RALLID.E — THE RAIL8 — TORZAXA. 



369 



liai'V stripu 

 brown, llit^ 



Bill " iv.l- 

 Iuay). 



\roUHii), and 



It may ^'^ 



tlio sti'i^akod 



hie lorts iiv 



freiK'li, is. 

 I Asia, ami 

 a bird of 

 loccasioiuil 

 \ not even 

 idepui'ts in 



ScptoinlKT iiud Oftoboi', tli()Uf,'li ii few icniaiu later. It is saiil to ho especially eom- 

 nioii in Italy, in Sicily, aiiil in tlic Houtliern jioitiou of Jiiissia, but to be very rare in 

 lldUiind. Acconliuy to .M, Itmitclit', as (jiiutt'd l)y (Icibc, it breeds in immense nnm- 

 lii'is in the marslics of Saint-Lament du I'ont, near (ireiioliK". Its nest is said to he a 

 strn('t\ire loosely woven ol coarse weeds, but so constructed as to be raised or depressed 

 liv tlie rise or tall of water. 



Tiie number of the ej,'gs varies from ei},dit to tw(dve. These, are slii^'btly oblonj,' in 

 >liape, of a lirij^dit clear yellowish brown, covered witli numerous very line points, 

 with scattered blotches of varying size, some small and round, others larger, and 

 viuying in sliapc, but always <piite distinct in their coloring. These markings, .scat- 

 tered over most of tluj egg, but chietiy grouped about its larger end, an; of two kinds, 

 one deep violet-gray, others either a reddish or a blackisli shade of inown. Tliey are 

 siud to measure from 1.34 to l.;J8 inches in length, and from .'J4 to .US of an inch in 

 lireailtli. 



Tile liird is said to have habits very similar to those of the European Water liail, 

 tiv(|iienting, like tliat bird, ficsli-watei' marsiies and tlie margins of Avater covered 

 with ruslies and coarse reeds. It feeds on insects, snails, small rcjitiles, and mpiatii' 

 plants. Its Hesh in tlie autumn, when it is fat, is of very tine flavor, and hardly 

 iiiieiior to that of the Land-Uail. 



In (Ireat Uritain, according to Yarrcll, this bird is a suimuer visitor, arriving in 

 England by the 1 Ith of March, and remaining as late as the 2.')d of October. In 

 e.\ce])tional instances iiulivubuils liave been taken as late as November, and once 

 even in .Fanuary. It is. as a sjiecies. much less numerous than the Land-Kail, and is 

 more a([uatic in its habits. It frecpieiits the sides of streams and lakes, concealing 

 itself among the thick reeds, and seldom leaves its seciu'e jiosition among the luxu- 

 riant vegetiition of marshy gi'ounds, nidess driven out by the aid of a trained dog. 

 Its body is compressible, enabling it to make its way tluough the tliick herbage with 

 facility. Its toes — whl(di are, long in ]ini])ortion to the size of the bird — afford it a 

 linn footing over nmd or wei'ds, and also enable it to swim with I'ase. It is more 

 abundant in the maritime portions of England than elsewhere, and breeds in considcr- 

 alile numbers in the nuirshes of Norfolk. It also hreeds in other jiarts of England, 

 wiiere it can find suitable localities, and is more common in the fall than at any other 

 tiiae. It feeds on worms, atpiatic insects, and slugs, as well as on soft vegetable 

 .substances. When kept in confinement it readily eats bread and milk or worms. 



This bird occasionally, but rarely, visits Sweden in the summer. It has been 

 taken at Tunis, and near Smyrna in the winter, and during its migrations in the 

 islands of the Mediterranean. 



It breeds in such marshes as are overgrown with reeds and sedges, its nest being 

 Iniilt on the wet ground, usually near the edge of the water, and formed of coarse 

 aquatic plants lined on the inside with liner materials. The young are at first covered 

 witii a black down, and are said to take to the water with readiness as soon as they 

 are out of the shell. Yarrcll describes the egg as being of a iiale reddish white, 

 spotted and speckled with a dark reddish brown, and measiu'ing l.'Jo inches in length 

 by .87 of an inch in breadth. Three eggs in my own cabinet (No, 1390) — collected 

 in France by Dr. James Trudeau — are oblong and oval in shape, of nearly equal 

 size at either end. The ground-color is a light butf or dark cream-color, with a 

 rodilish or a yellowish tinge, sjiotted irregularly with rounded and scattered marking.s 

 of a deep brownish red. These are of varying sizes, sbapes, and shades, a few as if 

 washed with the groinid-color diluted, and exhibit a shade of slate and lavender. They 

 vary in length from 1.30 to 1.35 inches, and in breadth from .94 to .99 of an inch. 

 vol,. I. — 4" 



