CHAPTER XIV. 



GREAT RED-BREASTED RAIL. RALLUS ELEGANS. 



LOCALITY AND DESCRIPTION. 



N his work on the birds of Long Island, 

 Giraud thus describes this beautiful 

 fowl: "Bill along the gap, two inches 

 and three-quarters; length of tarsi, two 

 inches; sides and forepart of neck and 

 the breast, bright orange-brown; iris, 

 bright red." Total length of the spe- 

 cimen before us, seventeen inches ; wing, 

 six and three-quarters. Adult, upper 

 part of head and hind-neck dull brown; 



from the base of the upper mandible over the eye a dull white 

 line terminating with brownish-orange ; lower eyelids white, loral 

 space and a band behind the eye dusky ; upper part of the body 



brownish-black; the feathers broadly margined with light olive- 



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