CHAPTER IX.
the finfoot and the bustards.
Neither of the above types are waders, the Finfoot being
a swimming bird and the Bustards never going into water ;
but they are so intimately related to certain wading fami-
lies of this section, and are so interesting besides, that I
make no further apology for devoting a chapter to them.
The extraordinary birds known as Finfoots appear
to be nearly allied to the Rails.
finfoots (Heliornithidc&).
In the Finfoots the bill, head, and wings resemble those
of a Rail and the toes, three in front, one behind, are pro-
vided with scalloped lobes as in a Coot; but the shanks
are quite short, and the tail well developed. Only three
species are known, one in Africa, one in Eastern Asia, and
one in South America and nothing is known about the
breeding habits of any of them, except that a male of the
South American kind (Heliornis fulica) was once shot
carrying two naked young under his wings. They are
thoroughly aquatic birds, swimming low in the water and
diving freely, like Cormorants.
The Masked Finfoot.
Heliopais personata.—blanford, Faun. Brit. Ind.,
Birds, Vol. IV, p. 182.
The general colour of   this bird is brown above, white
below, the male having a black face and throat, and the