YELLOW SAIL 303 



fornia, Oregon, and Nevada, and in but one instance in each of the 

 latter two states. Even in California, the Yellow Rail is of extremely 

 local occurrence, and at best cannot be considered common. The center 

 of abundance here appears to be in the San Francisco Bay region, 

 for it has been recorded but once north of this region and but twice 

 from southern California. Not more than twenty specimens taken in 

 California are known to be in collections, and as far as we know all 

 of these were secured on fresh-water marshes. 



The Yellow Rail is of small size, being considerably smaller than 

 a Virginia or Sora, and but slightly larger than the California Black 

 Rail. Its general yellowish color, sharp, narrow, white transverse bars 

 on the back, and white patch on the secondary wing feathers, showing 

 during flight, are characters which not only distinguish the Yellow 

 Rail from the Black, but from all our other rails. 



This bird has proven more difficult to find and flush than almost 

 any other bird of the marsh. Most of those captured have been found 

 unintentionally ; only a trained dog and pro- 

 longed search at the proper season will be 

 likely to reveal this will-o-the-wisp. 



Eggs of the Yellow Rail have been taken 

 at Winnebago, Illinois, May 17, 1863, and 

 near Devils Lake, North Dakota, June 4, 1901, ^.j^'^-^ fellow'^Eaih 

 June 8, 1903, and June 9, 1910 (Cooke, 1914, Natural size, 

 p. 32). The first of the latter three finds is 



referred to by Reed (1904, p. 105) as follows: "Their eggs are of 

 a rich buff color, speckled in the form of a wreath about the large end, 

 with reddish brown. They are rleatively narrower than those of 

 other rails. Size 1.10 x 0.80 [inches] ." The set consisted of ten eggs. 

 The eggs of the set taken in Illinois and now in the United States 

 National Museum have a pinkish buff ground color. At the large 

 end of each egg there is a small dense crown of minute dots of orange- 

 cinnamon, mikado brown, and vinaceous-drab ; elsewhere on the sur- 

 face there are scattering dots of similar color. 



Audubon {in Baird, Brewer and Ridgway, 1884, I, pp. 376-377) 

 observed the habits of this rail along the margins of lakes and swampy 

 bayous in eastern Florida. He noticed that the birds were accus- 

 tomed to follow the margins of the muddy shores with measured steps, 

 until attracted by some object. The tail would then be suddenly 

 jerked upward, followed by the disappearance of the bird for the 

 moment. Each bird proved as a rule so unsuspicious that at times it 

 could be approached within a few yards, when it would only rise more 

 erectly, gaze at the observer for a moment, and then resume its occu- 

 pation. The best way to obtain a shot at this bird was to lie concealed 

 near an opening, and call it out of cover by imitating its notes, when, 



