GALLINULA. 141 



tipped with yellow. Young : Above light brown, tinged with greenish on wines ■ 

 beneath pale fulvous or buffy, the belly whitish ; bill dull yellowish, and frontal 

 shield much smaller than in- adult. Downy young : Said to be entirely black. 

 Length 12.50-14.00, wing 7.00-7.50, culmen (including frontal shield) 1.85-1.95, tar- 

 sus 2.25-2.50, middle toe 2.25-2.35. Eggs 6-10, 1.55 X 1.13, pale cream-color, or 

 creamy white, speckled (sometimes also sparingly spotted), chiefly round larger end 

 with brown and purplish gray. Hab. Nearly the whole of tropical and warm- 

 temperate America, north, casually or irregularly nearly across the United States 

 east of the Great Plains, but apparently wholly absent from the Pacific coast, in- 

 cluding Lower California 218. I. martinica (Linn.). Purple Gallinule. 



Genus GALLINULA Brisson. (Page 136, pi. XLIL, fig. 2.) 



Species. 



Uniform plumbeous, sometimes mixed with whitish on lower parts and washed 

 with brown on back, the edge of the wing, the lateral under tail-coverts, and broad 

 stripes on flanks, white. Summer adult : Bill and frontal shield bright vermilion- 

 red in life, the former tipped with greenish yellow ; belly uniform plumbeous. 

 Winter adult : Similar, but frontal shield smaller, and belly suffused with whitish. 

 Young : Similar to winter adult, but frontal shield rudimentary and, with the bill, 

 brownish ; whole extent of lower parts, including sides of head, suffused with 

 whitish, the throat sometimes almost wholly white ; white flank stripes less dis- 

 tinct (sometimes nearly obsolete). Downy young : Glossy black, the lower parts 

 sooty along the median line ; throat and cheeks interspersed with silvery white 

 hairs. Length 12.00-14.50, wing 6.85-7.25, culmen (to end of frontal shield) 1.70- 

 1.85, tarsus 2.10-2.30, middle toe 2.50-2.60. Eggs 8-13, 1.74 X 1-19, buff, pale buff, 

 •brownish buff, or buffy brown, sparsely spotted with dark brown. Hab. Whole 

 of tropical America and temperate North America, north to British Provinces. 



219. G. galeata (Licht.). Florida Gallinule. 



Genus FULICA Linn^us. (Page 136, pi. XL., fig. 2.) 



Species. 



Common Characters. — Uniform slaty or plumbeous, the head and neck darker 

 (nearly black in adults) ; edge of wing whitish ; bill whitish in adults. Eggs pale 

 dull buff, finely dotted or sprinkled with brownish black and purplish gray. 



a 1 . Only the edge of the wing and a very narrow edge to first quill white ; entire 

 bill and frontal shield whitish ; length about 16.00, wing 7.70-8.80, culmen 

 (including frontal plate) 1.70-2.00, tarsus 2.25-2.35, middle toe 2.85-3.15. 

 Eggs 2.11 X 1-47. Hab. Europe, Asia, and northern portions of Africa; acci- 

 dental in Greenland 220. F. atra Linn. European Coot. 



a 2 . Lateral and posterior lower tail-coverts and tips of secondaries white ; bill with 

 a dark brownish spot near end of each mandible. 

 b\ Frontal shield dark brown. Summer adult : Bill (in life) milk-white, tinged 



