BIRDS OF NEW YORK 281 



Ontario, 9 near Buffalo, 6 on the central lakes — Canandaigua 4, Penn Yan i, 

 Oneida county i — and i in Putnam county. Between September 20th 

 and October nth, 1907 Mr Hermann Grieb of Buffalo, N. Y., saw 12 or 15 

 ol' these birds at Rattlesnake island, Niagara river. During the three weeks 

 while the birds were in the marsh, he saw them at every visit and collected 

 five or six specimens. The others were flushed, but at such close range that 

 they were not shot, but were easily identified by the white wing patches. 

 Mr Todd in his Birds of Erie, pages 533-34, gives the migration dates as 

 April 23 to May 3; and September 15 to October 29. It is evident that 

 this is a regular migrant through our State and should be looked for about 

 the first of May and the first of October. 



Nuttall describes the note of the Yellow crake as "an abrupt, cackling 

 cry 'krek, 'krek, 'krek, 'krek, 'kuk, 'k 'kh." Mr J. H. Ames of Toronto 

 describes its note as a scolding, kik-kik-kik-kik-queah. When much sur- 

 prised his specimen uttered a longer call kik-kik-kik-kik-kik-kik-kik-kik- 

 ki-queah, like the famous Kicker of the Massachusetts marshes [Auk, 19 194]. 



Creciscus jamaicensis (Gmelin) 

 Little Black Rail 



Plate 26 



Rallus jamaicensis Gmelin. Syst. Nat. 1788. Ed. i. 2:718 

 Porzana jamaicensis A. 0. U. Check List. Ed. 2. 1895. ^o- 216 



erect' scus, Lat. crex, crake ; Jamaican' sis , of Jamaica 



Description. Very small; head, neck and lower parts dark slate color 

 becoming blackish on belly; hind neck and forehack chestnut-brown; the 

 upper parts speckled and finely barred with white; flanks and lower belly 

 barred with white. Length 5-6 inches; wing 2.75-3; tail 1.35; tarsus .80; 

 bill .5. 



The Little black rail inhabits temperate North America from the 

 West Indies and western South America to Oregon, Illinois and Massachu- 

 setts. On account of its secretive habits, its migration and breeding range 

 are imperfectly known. It seems to be an uncommon species in all parts of 

 the United States and very few nests have ever been found. As it has bred 

 in New Jersey, Connecticut and probably in Massachusetts there is little 

 doubt that it breeds on Long Island and perhaps in the Hudson valley 



