except during the latter part of the spring, the summer and
autumn.
Probably many cross the Himalayas and leave the Empire
altogether ; but some few apparently remain to breed everywhere
both in Southern and Northern India. Great numbers
breed in the lower outer ranges of the Himalayas, and many
appear in various portions of the country during the rains or
hot season wheie, during the rest of the year, they are never
seen. For instance, at Tavoy they were abundant in April and
May and during the summer, but had entirely disappeared in
November. In the Cantonments of Agra I have repeatedly seen
them in gardens in May and June, but have failed to find them
anywhere near Agra at any other season. From many localities
people write that this species is only a cold weather visitant,
while from others they report " seen only during the rains."
On the very imperfect evidence available, my "working hypothesis"
is that a large proportion of our birds arc purely coldweather
visitants to the Empire ; that of the remainder a considerable
portion move to and breed in the Himalayas during the hot
and rainy seasons, and that the rest move about the country a
great deal. Some affect wet, low-lying lands during the
cold weather, such as the Deltaic districts of Lower Bengal, and
move up during the rains to drier (though at that season wellwatered)
districts. Many residents of jht'ls and swamps in
drier portions of the country wander into irrigated gardens
and groves during the hot weather when their winter homes
have dried up; a great many seem to follow rice, wild and
cultivated, and disappear from tracts where all this has been
cut or has dried away, to re-appear when the rice re-appears.
For, although you may at one time or another find them anywhere,
where there is water and cover, on the banks of streams,
in irrigated gardens or corn crops, swamps and pieces of water
of any kind the banks of which afford grassy, sedgy, or herbaceous
cover, there is no such certain find for this species
as patches of the wild rice (pitsaiec) or the grassy margins of
fields of cultivated rice, whether on the plains or in the hills.
It is not exclusively confined to fresh water, as Mr. Vidal writes
to me that " it is common in the salt marshes and tidal swamps
at Ratnagiri, and is often flushed when beating for Snipe."
They are, as a rule, very shy and retiring birds, somewhat
hard to flush, and rarely seen in the open except when met with
in some secluded piece of water where fowlers never penetrate
and guns are seldom even heard. There they may be observed
running about briskly over the lotus leaves and other aquatic
plants that cover the surface in broad patches, or swimming
about merrily from patch to patch, prying under the leaves, to
the under sides of which are attached the larvre which form, in
such situations, a large portion of their food.
When disturbed, they instantly dart off to cover, only rising,
BAILLON'S CRAKE. 205
even when surprised in the open, when hard pressed. Once in
cover, they cannot easily be put up without dogs, but push their
way rapidly through rush, reed, and rice stems with a facility
doubtless due in a great measure to the wedge-like shape of
their bodies, which, like those of the entire family, are excessively
compressed laterally and are much deeper than they are wide.
When flushed by dogs or suddenly surprised in thin low
grass, standing in water, and thus difficult to progress through,
while it affords insufficient concealment, they rise with rapid
beats of the wings (apparently with some difficulty, and with
their large legs and feet hanging down) and soon drop again,
suddenly and Quail-like, into suitable cover. Indeed, seen from
a little distance, the colour of the upper surface and the flight
generally (once they are well on the wing) remind one much
of the Common Quail.
Swimming about, they arc miniature Water-Hens, jerking their
tails and nodding their heads just like these, and when wounded,
like these diving readily and then lying up in amongst the weeds
with only their bills above the surface.
It is very rare to find them alone ; as a rule, where you find one
you will, if you search carefully, find several, and even if you
do not see them, you will, when you hear one call, almost
always hear three or four more calling round about.
Their note is peculiar and very loud for the size of the bird ;
a single note, repeated slowly at first, and then several times in
rapid succession, winding up with a single and somewhat sharper
note in a different tone, as if the bird was glad that that performance
was over.
Judging from my limited experience, of the next species I
should say that the latter more affects broads and lakes, the
present species, swamps and rice fields. In other respects there
seems very little difference in the life-history of the two species.
Others say that this species feeds very little on anything but
insects. I have always found quantities of small seeds and
remains of green vegetable matter in the stomachs, besides
tiny snail shells, water beetles, and all kinds of aquatic insects
and their larva;. On several occasions I have found the tiny
wild rice grains mixed with other food ; but though they keep so
much about rice fields, I never noticed that they had eaten paddy,
the grains being perhaps too large.
I think they call chiefly during the hot season and rains. I
cannot remember ever hearing the familiar note during the
winter, though they are noisy birds during the summer, it being at
that season scarcely passible to overlook their call, " tootooing"
it out as they do morning and evening, and far into the night, on
moonlight nights.
THIS SPECIES lays in July, August and September in the
plains of India, and in June and July in Kashmir and the