BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 



212. VIRGINIA RAIL. — Rallus virginianus. 

 Family: The Rails, Gallinules, and Coots. 



Length: 9.30. 



Adults : Upper parts brownish olive, striped with sooty ; breast 

 and wing-coverts light chestnut ; wings and tail dark olive- 

 brown ; cheeks gray ; throat white ; under parts light chest- 

 nut ; sides barred with white. 



Downy Young : Uniform black. 



Geographical Distribution : North America, from the British 

 provinces south to Guatemala. 



Breeding Range : Wherever resident. 



Breeding Season: April, May, and June. 



Nest : A mat of grasses ; placed on a hummock in a marsh. 



Eggs : 7 to 12 ; buffy, marked with chestnut. Size 1.24 X 0.94. 



The Virginia Rail, although more common east 

 of the Rockies, is by no means rare throughout 

 California. He is an odd-looking 

 bird with voice and manners in keep- 

 ing with his appearance. In 

 the early morning and at 

 twilight his call is a curi- 

 ous combination of grunt 

 and squeal. The love 

 song, however, is quite 

 different ; it is de- 

 scribed as " a guttural 

 cut, cutta-cutta-ciitta oft 

 repeated for hours in suc- 

 cession." You have only 

 to visit a marsh lake in 

 the afternoon or early in 212. Virginia Bail. 



the morning and listen, " Picking hw way cautiously between, the titles." 



