New records for the African Crake Crex egregia in the Skeleton Coast Park, Namibia, and on the west coast of South Africa are presented and all records west of 25 E are reviewed. The western distributional boundary in the interior is shown to correlate closely with the summer 300 mm isohyet. The occurrence of the African Crake on the desertic west coast is attributed to the effect of easterly winds which blow individuals beyond their normal range. A summer migratory pattern is evident in Zambia and Zimbabwe but dated records from other parts of southern Africa show a scatter throughout the year more typical of an unobtrusive resident or nomad.