GALLINULA. — POEPHYEIOLA. 327 



dimidiatis omatis ; subalaribus cineraseentibus, albido marginatis ; remigibus infra cinerascentibus : 

 rostro et cblamyde frontali scarlatinis, iUius apice viridi-flava ; pedibus flavicanti-viiidibus, tibife parte 

 rnida miniata. Long, tota 13-0, alae 6-7, caudse 2-75, culm. 1-0, tarsi 1-95. (Descr. av. adult, ex Mexico. 

 Mus. nostr.) 

 Juv. Brunnescentior, loris et gutture albis ; plumis gastrsei totins albido marginatis, abdomine et pectore 

 medianis albis. 



Eai. Temperate Noeth America, from Canada southward ^^. — Mexico {Deppe & 

 Schiede '^^ ^°), Mazatlan, Tepic (Grayson^), Valley of Mexico {Herrera'^'^^^), 

 Tehuantepec city {Sumichrast ^ i^), Shkolak, Yucatan (Stone & Baker i^), Peto ^'^, 

 Cozumel I. ^i'' {Gaumer); Honduras, Lake of Yojoa {Taylor'^); Guatemala i<^, 

 Lake of Duenas [0. S. "^ '^'^) ; Nicaragua, Los Sabalos [Nutting ^^), Greytown 

 {Holland'^); Costa Rica^ (Carmiol^'^). — South America ^^ to Peru, Brazil, and 

 Chile 1'' ; West Indies ^''. 



The North-xlmerican Water-hen breeds throughout the greater part of its range in 

 the United States and Canada, as also in Western Mexico and probably further south. 

 Grayson, who found it nesting in May and June in a lagoon near Tepic ^, states, 

 however, that the species is principally known as a winter visitor to Western Mexico, 

 where it arrives in considerable numbers, and at the same season it is found in 

 Central America, the greater part of South America, and the West-Indian Islands. 



The habits of G. galeata seem to be identical with those of the European 

 G. cMoroptis, and its nest and eggs are also similar. The latter are from six to eight 

 in number, of a light yellowish-brown or dark cream-colour, with spots and a few 

 blotches of dark brown ; they are slightly larger than those of the European Moor-hen, 

 but are not otherwise distinguishable. 



POEPHYRIOLA. 



Porphyrula, Blyth, Cat. Birds Mus. As. Soc. p. 283 (1849, descr. nulla). 

 lonornis, Reichenb. Nat. Syst. p. xxi. 



Porphyriola, Sundev. Av. Meth. Tent. p. 131 (1872) ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. xxiii. p. 187 

 (1894). 



Like the foregoing genus, Porphyriola has a frontal shield, but is remarkable also 

 for its bright green and blue colouring, wherein it resembles the Purple Gallinules 

 (Porpkyrio). From the latter, however, it is distinguished by the shape of the nostrils, 

 which are rounded and not situated in a nasal depression in that genus, whereas in 

 the Moor-hens {Gallinula) and the Blue Water-hens (Porphyriola) the nostrils are 

 oval and there is a distinct nasal depression. The toes in Porphyriola have no lateral 

 membranes, and in this respect the genus differs from Gallinula, as well as in its bright 

 blue colour. 



Of the three known species, only one inhabits our region. 



1. Porphyriola martinica. 



La petite Poule-SuUane, Briss. Orn. v. p. 526, t. 42. fig. 2 '. 

 Fulica martinica, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 259 '. 



