140 RAILS, GALL1XULES, AND COOTS. 



II. Bill nndcr 1-75. 



A. Wing over 6-00. 



a. General color blue, feet yellow 218. PURPLE GALLINL-LE. 



b. General color slaty, feet dark greenish. 



A. Toes with large scalloped webs or flaps at the side. 221. AM. COOT. 

 b*. Toes without flaps or webs 21 ( J. FLORIDA GALLINULE. 



B. Wing under 6-00. 



a. Wing under 3'50. 



a 1 . Buck Mm-kish, with small round, white spots . 21C. BLACK KAIL. 

 cfl. Back blackish, barred with white and margined with l>uff\. 



215. YELLOW KAIL. 



b. Wing over 3-50. 



A>. Bill over 1-00 212. VIKOINIA RAIL. 



c. Bill under I'OO. 



e. Wing over 4-50, lesser wing-coverts rufous . 217. COKN CRAKK. 



c. Wing, under 4-50, lesser wing-coverts olive .... 214. S..UA. 



208. Rallus elegans .('//. Ki\<; KAIL : MARSH HKN. ././. I'ppcr 

 parts varying from olive-brown t" black, tin- back ;ui.l scapulars widely mar- 

 gined with olive-!_'ray ; wind's and tail olive-brown; wing-coverts rufnux ; 



throat white; neck and In-east ./////'//'/-/'/;'(/ ; belly and sides film-mix, 

 Sharply barred \\ith white. /A///-/*// }'n,,i/ (i lossy black. I.., l.Voo; V> ., 



6-60 ; Tar., 2-20 ; B., 2-40. 



Humje. Eastern North America: breeds as far north as Missouri and 

 southern Connecticut, and occasionally strays as far as Wisconsin, Ontario, 

 and Maine; winters from Virginia southward. 



Washington, uncominon S. K.. almost ;i I'. IJ. I.on</ I.-hmd. rare S. R. 



Nest, of grasses, on the ground in fresh-water marshes. /;V/ ; /x, seven to 

 twelve, butl'y white, more heavily spotted and speckled with rufous-brown 

 than those of the next species, 1-f.s < l-iiu. 



The King Rail is the fresh-water rc[ircs<-ntative of the Clapper Kail. 

 It is, however, a much less common bird, and less is known of its 

 habits. Like other Rails, it is a skulker, and never flies when it can 

 escape by running or hiding in the dense grass of its home. On three 

 occasions I have heard what I am quite sure was the King Rail's call, 

 a loud, startling hup, bup, bup, lup, Iritp, uttered with increasing ra- 

 pidity until the syllables were barely distinguishable, then ending some- 

 what as it began. The whole performance occupied about five seconds. 



211. Rallus longirostris crepitans (Gmd.}. CLAPPER RAIL; 

 MARSH HEN. (806 KL P . L"_', '/. .!</. I'ppcr parts very pale greenish olive, 

 the feathers widely margined witli gray; wimrs and tail grayish brown; 

 wing-coverts pale cinnamon, much washed with {.'ray; throat white; neck 

 and breast jml>, between ochraceoiis und cream-hull', more or less washed 

 with grayish; belly and sides trray or brownish gray, barred with white. 

 Downy Young Glossy black. L., 14-50; W., 5-00; Tar., L'-IHI; B., 2-50. 



Remarks. The Clapper Rail may always be known from the King Rail 



