VOL. XVIII, PP. 141-142 JUNE 9, 1905 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THK 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



A NEW SPECIES OF CLAPPER RAIL FROM YUCATAN. 

 BY E. W. NELSON. 



During a recent examination of the series of Mexican birds 

 in the Field Columbian Museum I found a single specimen of a 

 new species of clapper rail from the north coast of Yucatan. I 

 am indebted to the courtesy of Mr. C. B. Cory, Curator of Birds 

 in this museum for the opportunity to describe the species. My 

 thanks are also due Mr. Ned Dearborn, Assistant Curator of 

 Birds, for his cordial assistance during my recent examination 

 of the collection in his charge. 



Rallus pallidus sp. nov. 



YUCATAN RAIL. 



Type from Rio Lagartos, Yucatan, Mexico. No. 13,200, $ ad. Field 

 Columbian Museum. April 15, 1893. W. W. Brown. 



Distribution. North coast of Yucatan, and probably of Campecbe, 

 Mexico. 



Specific characters. Most like Rallus crepitans waynei but bill shorter and 

 slenderer ; breast and outer side of wings more reddish; streaks of gray and 

 brown on upperparts more strongly contrasted. 



Description of iype. Top of head and neck bistre brown ; feathers of 

 back, scapulars, tertials, rump and upper tail coverts olivaceous bistre 

 brown, broadly edged with ashy gray producing strongly marked streaks 

 of gray and brown; upper surface of primaries and secondaries nearly 

 Isabella color with a wash of cinnamon ; wing coverts decidedly more 

 cinnamon than primaries and sparingly marked with transverse bars of 

 white; upper surface of tail feathers bistre brown edged with hair brown ; 



23-Puoc. BIOL. Soc. WASH., VOL. XVIII, 1905. (141) 



