34 NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA 67 



Figure 16. — Winter abode of King Rail. Rappahannock River near Tappahan- 

 nock, Va., January 1961. Vegetation is mainly Olney's three-square {Scirpus 

 olneyi) and saltmarsh cordgrass {Spartina altemiflora). 



traps as I watched a trapper run his line. In these and other tide- 

 marsh habitats, tidal action along the creeks and over ladjacent marsh- 

 lands keeps the water open throughout much of the winter. 



At Hog Island, Surry County, in the James River opposite historic 

 J amestown, C. C. Steirly found both King and Clapper Rails breeding. 

 Steirly (1959, p. 47-48) made the following comments about the rail 

 habitat on the island : 



Apparently there is a salinity gradient between the east side of the refuge 

 and the west side of Cobham Bay. Hog Point might be the dividing line. There 

 seems to be a slight difference in the tidal vegetation between the two sides of 

 the refuge although the cord grass marsh seems to be the dominant feature 

 along the east or down river side. The King Rail is most often seen on the west 

 side; however, there is as yet no proof that it does not breed on the east side. 

 In one of the particular haunts of the King Rail, pickerel weed {Pontederia 

 Gordata) and bulrush {Scripus rohustus) occur in some abundance where there 

 is less tidal fluctuation. 



Virginia Eastern Shore 



The Eastern Shore peninsula of Virginia lies between Chesapeake 

 Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. While King Rails would be expected 

 to occur on the bay side of the peninsula, their presence on the off- 

 shore barrier islands on the ocean side would seem rather surprising ; 

 nevertheless, on these salty coastal islands King Rails are found in 



