IO THE BIOLOGICAL REVIEW. 



black toward the edge of the wing, with a white bar across the 

 first five primaries ; the tail is white, barred transversely with 

 light brown lines, and a broad, dark brown bar across the end 

 and up the outer feathers ; belly, dull black ; iris, brown ; feet, 

 yellow. 



This is undoubtedly the first record of this species in Canada. 



On examining the drawings of Caracaras in " Swainson's 

 Zoology" and other works, I can undoubtedly identify it as 

 Polyborus cheriway. G _ E> Atkinson . 



CAPTURE OF PURPLE GALLINULE (IONORNIS 

 MARTINICA) NEAR TORONTO. 



During the past few years there have been a number of avian 

 rareties recorded for Ontario, and to these may be added the 

 capture of a Purple Gallinule, the report of which was presented 

 by Dr. Brodie at a meeting of the Natural History Society of 

 Ontario, held on April 26, 1892. 



The bird was shot at the mouth of the Rouge River (sixteen 

 miles east of Toronto) on April 8, 1892, by Thomas Chester, of 

 Port Union. 



Mr. Chester was pike-shooting when he saw the bird sitting 

 on a log, and believing it to be a mud hen, he shot it. 



It was exhibited at a subsequent meeting of the Society, and 

 is at present the property of Dr. R. M . Bateman, of Pickering, 

 Ontario. 



" Hab. — The whole of tropical and warm-temperate America, 

 south to Brazil ; north, casually to Massachusetts, Maine, New 

 York, Ohio, Wisconsin, Illinois and Missouri ; Bermudas, and 

 throughout West Indies. Not recorded from any part of the 

 western States." Baird, Brewer and Ridgway. 



There is, however, a record for San Antonio, Texas (Aick, 

 vol. IX., 1892, p. 232,), and D. E. Lantz records the capture of 

 a specimen in Kansas, on April 14, 1893. {Auk, vol. X., 1893, 

 p. 300.) 



Dr. Brewer says that " stragglers have been found along the 

 entire Atlantic coast as far eastward as the Bay of Fundy," and 



