DIMENSIONS.
Inches. Lines. Inches. Lines
ength from the tip of the bill to the Length of the tarsus ............ ............ 0 9
end of the tail........................ 5 6 of the inner toe ......... ........... 0 7
of the bill from the angle of the of the outer toe ........ ............ 0 n
mouth..................................... 0 eh of the middle toe......... ........... 0 9i
of the wings when folded ....... 2 9 of the hinder toe......... ........... 0 3
of the tail ................................. 1 8
Though I have never seen the female of this species, yet, from information
I have received, I am disposed to believe she resembles the male in point
of colours.
This elegant little rail is but rarely obtained by collectors in South Africa. The figure here
given is a representation of the only specimen I have ever procured, though I remember
having once seen another in the possession of a dealer in Cape Town. It resorts to marshy
grounds, or the vicinity of lakes, and is occasionally to be seen flitting about among the reeds,
by which the lakes are generally margined. I t also at times extends its peregrinations upon
the aquatic plants which sometimes coat the surface of stagnant waters; and while in such
a position it appears actively engaged in feeding upon the aquatic insects which occur upon
these plants.
Should A le c th e lia of Lesson prove a good groupe, and should the South African bird which
Swainson has described under the name of A le c th e lia lin ea ta * belong to it, then the present
species must stand as A le c th e lia J a r d in ii, and that represented in Plate 20, as A le c th e lia
d im id ia ta . I believe Swainson’s bird to be the young of the latter.
* Lardner s Cyclopeedia, Menageries, page 338.