YELLOW RAIL, 



CRAKE. 

 PORZANA NOVEBORACENSIS. 



Char. Above, brownish buff, varied with black and white ; tail black ; 

 below, buff, pale on the belly, deepest on the breast ; flanks dusky, barred 

 with dull white ; under tail-coverts rufous. Length 6 to 7^ inches. 



Nest. In a marsh or reedy margin of a stream or pond ; a loosely con- 

 structed affair of grass and weed stems, hid in a bunch of sedges or reeds. 



Eggs. 5-9 (usually about 6) ; deep buff or creamy, spotted at the 

 larger end with reddish brown; i 10 X 0.85. 



The Yellow- breasted Rail, though found sparingly in many 

 parts of the Union and in Canada, is everywhere rare. It has 

 been met with, apparently, as a mere straggler in the vicinity of 

 New York and Philadelphia in the depth of winter, and has 

 likewise been seen in Missouri, probably on its spring passage 

 towards the North. Where it winters, whether in the Southern 

 States or in still milder climes, is yet unknown. 



Mr. Hutchins says, *' This elegant bird is an inhabitant of 

 the marshes " on the coast of Hudson Bay, near the mouth of 

 Severn River, " from the middle of May to the end of Sep- 

 tember. It never flies above sixty yards at a time, but runs 

 with great rapidity among the long grass near the shores. In 

 the morning and evening it utters a note which resembles the 



