1-H} ‘ RAILS, UALLINULES, AND COOTS.

for unknown reasons have been forced to adopt the ways of both Cools and Rails. Indeed. now I think of it, the names Water-hen and Moor— hen are applied to near relatives of our bird.

They frequent mar. 1y, reed- or bush—grown shores of ponds and lakes, walking“r gracefully through the tangled vegetation. Their flight is short and. like a Rail. with dangling legs they drop awkwardly to the ground. They swim readily, and when on the water resemble a Coot, though they are by no means so aquatic. Their notes are loud and varied, and during the nesting season they are unusually noisy. Their common note is a loud. explosive plum]; ; other calls are suggestive of the barnyard, and remind one of the protest of a disturbed brooding hen or even the squawking of a struggling fowl. In The Auk, vol. viii, pages 1—7, Mr. llrewster gives a detailed account of his study of a pair of Gallinules.

221. Fulica. americana. (II/u]. AMERH'AN Poor: Men-mm; Caow Drex: Btu; PETER. (See Fig. 2:. c.) .1:I.;llcad and neck blackish; rest of the plumage dark. bluish slate-color. paler below; edge of the wing. tips (1f the secondaries. and under tail-eoycrts white; hill whitish. two spots near its tip and crown plate brownish; legs and feet greenish: toes with scalloped flaps. Intgs'nnilar, but much whiter below, a slight brownish wash above; k 'h; white below; throat and upper parts with numerous bright orange hairlike feathers; lores red; bill red; tipped with black. I... 151“); “1,750; Tait. 2'25; B. from posterior margin of nostril, ‘80.

It’..maM-x.—'l‘lit- (‘oot bears a general resemblance to the Florida-Gallinule, but. aside from the ditt'crcnecs in color, the scalloped webbed feet of the Coot will alw ‘s serve to distinguish them.

Iftlzijlt.!X<ii'tli Ann-rica as far north as Alaska and New Bruuswiek, and casually Greenland: breeds locally throughout its range; rather rare 0n the Atlantic coast duringr the iicstiin_r season.

Washington. common '1‘. \'., Mch. to May : Sept. to Oct.15. Long Island, uncommon T. \'., .\pl.; not uuemmnon. Sept. to Nov. Sing Sing. common T. V.. Apl. 23’ to May 16; Sept. 2'). to Nov. 1:3. Cambridge, T. V., rare in Apt: coimuon Sept. to Nov.

crown plate much smaller. [’Oll‘llrll/ gout/frilfilae

Next. at reeds, grasses. etc. 11111011! recds in fresh—water marshes. [ft/51s, eight to fifteen. pale. bull'y white, finely and uniformly speckled with choco— late or black. 1*?) x 1-2.3. '

As one might imagine after seeingr their lobed feet. (‘oots are more aquatic than either of the (iallinulcs. In the Middle States they are found in creeks and rivers with marshy and reed-grown shores, while in Florida they resort in enormous numbers to lakes covered with the yellow lilies lo 'ally known as “bonnets” (NI/MUN); and in some if the large, shallow rivers. like Indian River, they may be found '11 myriads, associated with Lesser Seaup Ducks.

In my experience they are as a rule quite shv: but near the lone;