts black, barred and mottled 

 with white. 



S^ 





Pig. 76. — Head of Ballus ccBrulescens . x \\ 



Iris red brown to blood red ; bill and feet bright red. 



Length 10-5; wing 4-20 ; tail 1-5 ; culmenl.70; tarsus 1-5. 



The young bird is browner than the adult, the sides of the neck 

 and breast are brown, the chin and centre of the breast whitish 

 tinged with rufous brown ; the abdomen, flanks and under tail- 

 coverts are brown, irregularly barred with rufous brown ; iris dusky 

 tawny, bill dusky-brown mclining to reddish about the tip and 

 nostrils, legs dull brown. 



Distribution. — Though nowhere very common, this Bail is widely 

 spread over the greater part of South Africa and extends beyond 

 our limits to southern Angola, Nyasaland and German East Africa ; 



