358 



ALKCTOniDKa 



I 



i 



III till' •* Aincricuii Naturalist" Inr Kclniiaiv. IS7I. Mr. l;i(l},'\vay calls iittcntinn 

 for tin* Hrst tiiiif to what li<' iImii niiitiiilcitMl a I'arilic varittv "t A*, iht/iiim. \\, 

 ii(»\v reminds it as a pioiialilv ppod ami ilistiiict siucii's. 'I'lic tv[tc was taki'ii liy !>i. 

 Siicklt'V ill San l''raiirisi(> in Marcli. l.s.">7. 



Litth' in kiKiwii as to its (listiiirtivc manners or lialiits. Witii rf>,'ar(l tn this foiih 

 we liavf lint lew nolfs t'rnin aiiv nl' tlic writers mi the liinis ot tlir Pacifir coaKt. ami 

 all tlicsc well' written with the Iteliel that the liinl rel'ened to iiy them was really 

 the A*, c/it/iiiis. Dr. ('oo|iei'. in his maniiseii|it notes, makes im ntion ol this s|M'cies as 

 havinj,' heeii met with \<\ himsell'; ami enusidi rin^i; it to lie the Hii|i|iose(| Fresh-water 

 Kiii^' iiail. he expresses his surprise at timiiii!,' it liy no means eonfine.l to the Iresl,. 

 water marshes. The same writer also mentions liaviii;^ heanl the notes ol' JInils 

 in tlie Colorado and Mojave valleys; these may possihly have lieeii individuals nl 

 the \'ir!,nnia itaii. 'IMie season of the year was the wiii'er and early spring. Sinn' 

 then he has louiid this species common on the eoast. at all seasons of the year. :in 

 lar north as San Francisco, lie lonnd it iieiiuentin^' inditt'crently lioth the >:iit 

 iiiai'shes ami the fresh ; luit it coneeuls itsell' so completely, that it can he very ranly 

 ohtained, or even seen, except when started In a doi:. 



Dr. ('iio|)er once loiiml one of tiicse liirds concealed in a hole amoii),' some riM-k 

 Hand; and instead ol' makin;^ lor the marshes, it Hew out to mm ami settled niioii the 

 water. At San I'edro, dniiiii; the extremely hi,i;h tides ol .Inly, the same ohserM-r 

 jirociired sevcial examples ol tliis species. 'I'licy were all younj,' liirds. but liilly 

 m'owii. They had lieen driven Irom the marshy islamis liy the overflow, and wen- 

 tloatiiij; alioiit perched nptm pieces ol' wo<iil. waiting' lor the waters to snliside. They 

 seemed to Ite perreetly liewildered. and could hardly he iniliicc(l to take to tiij,'ht. In 

 another part of his manuscript i)r. Cooper dwells upon the fact — iinlooked lor li\ 

 him — that this bird certainly I'reipu'nts lioth lirackish water and salt-marshes. 



Mr. J. A. Allen also makes mention of havinj; met with a liail, supposed at the 

 time to lie H. iliijinis, in the \'alley of (.Jreat Salt i.aki' ; hut this may have been. ami 

 probably was. the present spircies. Whatever it was. he found it very abundant there. 



Inder the name of Hnlliin vli'ijiniit, Mr. Ileiishaw refers to this species iis iHiie,' 

 common in certain marshy spots {•\{\^{' to the sea at Santa Harbara. and as retiriie.' 

 duriiij,' the day into the beds of tall rusiies. which serve to screen it Iroiii all eiieiiiiis 

 as well as from the j,'lariin,' sUn. !>y the lirst of .Inly the youii(^ \v«'re out and able 

 to accompany their parents in search of food. 'I'hese birds be^aii to be active about 

 sunset, heraldini,' the approach of dusk by loud outcries; but they were not eiitiivly 

 (|uiet duriiifj: the day. Immiij^ jtrobably forced to fora^'c more or K'ss at that time in 

 order to satisfy the luiiij,'er of their yoiiii},'. 



RalluB longiroBtris. 



THE OIA?FES BAIL. 



II. longirostris. 

 lialliu Inngiroslri.i, I5(i!iii. Talil. I'. K. U^:! (IkimiI on Mfi- « /imij hn; de Cayenne, Burr. PI. Kul. 



84U). 

 Hal/us cru.sniroslris, I,awk. Ann. bye. N. Y. X. Fili. 18'11, in text (baliiii). 



b. crepitans. 



Rnllus errpilnna, ftMKi,. .S. \. I. ii. 1788, 7i:( (Imsi'il on ('laiip,r Pitll, Pknn. Arot. Ziml. II. I'Sl. 

 no. 407). — Wii.K<>N, Am. (iiii. VII. lS];t, \V1 (.Ir.s.r. Im' not tlio li^jniv :).— Xiri. Man. II 

 1834, 201.- An>. Orii. IJiofj. 111. ISlt.'i, -iUl, (il. -214 : .Syiiop. ]».!!•. '.Jl-i ; B. Am. V. 1S42, 1'- 

 pi. 310. - Haiku, U. X. Am. 18.".s, 747 ; <'at. X. Am. H. )85!", no. 553. 



