law of priority, now generally adopted in zoological nomenclature, does not admit, at least in the case of the latter bird, of a change of the specific name, as the term mnuta will always induce the impression that it is the smallest member of its genus, whereas it is really larger than the P. pygmea. As is the case with the other Porzane, no sexual difference is observable in the plumage of the adults; but the young, on the other hand, have all the under surface greyish white, in lieu of dark blue-grey. Very young birds, that is, just after their exclusion from the nest, I have never seen; but I have no doubt that they are very similar in colour to those of the Spotted Crake. The figure in the opposite Plate, with its accompaniments, the Swallow-tailed Butterfly (Papilio Machaon) and the Yellow Water-Lily (Muphar /utea), will, I trust, be of interest. Others might have been chosen, but those selected are in unison with the bird.