RAILS, GALLINULES, AND COOTS 
79 
205. Grus canadensis (Linn.). Little Brown Crane. 
Like mexicana, but smaller. Length: 35, wing 17.50-20.00, bill 3.04- 
4.20, tarsus G.70-8.44. 
Distribution. — Northern North America, breeding from Hudson Bay 
and the arctic coast to Alaska; south in winter through the interior 
United States to Mexico ; west to Colorado and British Columbia. 
206. Grus mexicana (Mull.). Sandhill Crane. 
Crown and lores naked except for scattered black bristles; cheeks and 
jaw well feathered. Adults: whole plumage slaty gray 
or light brownish, wings darker; cheeks and throat 
lighter and sometimes whitish. T oung : head entirely 
feathered; plumage rusty brown. Length : 40-48, wing 
21.00-22.50, bill 5.15-6.00, tarsus 9.90-10.65. 
Distribution. — From southern Canada south to cen¬ 
tral Mexico and Florida; breeding from Canada to 
Arizona. Rare east except in Georgia and Florida. 
Nest. — A wide platform of flags and rushes in a 
marsh. Eggs : 2, olive buff, spotted with brown. 
On the big unfenced prairies and the treeless 
expanse of marsh where there is nothing to hide 
a lurking foe, you find the sandfiill cranes, some¬ 
times in small migrating flocks but usually in 
pairs, stalking about in dignified but ever watch¬ 
ful manner, stretching up to nearly a man’s 
height to survey the surrounding country, then 
stooping to probe the earth for worms, catch a 
distant grasshopper, or spear a luckless frog or 
minnow. Let an enemy appear in the distance, 
and the long necks are up, and one of the most 
powerful, far-reaching of bird-notes rings out with its alarm chal¬ 
lenge, a prolonged bugle-like cry, deeper and heavier than the 
loon’s, and often heard a mile away. With a quick run the splendid 
birds mount on the wing, the bugle-notes resounding rhythmically 
with only the space of an inspiration between as they fly; and 
though their calls mellow in the distance, the cranes vanish as 
specks in the air before the sound of their magnificent voices is en¬ 
tirely lost. Vernon Bailey. 
FAMILY RALLID^B . RAILS, GALLINULES, AND COOTS. 
KEY TO GENERA. 
1. Forehead entirely feathered down to base of bill. 
2. Bill long and slender, as long as or longer than tarsus . Rallus, p. 80. 
2'. Bill short and stout, about two thirds the length of tarsus. 
Forzana, p. 81. 
1'. Forehead covered by naked shield at base of bill. 
2. Toes deeply lobed along sides.Fulica, p. 83. 
2'. Toes slender, without lobes Gallinula, p. 82. 
