BIRDS OF MINNESOTA. 109 



been constructed of different materials, and placed on floating 

 debris. The newly hatched young resemble black chickens in 

 their appearance and notes. In their habits they resemble the 

 Rails. 



Langille, in his work, "Our Birds and their Haunts, "page 

 403, says of the young of this Gallinule: — "These birds which 

 swim, dive, or run upon the lilly-pads with equal ease, are to 

 be associated with still waters, and with that queen of our 

 ponds and lakes, the sweet-scented water-nymph. No infant 

 of a royal household ever sported under a more beautiful can- 

 opy than is found by these Gallinule chicks beneath the snowy 

 wreath of odorous petals and central crown of gold, standing 

 like an elegant sunshade in that quiet nook, which mirrors the 

 bluff and the surrounding landscape." 



SPECIFIC CHARACTERS. 



Frontal plate large, obovate, terminating square on top 

 of the head; bill shorter than head, rather thick, compressed; 

 wing rather long; tail short; legs moderate; toes and claws 

 long and robust; head, neck, and entire under parts dark- 

 bluish cinerous, frequentlj' nearly black on the head and neck, 

 and generally lighter on the abdomen; a few feathers on the 

 flanks widely edged with white; shorter under tail coverts 

 black, longer ones white; upper parts brownish-olive, darker 

 on tlie rump; quills dark brown; tail brownish -black; frontal 

 plate and bill, bright red, tipped with yellow; tibia with a 

 bright red space on the bare portion next to the feathers; 

 low^er portion of the tibia, tarsus and toes yellowish-green. 



Length, 12.50; wing, 6.75; tail, 3; bill, 1.25; tarsus, 1.75-2. 



Habitat, temperate and tropical America. 



FULICA AMERICANA Gmelin. (221.) 



AMERICAN COOT. 



A most abundant and uuiversally distributed species, reach- 

 ing us but little if any later in spring than the Mallards, 

 breeding in extensive communities on inaccessible bogs, with 

 nests of half rotted reeds loosely built, in which they lay ten 

 or a dozen dirty-cream eggs, speckled and spotted with dark- 

 umber. This is the terse record of the Coot or Mud Hen, in 

 Minnesota. 



From the Iowa line to the British possessions, the testimony 

 of observers is the same, that they are "abundant every- 

 where." Mr. Washburn's report of the ornithology of Otter 

 Tail county speaks of their presence in great numbers on a 

 little lake near Dead lake as late as the 26th of October (1885), 



