NOVA SCOTIAN ZOOLOGY — PIERS. 401 



McKinlay has since written to me that in April, 1894, a "white 

 Brant" had been seen with a number of others of the normal 

 colour. He had not heard of the specimen just noted. 



Glossy Ibis (Plefjadis autumn alls). Mr. J. McKinlay reports 

 that early in May, about twenty-seven years ago, while the 

 weather still was cold, a farmer who lived near the head waters 

 of the East River of Pictou, noticed two odd-looking birds on 

 the margin of a grassy lake. With some difficulty he managed 

 to get within gun-range, and fired, killing one and putting its 

 companion to flight. They proved to belong to the above 

 species, and had evidently wandered far from their southern 

 habitat. Mr. Downs had one specimen of this bird, taken in our 

 province, and Mr. Thomas Brewer informed him that a flock 

 passed through the New England States about the same time. 

 This is the flock referred to in the " Catalogue of the Birds of 

 Nova Scotia." In 1878, Mr. Frank L. Tileston saw several birds 

 "undoubtedly of this species" in Prince Edward Islan^l,* and 

 Mr Francis Bain speaks of it as an "occasional visitant " in that 

 province.-f- The latter expression, however, does not sufficient- 

 ly indicate its rareness, for it is merely an accidental straggler 

 in the Dominion of Canada. 



Clapper Hail, ( Rallus longirostris crepitans). On 12th May, 



1892, one of these birds was brought to Mr. W. A. Purcell, taxi- 

 dermist of Halifax. It had been killed at Lawrencetown, 

 Halifax County, probaby a day or two before. In October, 



1893, Mr. Egan also obtained a specimen which came from the 

 same locality. These are the only ones they have ever noted in 

 the province. The species is not included in Mr. Chamberlain's 

 catalogue, nor can I find any other record of its occurrence in 

 the Dominion. It is a regular visitor as far north as Long 

 Island, and has been observed occasionally in Massachusetts. 

 But one example, apparently, has been reported north of Boston ;, 

 it was taken near Portland, Maine.;}: 



* Chamberlain, Catalogue of Canadian Birds, p. 3L 

 t Birds of Privce Edward Island, 1891, p. 69. 



X Chamberlain's Ornithology of U. •'S. and Canada, based on ^^uttaU's Manualy 

 1891, p. 187. 



