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REVISION OF THE CLAPPER RAILS — OBERHOLSER 345 



Wing, 131-154 (141.3); tail, 56-66 (60.9); exposed culmen, 55.5-64 

 (59.9); tarsus, 42-52.5 (47.7); middle toe without claw, 38-47 (43.9). 



Type locality. — The Rigolets Lighthouse between Lake Borgne and 

 Lake Ponchartrain, southeastern Louisiana. 



Geographic distribution. — Permanent resident in the region of the 

 coast of the Gulf of IMexico, east to southwestern Alabama (Perdido 

 Bay), and west from southern Mississippi and southern Louisiana to 

 central southern Texas (Brownsville). Casual southeastward to 

 central western Florida (Seven Oaks on Tampa Bay). 



Remarks. — This clapper rail differs from Rallus longirostris yuman- 

 ensis in shorter tail and longer bill and in having the cinnamon of the 

 anterior lower parts duller and less pinkish, the abdomen less purely 

 white (somewhat more buffy), and the white bars on sides and flanks 

 averaging wider. From Rallus longirostris obsoletus of California, 

 which (in normal phase) it rather closely resembles, it may be dis- 

 tinguished by its shorter wing, tail, tarsus, and middle toe; rather 

 broader dark centers of the feathers on the upper surface; lighter 

 pileum, somewhat less trenchantly defined from the cervix; less deeply 

 cinnamomeous anterior lower surface; rather darker flanks, the white 

 bars averaging broader; lighter, less brownish, more grayish sides of 

 head; less blackish lores; and broader, more distinct superciliary 

 stripe. From Rallus longirostris cubanus it may be separated by its 

 lighter upper and lower surface and broader white bars on the flanks; 

 from Rallus longirostris caribaeus by the darker, more blackish feather 

 centers of the upper parts, the darker cinnamon of the lower surface, 

 and the darker flanks; and irom. Rallus longirostris limnetis on accoimt 

 of its longer wing and tail, somewhat shorter tarsus and middle toe; 

 rather darker upper parts; darker cinnamon of the breast; rather 

 broader white bars on flanks; and (in normal phase) jugulum less 

 tinged with grayish. 



In this race the jugulum is usually more or less gray, although there 

 are specimens which lack practically all tinge of this color. Tlirough- 

 out the range of this race as assigned there seems to be no geographic 

 variation, since birds of southern Texas appear to be identical with 

 those from Alabama. Individual variation is highly developed in 

 this subspecies. The great range of difference involves not only 

 color but size. The throat is sometimes almost pure white, varying 

 from this to cinnamon buff; the breast and jugulum range from very 

 pale to deep cinnamon, almost as dark as in Rallus elegans. The 

 flanks are in some specimens light hair brown, in others decidedly 

 blackish; the top of the head ranges from blackish brown to rather 

 light rufescent brown; the centers of the feathers on the back and 

 scapulars vary from blackish clove brown to rather light rufescent 

 bro^\^l; the edgings of the back and scapulars from nearly pure gray 

 to oUve gray and brownish olive gray. The white bars on the flanks 



