HYPOTHETICAL LIST. 743 



Although the name has appeared in various lists, particularly those of 

 Covert, Hughes, Atkins, and Stockwell, we are satisfied that specimens 

 of the King Rail were mistaken for the other species. The Clapper Rail 

 is a bird of the salt marshes of the Atlantic coast and probably never 

 occurs within our limits. 



Black Rail. Creciscus jamaicensis (Gincl). (216) 



Synonyms: Little Black Rail. — Rallus jamaicensis, Gm. — Porzana jamaicensis of 

 most authors. 



A tiny rail whose dark slate plumage, flecked with white, is distinctive. 



Distribution. — Temperate North America, north to Massachusetts, 

 northern Ilhnois, and Oregon; south to the West Indies and Guatemala. 



This diminutive rail, the smallest of the genus found in the United 

 States, if not anywhere, is extremely rare in Michigan if it occur at all. 

 So far as we are aware no Michigan specimen exists in any museum or 

 private collection, and it has been recorded from the state but once, and 

 the identification in that case was hardly conclusive. In his list of the 

 birds of Washtenaw county (1881), Mr. Covert says "One specimen only 

 has fallen under my notice from this county; this specimen was brought 

 to me June 4, 1880." In his manuscript list for 1894-95 he states that 

 this bird was killed near Ann Arbor by C. Stoll, and was brought to him 

 on the morning of June 4 just as he was starting for Albion where he was 

 employed. He took the bird with him in his hand-bag, but had no oppor- 

 tunity to skin it until night, when he found that it had spoiled from the 

 heat, and it was thrown away. 



So far as we can find, this species is not mentioned in any other Michigan 

 list, but there are records from southern Ontario, northern Illinois, Ohio, 

 Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Nebraska (See J. A. Allen, Auk, XVII, 

 5). The single Wisconsin record is as follows: "August 20, 1877 a Marsh 

 Hawk was killed by F. Kumlien from a muskrat house on the border of 

 Lake Koshkonong. When noted first it was eating something, and this 

 proved to be a Little Black Rail" (Kumlien and HolHster, Birds of Wiscon- 

 sin, p. 39). There are two records for Ohio, and Mr. E. W. Nelson found 

 the species nesting near Chicago in 1875. He states that "The nest was 

 found June 19, 1875, and contained ten fresh eggs. The eggs are creamy 

 white, nearly perfectly oval, thinly sprinkled with fine reddish-brown 

 dots which become larger and more numerous at one end. They average 

 1 by .85 inches" (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, I, 43). Mr. Nelson considens 

 the species a regular summer resident in noi'theastcrn Illinois, and not 

 very rare. 



This bird is almost mouse-like in its habit of running through the thick 

 grass making it practically impossible to flush it except with a dog. Con- 

 sidei'ing all the facts, it is not improba]:)le that the Black Rail visits southern 

 Michigan occasionally in very small numbers, but thus far has escaped 

 detection. 



TECH NICAL DESCRIPTION. 



"Dusky above, tlic back si)eckle(l with white. Adult: Head, neck, and lower jiarts 

 plain dark phunbcous, or slate color, ilarker (sometimes nearly black) on top of head; 

 belly and imdcr tail-coverts brownisli Ijlack, liarred witli wliitefliind neck and back dark 

 chestnut brown, marked with small dots and irrci^ular bars of white. Youiis^: Similar 

 to adult, but In-east, etc. dull jirayisii, tlie Ihroat whilisli, and to]) of head tinged with 

 reddisli-brown. Downv voung: iMitircly l)hiish-black. Length 5 to (> inches; wing 2 50 

 to ;'..•_'(); culincn .r>() to ".()(); tarsus ..S.^") to .90" (Hidgway). 



