108 CHECK LIST OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



668. Grus americana (L.) Temm. B 478. c 462. R 582. 



White Crane; Whooping Crane. 



669. Grus canadensis (L.) Teinm. B 480. c 463. R 584. 



Northern Sandhill Crane. 



670. Grus pratensis Bartr. B 479. c . R 583. 



Southern Sandhill Crane. 



671. Aramus pictus (Bartr.) Coues. B 481. C 464. R 581. 



Scolopaceous Courlan ; Limpkin. 



672. Parra gymnostoma Wagl. B . c . R 568. (! M.) 



Mexican Jacana. 

 i 



673. Rallus longirostris crepitans (Gm.) Ridg. B 553. c 465. R 571. 



Clapper Rail ; Salt Marsh Hen. 



668. Grus am-Sr-i-ca'-na. Lat. grits, genitive gruis, feminine noun of the third declension, a 



crane. The word refers to the hollow guttural voice of the birds, and is apparently 

 related to English grunt. 



669. G. can-a-den'-sis. It was doubtless upon the northern bird, figured by Edwards, that 



Linnaeus based this name. G. fraterculus of Cassin has been found distinct from the 

 common sandhill crane of the United States, and identical with the northern bird. It is 

 therefore properly a synonym of canadensis, and another name must be found for the 

 United States bird commonly called canadensis. See next species. See Ridg., Bull. 

 Nutt. Club, v, 1880, p. 187 ; Coues, ibid., p. 188. 



670. G. pra-ten'-sis. Lat. pratensis, relating to pralum, a field. 



Not in the orig. ed. See last species. 



671. Ar'-a-mus pic'-tiis. The word aratmts is unknown to us. Agassiz gives it as " nom. 



propr." A correspondent remarks: " Vieillot's Analyse is very incorrectly printed, and 

 some letter may have been omitted or changed ; hence the clue is still to seek. The 

 origin seems hopeless, unless revealed by accident." Under these circumstances, it is 

 consoling to reflect that the word is more decorous in form than many of known classic 

 derivation. Lat. pictus, see Setophaga, No. 151. 



672. Par'-ra gym-n5'-st6-ma. Parra is a good Latin word, being the name of some unknown 



bird regarded as of ill-omen ; as occurring in Pliny, said to be the European Lapwing, 

 VaneUus cristatns. Transferred by Linnaeus to a mixed lot of spur-winged birds, 

 chiefly of America. " Jafana " is the Brazilian name of a species of this genus ; made 

 a generic term by Brisson in 1760, and we do not see why it should not be employed 

 instead of Parra. Gr. yv/j.i/6s, naked, and o-ro'/xa, mouth ; in allusion to the caruncular 

 skin at the base of the bill. 



Not in the orig. ed. ; since discovered in Texas by J. C. Merrill : see Bull. Nutt. 

 Club, i, 1876, p. 88 ; Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., i, 1878, p. 167. 



673. Ral'-lus lon-gl-ros'-tris crep'-i-tans. Rallus is said to be contracted from rarulus, a 



diminutive of rarus, rare ; and to mean thin, slight ; if so, the adjective has become an 

 apt generic name for these lean narrow birds. It is more likely, however, to be 

 onomatopoeic, Latinized in late days from the French rasle, rale, a rattling cry, Engl. 

 rail, to reproach, deride, c., having nothing to do with the English rail (of a fence) ; 

 very applicable to these clamorous birds. Lat. longirostris, long-billed. Lat. cre/ii/ans, 

 present participle of crepito, I creak, crackle, clatter, crepitate; a frequentative or inten- 

 sive form of crepo, of same signification. 

 This is R. longirostris of the orig. ed. 



