Vol. 33, pp. 33-34 July 24, 1920 



PROCEEDINGS 



3f the 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



DESCRIPTION OF A NEW CLAPPER RAIL FROM 



FLORIDA. 



BY HARRY C. OBERHOLSER. 



A clapper rail obtained by Dr. Paul Bartsch on his recent 

 trip to the Florida Keys proves to belong to an undescribed 

 race which may be called 



Rallus longirostris helius, subsp. nov. 

 Mangrove Clapper Rail. 



Chars, subsp. — Similar to Rallus longirostris scotti from western Florida 

 but much lighter both above and below, the edgings on the upper parts 

 much less olivaceous (more clearly grayish). 



Description. — Type, adult male, No. 255254, U. S. National Museum; 

 sixth key in the Newfound Harbor group, southwest of Big Pine Key, 

 Florida, May 12, 1919; Dr. Paul Bartsch. Pileum olive brown, the cen- 

 ters of the feathers darker; hind neck between Saccardo's umber and 

 sepia, mixed with grayish feather edgings, which posteriorly impart a 

 streaked appearance; back and scapulars with the feathers centrally sepia, 

 marginally clear gray; rump and upper tail-coverts sepia with broad, dull, 

 olive gray feather margins; tail between olive brown and fuscous, the 

 shafts of the rectrices clove brown; wings dark olive brown, the outer and 

 inner edges of the quills lighter, the superior coverts still lighter and 

 inclining to cinnamon, the inner coverts washed with grayish; outer web 

 of outermost feather of alula mottled and partly edged with pale cinnamon ; 

 sides of head rather dark neutral gray, the lores darker and more brown- 

 ish, the supraloral stripe and line on the lower eyelid dull white; sides of 

 neck light neutral gray washed with buffy, posteriorly darker, less purely 

 gray and indistinctly streaked with dull brown; chin and throat white; 

 malar stripe pale ochraceous buff; center of jugulum and whole of breast, 

 between pinkish buff and pinkish cinnamon, the middle of breast paler; 

 abdomen dull, buffy white; sides of body and flanks rather dark brownish 

 gray, broadly barred with white; lower tail-coverts white, widely barred 



5— Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. 33, 1920. (33) 



