150 GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. 
lower Fraser valley; winters at Lake Okanagan, B.C., and common 
and breeding in the Cariboo district. (Brooks.) 
BREEDING Notes.—While on a trip to the marshes in Lake St. 
Francis near Summerton, Ont., June 6th, 1903, on a low boggy 
island, less marshy than others and partially covered with alders 
we found the sora and Virginia rails nesting. These nests were 
miniature galinule’s, though better hidden, and were fastened low 
down amongst the long marsh grass. (Lewis M. Terrill.) Nests 
six inches in diameter, made of rushes, are to be found around 
Ottawa among the reeds in marshy places. Two taken 13th May, 
1905, and 21st May, 1906, were on the ground. On the 23rd July, 
1905, I discovered a floating nest the size of the others among the 
reeds in a marsh. (Garneau.) This species breeds wherever there 
is a sufficiently large marsh, a small one of an acre being enough 
to please, and sometimes even less will do. (WW. Saunders.) A nest 
was brought to me from a slough near Carberry, Manitoba, July 
3oth, 1884. It was found in a tussock of coarse grass, and was 
built of dry stems of the same. The eggs, eight in number, were 
quite fresh, and differed from the Carolina rail only in being of a 
lighter colour and with reddish instead of umber spots, these chiefly 
about the larger end. The nest was of rushes, and built precisely 
like that of the Carolina bird, but it was situated rather in a damp 
meadow than a marsh. (Sefon.) This is the commonest rail in the 
St. Lawrence valley and breeds annually in the marshes along the 
St. Lawrence and inland. It frequents larger marshes than the 
sora, though occasionally they are found breeding in the same 
localities. I have found several nests; two of these were in wet 
places, formed by rank grass, &c., and placed simply in tussocks 
of marsh grass. The third was near Gananoque lake among a 
cluster of flags and bullrushes, and was formed of last year’s stems 
of the latter, fastened among the rushes and floating in about 
eighteen inches of water, like a gallinule’s. They are late breeders; 
the first nest I found, containing nine eggs on the 17th June, 
incubation only commencing; the last one, six eggs, incubation 
advanced, on the 15th July, 1896. (Rev. C. J. Young.) This is 
a rare bird in Manitoba. On the 12th June, 1893, I found a nest 
with one egg at Reaburn, Manitoba, and shot the parent. (Dzppie.) 
