^<'b //SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONUNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMBulletin 135
LIFE HISTORIES OFNORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDSORDERS ODONTOGLOSSAE, HERODIONESAND PALUDICOLAE
BYARTHUR CLEVELAND BENTOf Taunton, Massachusetts
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 1
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONUNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMBulletin 135
LIFE HISTORIES OFNORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDSORDERS ODONTOGLOSSAE, HERODIONESAND PALUDICOLAE
BYARTHUR CLEVELAND BENTof Taunton, Massachusetts
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WASHINGTONGOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE1926
ADDITIONAL COPIESor THIS PUBLICATION MAY BE PEOCUBED FROMTHE SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTSGOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICEWASHINGTON, D. C.AT$1.25 PER COPY
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ADVERTISEMENTThe scientific publications of the National Museum include twoseries, known, respectively, as Proceedings and Bulletin.The Proceedings, begun in 1878, is intended primarily as a mediumfor the publication of original papers, based on the collections of theNational Museum, that set forth newly acquired facts in biology,antlaropology, and geology, with descriptions of new forms and revis-ions of limited groups. Copies of each paper, in pamphlet form, aredistributed as published to libraries and scientifiic organizations andto specialists and others interested in the different subjects.The dates at which these separate papers are published are recordedin the table of contents of each of the volumes.The Bulletin, the first of which was issued in 1875, consists of a seriesof separate publications comprising monographs of large zoologicalgroups and other general systematic treatises (occasionally in severalvolumes), faunal works, reports of expeditions, catalogues of type-specimens, special collections, and other material of similar nature.The majority of the volumes are octavo in size, but a quarto size hasbeen adopted in a few instances in which large plates were regardedas indispensable. In the Bulletin series appear volumes under theheading Contributions from the United States National Herbarium, inoctavo form, published by the National Museum since 1902, whichcontain papers relating to the botanical collections of the Museum.The present work forms No, 135 of the Bulletin series.Alexander Wetmore,Assistant Secretary, Smithsonian Instituition.Washington, D. C, December 16, 1926. in

BTRODUCTION
This is the sixth in a scries of bulletins of the United StatesNational Museum on the life histories of North American birds.Previous numbers have been issued as follows:107. Life Histories of North American Diving Birds, 1919.113. Life Histories of North American Gulls and Terns, 1921.121. Life Histories of North American Petrels, Pelicans, andtheir AlHes, 1922.126. Life Histories of North American Wildfowl, 1923.130. Life Histories of North American Wildfowl, 1925.The same general plan has been followed, as fully explained inBulletin 107, and the same sources of information have been utilized.The classification and nomenclature adopted by the AmericanOrnithologists' Union, in its latest check list and its supplements,have been followed, mainly, with such few changes as, in the author'sopinion, will be, or should be, made to bring the work up to date andin line with recent advances in the science.The main ranges are as accurately outlined as limited space willpermit; the normal migrations are given in sufficient detail to indi-cate the usual movements of the species; no attempt has been madeto give all records, for economy in space, and no pretence at com-plete perfection is claimed. Many published records, often repeated,have been investigated and discarded; many apparently doubtfulrecords have been verified; some published records, impossible toeither verify or disprove, have been accepted if the evidence seemedto warrant it.The egg dates are the condensed results of a mass of records takenfrom the data in a large number of the best egg collections in thecountry, as well as from contributed field notes and from a few pub-lished sources. They indicate the dates on which eggs have beenactually found in various parts of the country, showing the earliestand latest dates and the limits between which half the dates fall, theheight of the season.The plumages are described only in enough detail to enable thereader to trace the sequence of molts and plumages from birth tomaturity and to recognize the birds in the different stages and at theV
VI INTRODUCTIONdifferent seasons. No attempt has been made to fully describe adultplumages; this has been already well done in the many manuals.The names of colors, when in quotation marks, are taken from Ridg-way's Color Standards and Nomenclature (1912) and the terms usedto describe the shapes of eggs are taken from his Nomenclature ofColors (1886 edition). The heavy-faced type in the measurementsof eggs indicate the four extremes of measurements.Many of those who contributed material for former volumes haverendered a similiar service in this case; In addition to those whosecontributions have been acknowledged previously, our thanks aredue to the following new contributors: Photographs, notes, or datahave been contributed by Griffing Bancroft, C. T. Barnes, O. E.Baynard, R. H. Beck, Hii-am Bingham, C. L. Broley, A. R. Cahn, B. R.Chamberlain, B. H. Christy, J. H. Connery, A. H. Cordier, WilliamDodd, Eastman Kodak Company, J. M. Edson, W. G. Fargo, W. H.Fisher, I. N. Gabrielson, D. S. Gage, E. W. Hadeler, R. B. Harding, PaulHarrington, C. G. Harrold,R. W. Hendee, H. M. Holland, E. G. Holt,J. S. Huxley, E. R. P. Janvrin, Antonin Jay, G. A. Langelier, J. E.Law, A. G. Lawerence, A. A. V. P. Lechner, R. J. Longstreet, J. B.May, Dan McCowan, H. T. Middleton, N. D. Moser, J. E. PattersonR. B. Ramp, T. E. RandaU, F. W. Rapp, Russell Reid, C. C. Sanborn,E. T. Seton, G. F. Simmons, Alexander Sprunt, F. A. E. Starr, O. A.Stevens, H. S. Swarth, L. W. Turrell, and R. L. Walp.Receipt of material from over 200 contributors has been acknowl-edged in previous volumes.Through the courtesy of the Biological Survey, the services ofFrederick C. Lincoln were secured -to compile the distribution para-graphs. With the matchless reference files of the Biological Surveyat his disposal and with some advice and help from Dr. Harry C.Oberholser, his many hours of careful and thorough work have pro-duced results far more satisfactory than could have been attained bythe author, who claims no credit and assumes no responsibility forthis part of the work. The few minor changes made in the systemdo not materially alter the general plan.F. Seymour Hersey has handled the egg measurements and the eggdates very satisfactorily; both of these involved collecting and work-ing over a great mass of details, involving long hours of tediouswork which he volunteered to do.Dr. Charles W. Townsend has written the life histories of fivespecies. Rev. P. B. Peabody furnished a generous supply of notesand photographs regarding the yellow rail. A notable contributionhas been made by Thomas E. Ponard, who compiled and wrote the
INTEODUCTION VII
entire life history of the scarlet ibis, and furnished much of thematerial for that of the jabiru; all this involved a large amount ofresearch in publications which are unknown to most of us. Creditshould hare been given, in the previous volume, to W. E. Clyde Toddfor permission to use certain notes made by O. J. Murie in theHudson Bay region.The manuscript for this volume was completed in December, 1925.Contributions received since will be acknowledged later. Only in-formation of great importance could be added. Contributionsfor the shore-bird volume should be sent, at once, to
?
The Author

TABLE OF CONTENTS
, , Page.Order Odontoglossae . 1Family Phoenicopteridae . 1Phoenicopterus ruber 1American flamingo 1Habits . 1Distribution 12Order Herodiones 13Family Plataleidae 13Ajaia ajaia 13Roseate spoonbiU 13Habits 13Distribution 22Family Threskionithidae 23Guara alba 23White ibis 23Habits 23Distribution 33Guara rubra 33Scarlet ibis 33Habits 33Distribution 45Plegadis falcinellus 45Glossy ibis 45Habits 45Distribution 51Plegadis guarauna 52White-faced glossy ibis 52Habits 52Distribution 56Family Ciconiidae 57M^cteria americana 57Wood ibis 57Habits 57Distribution 65Jabiru mycteria 66Jabiru 66Habits 66Distribution 72Famil}- Ardeidae 72Botaurus lentiginosus 72American bittern . 72Habits 72Distribution 82Ixobrychus exilis exilis 84Least bittern 84Habits 84Distribution 91Ardea occidentalis 93Great white heron 93Habits 93Distribution 100Ardea herodias herodias 101Great blue heron 101Habits 101Distribution 113Ardea herodias fannini 114Northwest coast heron 114Plabits 114Distribution ?_.: 11792642?26t 2 ix
X TABLE OF CONTENTSOrder Herodiones?Continued.Family Ardeidae?Continued. PageArdea herodias wardi 118Ward heron ^ 118Habits 118Distribution 122Ardea herodias treganzai 123Treganza heron 123Habits 123Distribution 126Ardea herodias hyperonca 127California heron 127Habits 127Distribution 130Ardea herodias sanctilucae 130Espiritu Santo heron 130Habits 130Distribution 130Ardea cinerea cinerea 131European heron 131Habits 131Distribution 133Casmerodius egretta 133American egret 133Habits 133Distribution 144Egretta candidissima candidissima 146Snowy egret 146Habits 146Distribution 154Egretta candidissima brewsteri 156Brewster egret 156Habits 156Distribution 157Dichromanassa rufescens 157Reddish egret 157Habits 157Distribution 166Hydranassa tricolor ruficoUis 167Louisiana heron 167Habits 167Distribution 176Florida caerulea 177Little blue heron 177Habits 177Distribution 184Butorides virescens virescens 185Green heron 185Habits 185Distribution 192Butorides virescens frazari 194Frazar green heron 194Habits 194Distribution 194Butorides virescens anthonyi 195Anthony green heron 195Habits 195Distribution 196Nycticorax nycticorax naevius 197Black-crowned night heron 197Habits 197Distribution 210Nyctanassa violacea 213Yellow-crowned night heron 213Habits 213Distribution.. 218
TABLE OF CONTENTS XIPage219Order Paludicolae oiqFamily Megalornithidae ^.^Megalornis americanus ^iqWhooping crane 219Habits 2^0Distribution 2qiMegalornis canadensis ^^Little brown crane 231Habits 90QDistribution ^^^Megalornis mexicanus- _! ^Sandhill crane 241Habits 2fi0Distribution ^^^Megalornis canadensis mexicanus -^"Megalornis canadensis pratensis ^^^Family Aramidae 0-4Aramus vociferus vociferus ^^|Limpkin 254Habits ^rqDistribution ^^^Family Rallidae 260Rallus elegans 260King rail oqqHabits 2fi4Distribution ??PRallus beldingi ^^^Belding rail 266Habits 267Distribution 26?Rallus obsoletus 26?California clapper rail ^g'Habits ^^2Distribution "70Rallus levipes 270Light-footed rail it,.Habits i^'i^Distribution 27^Rallus yumanensis 275Yuma clapper rail 275Habits 277Distribution 277Rallus longirostris crepitans ^'
'
Clapper rail 277Habits 200Distribution ^oqRallus longirostris sa,turatus ^?^Louisiana clapper rail 203Habits 287Distribution 207Rallus longirostris scotti ^*'Florida clapper rail 207Habits 290Distribution 2qoRallus longirostris waynei ^^Y.Wayne clapper rail 290Habits 292Distribution 290Rallus virginianus 292Virginia rail 292Habits 298Distribution ^^^^Porzana porzana oq.Spotted crake oqjHabits o?9Distribution -^"^
Xn TABLE OF CONTENTSOrder Paludicolac?Continued.Family Rallidae?Continued. Pag?Porzana Carolina , ,303Sora rail .__, 303Habits .__r - 303Distribution '__. ' 313Coturnicops noveboracensis 316Yellow rail 316Habits 316Distribution _. _^?^.,. 324Creciscus jamaicensis j . 326Black rail ^
.
._._.. 326Habits ^ . _ . _ 326Distribution 331Creciscus coturniculus ^_ 332Farallon rail ,._ .__ 332Habits ..^ ... 332Distribution _.: .^._^ 336Crex crex . ._^......_.__ _ 337Corncrake ? ___ _.. 337Habits ^. . 337Distribution _^ 338lonornis martinicus 339Purple gallinule 339Habits 339Distribution 344Galliuula chloropus cachinnans 346Florida gallinule 346Habits 346Distribution 353Fulica atra 356European coot 356Habits 356Distribution 358Fulica americana 358American coot 358Habits-- 358Distribution 367References to bibliographj' ^ . 373Explanation of plates 386Index 485
LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDSORDERS ODONTOGLOSSAE, HERODIONES, AND PALUDICOLAE
By Arthur Cleveland Bent,
of Taunton, Massachusetts
Order ODONTOGLOSSAE. Lamellirostral GrallatoresFamily PHOENICOPTERIDAE, Flamingoes
PHOENICOPTERUS RUBER LinnaeusAMERICAN FLAMINGOHABITSI have never been privileged to see this gorgeous bird in its nat-ural surroundings. But, having visited some of its former haunts insouthern Florida, it is not difficult to picture in imagination the thrillof pleasure which others have enjoyed in their first sight of even adistant flock of these magnificent birds, perhaps a mile or more awayacross a broad, flat, shimmering waste of whitish marl, a glowingband of brilliant pink against a background of dark-green mangroves.It has always been a shy species, as even the earliest writers refer tothe difficulty of approaching it in the open situations where it lovesto congregate, to feed in the shallow muddy waters, and where its sen-tinels are always on the alert. Its favorite haunts are far from civ-ilization, for it shuns human society and is soon driven away frommuch-frequented places to live its even, quiet life in the remote wil-derness of the broad, shallow, muddy bays or estuaries of our tropicalcoasts. Dr. Frank M. Chapman (1908) describes it very well whenhe says:There are larger birds than the flamingo, and birds with more brilliant plumagebut no other large bird is so brightly colored and no other brightly colored bird isso large. In brief, size and beauty of plume united, reach their maximum ofdevelopment in this remarkable bird, while the open nature of its haunts and itsgregariousness seem specially designed to display its marked characteristics ofform and color to the most striking advantage. 1
2 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThe flamingo is no longer to be found, except possibly as a rarestraggler, on the North American Continent, but in Audubon's timeit was fairly abundant in extreme southern Florida. Even in thosedays it was relentlessly pursued and was becoming quite shy. Gusta-vus Wurdemann (1S61), in a letter written to the Smithsonian Institu-tion in 1857, wrote:The flamingo is known to but a very few inhabitants of this state, because itis confined to the immediate neighborhood of the most southern portion of thepeninsula, Cape Sable, and the keys in its vicinity. It was seen by the first set-tlers at Indian River, but abandoned these regions immediately, and never re-turned thither after having been fired upon.In the same letter he refers to a flock of 500 flamingos seen nearIndian Key, in the Bay of Florida, and graphically describes hisexperiences in chasing and capturing, with a native hunter, somehundred or so of these beautiful birds, which were molting and una-ble to fly.Evidently this flock of flamingos, or its descendants, was able tosurvive in this remote and inaccessible portion of Florida long afterthe species had disappeared from other sections. It was supposedto breed somewhere in that vicinity, but the breeding grounds werenever found. W. E. D. Scott (1887) reported that the last birdswere killed in Tampa Bay in 1885 and that they disappeared fromCape Romano and all points north of that at about that time. Butin February, 1890, he found a large flock frequenting a bay 18 mileseast of Cape Sable, about which he (1890) writes as follows:It was some 9 or 10 miles from our anchorage to the mouth of the first of thethree bays I have mentioned?a long way to go in a skiff. But both of our boatswere soon manned and we began the details of the exploration. Rounding thepoint opening the first or more westerly of the bays, we found that it was abouta mile and a half in width and some 3 miles deep into the land, with a decidedbend to the west. No birds were to be seen till this bend was in turn opened,and there, still a mile or more away, was presented a truly wonderful sight.Stretched out for fully three-quarters of a mile, and about 300 yards from themainland shore, was a band of ros}', firehke color. This band was unbroken, andseemed to be very even, though curving with the contour of the shore. Nowand again a flame or series of flames seemed to shoot up above the level of theline. This proved when examined through the glass to be caused by one or morebirds raising their heads to look about or to rest themselves, for when firstnoticed all were feeding, with their heads most of the time buried in the shallowwater, searching the mud for the small shellfish which appear to be the favoritefood at this point.Presently some of the birds saw the boats, and the alarm was given. Slowlythe line began to contract toward the center, and the birds were soon in a com-pact body, appearing now like a large field of red upon the water, and the resem-blance to flames was much increased by the constant movements of the headsand necks of the different individuals. In a few moments they began to rise andsoon they were all in full flight, passing out of the bay and over the point of landto the east in long lines and in V-shaped parties, recalling to mind the flight
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 3
of wild geese. If the color on the water was novel, that of the flock while in theair was truly surprising, a cloud of flame-colored pink, like the hues of a bril-liant sunset. As far as we could descry the birds, the color was the great conspic-uous feature. Looked at through the glass, while in flight, the individuals com-posing the flock were seen to be mostly adults. I saw only a small division of thelighter colored immature birds. These seemed to have their own particular posi-tion in the flock, and on this and subsequent occasions, when seen, these youngerindividuals were always alone. As nearly as could be estimated there wereat least 1,000 birds in this flock, and of these all but about 50 appeared to beadults.Twelve years later, on March 26, 1902, Dr. Reginald Heber Howe,jr. (1902) "observed a flock of from 500 to 1,000 birds in a little bay tothe east of Cape Sable," probably in the same locality. This wasabout the last of the flamingo in Florida, for in the following year,1903, I spent parts of April and May in this vicinity, visiting IndianKey, where Audubon saw his first flock, and exploring the coast andislands from Cape Sable to a bay called Snake Bight, which I judgefrom their descriptions to be the place where Scott and Howe sawthe two flocks referred to above. I made another visit to this sameregion in March and April in 1908, but saw no signs of flamingoson either trip. Perhaps they may still visit that region occasionallyin winter, but the resident birds are gone.In past years the flamingo probably visited the coasts of Louisianaand Texas, occasionally if not regularly, but no specimens have beentaken there in recent years. W. L. McAtee (1911) reported seeingone at Cameron, Louisiana, on December 6, 1910. And R. D. Camptold me that he saw one at Bahia Grande, Cameron County, Texas,on October 15, 1912 and in September, 1915.Nesting.?There was much controversy among the earlier writers asto the nesting habits of the flamingo; very little was known aboutit and there was an erroneous impression that the nest was a tall,truncated cone on which the bird sat astride, with its long legs reach-ing down to the ground on either side; it was so iUustrated in draw-ings and in mounted groups. C. J. Maynard (1888) was the fij-st todiscover and describe a colony of American flamingos, establishingthe fact that the flamingo sits on its nest with its legs folded underit, just as any other bird does. He gives a graphic account of hisexperiences in finding a large colony on Andros Island, in the Baha-mas, on May 14, 1884, in which he describes the nesting rookery, asfollows
:
The rookery occupied about a half acre of land, or rather what was once land,for all, or nearly all, were surrounded by water, and were built on a kind of pen-insula which h.'id water on three sides of it. The nests were constructed whollyof marl piled layer upon layer, without waiting for any layer to dry, for in somecases the bottom was as soft as the top. In scooping up the marl the birds evi-dently use the lower mandible of the bill, while it is spread and flattened with thefeet. The clay is not gathered at random about the nest, but from a pit on
4 BULLETIN 136, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
either side, or often from three pits, and it is the joining of these pits that causesthe nests to be surrounded with water. None of the nests are constructed quiteto the margin of the peninsula, thus a dike nearly surrounds the rookery. I saynearly, for this was broken through on the southern end, and the water from thecreeks flowed in, thus the slight inland tide rose and fell among the nests.The nests were, as a rule, not over 2 feet apart, measuring from their base, butthey were generally constructed in groups of from three to seven or eight, eachone being joined to one or two of the others at the base, oftentimes for a foot ormore. This rookery had evidently been used for at least one year previous tothis, as we saw many nests, especially the higher ones, which had to all appear-ances been constructed on top of an old foundation. New nests built throughoutof soft marl were, on the average, only a foot high, and were built in a certainpart of the rookery. All of the nests in the older part of the rookery containedeggs, as a rule only one being deposited, and this was placed on the slightly cup-shaped top of the truncated pyramid. Incubation had begun, and in nearly allthe eggs the embryos were considerably advanced. Thus we could judge thatthe birds had laid all the eggs that they would that season. We estimated thatthere were in the neighborhood of 2,000 nests, and in all of these we found onlysome 50 sets of 2 eggs, and three in one case only.For most of our information about the nesting habits of the fla-mingo we are indebted to Dr. Frank M. Chapman and I shall quotefreely from his various papers on the subject, based on his explora-tions in the Bahama Islands. As to the localities selected for nestingsites he (1902) says:Exploration of the surrounding country showed that it was regularly frequentedby flamingos in numbers during the nesting season. Within a radius of a mile noless than eight groups of nests were discovered. They showed successive stagesof decay, from the old nests, which had almost disappeared before the actionof the elements, to those which were in an excellent state of preservation and weredoubtless occupied the preceding year. Some were placed among young, othersamong fully grown mangroves, and one colony, probably inhabited in 1900, wassituated on a sand bar 200 yards from the nearest vegetation. All the coloniesfound contained at least several hundred nests, and the one on the sand bar, byactual count of a measured section, was composed of 2,000 mud dwellings. Whatan amazing sight this settlement must have presented when occupied, with thestately males, as is their habit, standing on guard near their sitting mates.In the above named localities the birds were not on their nests atthe time of his visit, but on June 7, 1904, he again visited the samelocality with marked success. In describing his approach to the rook-ery he (1908) writes:All day we had been following broad, shallow creeks, which, meeting otheicreeks widened at intervals into lagoons, while, on every side, the country spreadaway into the low, flat swash, neither land nor water and wholly worthless foreverything?except flamingos.At last his guide pointed across the swash to a thin pink line, dis-tant at least a mile, but showing plainly against the green of themangroves.At a distance of about 300 yards, the wind being from us, toward the birds,we first heard their honking notes of alarm, which increased to a wave of deep
NORTH AMERICAN MAESH BIRDS
sound. Soon the birds began to rise, standing on their nests, facing the windand waving their black, vermilion-lined wings. As we came a little nearer, instately fashion the birds began to move; uniformly, like a great body of troops,they stepped slowly forward, pinions waving and trumpets sounding, and then,when we were still 150 yards away, the leaders sprang into the air. File afterfile of the winged host followed. The very earth seemed to erupt birds, as flam-ing masses streamed heavenward. It was an appalling sight.Referring to the nesting ground and nests in this colony, DoctorChapman (1905) says:The nesting ground selected by this colony of flamingos was an extension ofthat occupied by probably the same colony of birds in 1901. In that year thenests were placed among large red mangrove bushes where but few could be seenat one time. The area occupied in 1904 is more open in character, the onlyconspicuous vegetation being coarse grasses, buttonwood shoots, and one good-sized buttonwood bush. It is evident that in selecting a nesting site the birdsare governed not by the nature of the vegetation, but by the height of the water.Since nesting material is not carried btit is used where it is found, the birds mustbuild where the ground is sufficiently muddy to be readily worked.The main colony occupied an area of approximately 3,450 squareyards, with an average of about 50 nests to each 100 square yards,or two square yards to a nest; but often the nests were built so closetogether that they touched each other.As to the composition of the nests he (1905) says:The material of which the nest is composed depends, as one might suppose,upon the nature of the spot in which it is built. The nests of 1902, placed onthe marl bar, were composed wholly of marl; but under other conditions leaves,roots, and twigs may enter into the composition of the nest to a greater or lessextent, and I saw several nests in which sticks played as prominent a part asmud. While I did not see flamingos actually building their nests, I saw themadding to nests in which the egg had already been laid. Standing with a footon each side of the nest mud was dragged up the side of the nest with the billand pressed into position with both bill and feet. Doubtless the method wassimilar to that employed in building a new nest.The measurements of six nests, selected to show the range of vari-ation in size, varied in height from 5 to 13 inches, in diameter at thebase from 18 to 23 inches and in diameter at the top from 12 to 14inches. The height of the nest is evidently varied to suit the waterconditions and after frequent heavy rains the lower nests are oftenwashed out.Flamingos, when not too much disturbed, generally return to thesame breeding grounds year after year. That they are much attachedto and not easily frightened away from their nests is shown bythe interesting group activities described by Doctor Chapman (1908)and by the ease with which he so successfully concealed himself inhis blind in the very heart of the rookery, where he took such a won-derful series of photographs. When he first entered the rookery " thebirds, after flying only a short distance to the windward, turnedabruptly and with set wings sailed over him, a rushing, fiery cloud,
6 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMto alight in a lagoon bordering the western side of the rookery. " Ashort time later they rose again and "with harsh honkings bore downupon him. The birds in close array came toward him without awaver, and for a few moments one might well have believed theywere about to attack; but with a mighty roar of wings and clangingof horns, they passed overhead, turned, and on set wings again shotback to the lagoon." The next day, when he was finally settled inhis blind, they twice rose in a body and swept over the rookery toreconnoiter, and then:Without further delay, the birds returned to their homes. They came on foota great red cohort, marching steadily toward me. I felt like a spy in an enemy'scamp. Might not at least one pair of the nearly 4,000 eyes detect somethingunnatural in the newly-grown bush almost within their city gates? No sign ofalarm, however, was shown; without confusing, and as if trained to the evolu-tion, the birds advanced with stately tread to their nests. There was a bowingof a forest of slender necks as each bird lightly touched its egg or nest with itsbill; then, all talking loudly, they stood up on their nests; the black wings werewaved for a moment, and bird after bird dropped forward on its egg. After a vig-orous wriggling motion, designed evidently to bring the egg into close contact withthe skin, the body was still, but the long neck and head were for a time in constantmotion, preening, picking material at the base of the nest, dabbling in a near-h^ypuddle, or perhaps drinking from it. Occasionally a bird sparred with one of thethree or four neighbors which were within reach, when, bill grasping bill, thereensued a brief and harmless test of strength.The American flamingo also breeds in the Galapagos Islands. Hereaccording to Edward W. Gifford (1913), "the nests are always builtnear the water, either on some very low, flat, rocky islet or on a beach."Evidently the nests in this region "are not endangered to any greatextent by the rise of the water, " and are therefore built much lower.Most of the nests were from 4 to 8 inches high, none were higherthan 12 inches and one "egg was laid on a level bit of lava rock,"with mud an inch deep scraped around it.Eijgs.?The flamingo lays ordinarily only one egg or raises only asingle young bird in a season ; two or even three eggs have been foundin a nest. The egg is from elliptical ovate to elongate ovate in shape.It is always somewhat rough and chalky, and sometimes very roughwith a lumpy surface and with deep scratches. It is dull white, dirtywhite, or rarely pinkish white in color. The measurements of 41 eggsaverage 91.3 by 55.4 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasure 99 by 54; 96.5 by 59.4; 85 by 55.5; and 96.1 by 51.9 milli-meters.Young.?The period of incubation does not seem to have been defi-nitely determined for the American bird, but William Evans (1891)gives it as 30 to 32 days for a closely related foreign species. Incu-bation is performed by both sexes. Doctor Chapman (1905) says:The birds changed places early in the morning and late in the afternoon.They left or returned to the rookery singly or in flocks containing as many as
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 750 birds. The individual, therefore, which incubated or cared for the young dur-ing the day fed at night, while the one which had been feeding during the daypassed the night in the rookery. There was no relation between se.\ and thetime of day occupied in parental duties, both sexes being represented during theday and hence, doubtless, during the night also.As the egg pipped the parent bird was seen to stand over it and move it withthe bill until the opening was uppermost, thus giving the hatching chick accessto the air. When incubating, as well as when brooding, the bird sits upon thenest with the legs folded. In assuming this position, the bird first stands uponthe nest with its toes on the rim, then drops forward, the toes remaining atabout the same point, while the heel projects slightly beyond the tail, and thetarsus is visible for the entire length. In arising the bill is pressed into the sideof the nest and for a moment thus forms a tripod with the legs.The young flamingo when hatched is sufficiently developed to leave the nestbefore it is dry, under the stimulus of an apparently instinctive fear. At myapproach young birds with their plumage still wet from the egg would crawlover the edge of the nest and fall to the ground or water below, when theirstrength seemed to fail them. A few hours later, when the plumage was dry,chicks could swim and run readily, and when they were a day old they invariablyleft the nest as I drew near. When not disturbed the young remain in the nestthree or four days. During this time they are brooded by the parents.Their food consists of a blackish liquid, doubtless the juices of partially digestedCeriiheuni, which they receive from the parent's bill, a drop at a time by regur-gitation. The parent administers food while standing over the chick with loweredhead and neck, or while brooding it, when the head of the young appears frombeneath the parent's wing between the body and the humerus. Food was gen-erally given in response to the young bird's open-mouthed appeal, and its admin-istration was preceded by movements of the neck which evidently assisted theact of regurgitation.While in the nest the young bird eats also the shell of the egg from which itwas hatched. This soon becomes broken into small pieces which are readilypicked up by the then straight-billed chick, doubtless with greater facility thanits bent-billed parent could exhibit. This shell-eating habit appears to be invari-able. Numerous chicks were seen exhibiting it, and eggshells were found in thestomachs of nearly 20 young examined. Possibly the development of this habitmay be due to the limited nature of the parent's food, together with the factthat heavy rains may not only place the chick upon an islet but submerge avail-able feeding areas. Consequently it is imjiortant that the food furnished by theparent be supplemented by a supply of bone-forming material which the chickfinds in the nest. The young bird evidently continues under the care of theparent after leaving the nest and, for a time at least, is still fed by regurgitation.Young birds two days old, which jumped from their nests near my blind as Ientered it, found their way home in response to the call of the parent and climbedback into the nest with the aid of bill, wings, and feet, without assistance fromthe parent. When not guided by the parent, chicks which had left the nestprematurely and were attempting to return to it, apparently recognized neithertheir nest nor parent. They endeavored to cUmb up the nearest nest on whichan adult was sitting, but were not welcomed; threatening, sinuous gestures ofthe long neck being followed, should the chick persist, by a slight nip on the nape,when the lost young bird continued in its search for home.Young birds which he took away from the rookery alive andattempted to raise in captivity lived long enough to throw some lighton their habits and development. He (1904) writes:
8 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
It is an exceedingly interesting fact that the bill of the young flamingo ig:straight and wholly unlike the singular, bent bill of the adult. Signs of a Romannose, so to speak, first appear when the chick is about two weeks old, and atthis time he begins to feed after the manner of adults. That is, the uppermandible is held almost parallel with the ground, and even pressed into themuddy bottoms on which the bird feeds. It is then moved rapidly and sendsa jet of water through the bill which washes away the sand or mud taken inwith the food. Like the old bird, the young one now often treads water ordances when feeding, to float its food off the bottom so that it can be more-readily secured.The note of very young birds is a puppylike barking. This is soon followed'by a kind of squealing whistle, and this, in turn, by a chirruping crow whichpersist until the bird is at least two months old. The whistling note was the-characteristic one at the time of which I write, and, under proper conditions,the chorus of young birds could be plainly heard, day or night, at my tent amile away.Plumages.?When first hatched the young flamingo is thickly anduniformly covered, except on the lores and orbital region with purewhite down, tinged more or less with bluish gray on the crown andback. When about a month old the first coat of white down isreplaced by a second growth of down which is uniform ashy grayin color. The juvenal plumage appears first on the scapulars andsides of the breast, at an age of about five weeks. Doctor Chapman(1905) describes this plumage as follows:The general color is grayish brown with a tinge of pink upon the underparts.and wings. The feathers of the back have well-marked black shaft-streaks; thetail is pale pinkish white, externally edged with blackish; the primaries areblack, the secondaries black internally margined with white except at the tips;the primary coverts are all pinkish, blackish at the tip and on the inner vane;the lesser, median, and greater coverts are generally pinkish basally, blackishat the tip; the axillars are pink; the abdomen is pinkish washed with brown.Specimens taken in February, March, May, and July all show con-tinuous molt from the juvenal into an older plumage which is unmis-takably immature. This transition plumage might be called thefirst winter or the first nuptial plumage, for it covers both seasons,,but it represents a constantly changing progress toward maturity.The head, neck, and mantle become gradually suffused with pale sal-mon pink, by the growth of new feathers, apparantly working fromthe head do^vnward and beginning in December. The primary-cov-erts and the lesser wing-coverts are molted during the early springand the median coverts a little later; but the juvenal greater wing-coverts and scapulars are apparently retained until July. Many ofthe new pink feathers in the coverts, particularly the larger feathers,have dusky shaft-streaks or dusky tips. The underparts graduallyi)ecome pinker (hiring spring By July the .voung bird is mostly palepink except for the juvenal greater wing-coverts, the dusky shaft-streaks and the dusky tips on the scapulars.
NORTH AMEKICAN MARSH BIRDS 9Dui'ing the summer, probably in July and August, a completemolt takes place, at which time the young bird assumes the adultplumage, or one closely resembling it, in which a few signs of imma-turity may be retained in the way of dusky shaft-streaks or duskytips in some of the wing coverts.Doctor Chapman (1905) says of the molt of adults:The molt begins while the birds are still nesting. Specimens taken June 13have new feathers appearing in numbers on the crown and scapulars. At this
"time the old plumage is much worn and faded. The back, in some specimens,is nearly white, and the long scapulars are so abraded that little but the shaftremains on the terminal third. The upper and under wing coverts, and espe-cially the axillars, show less change than other portions of the plumage. Asfar as I could learn from the usually inaccurate testimony of the negroes, themoult continues through July and part of August; the flight feathers being shedan the latter month.Food.?Doctor Chapman (1905) says of the food of the flamingo:The stomachs of all the adults examined contained only the remains of shells
?of the genus Ceritheum, which are evidently swallowed entire and ground up in
"the stomach, the walls of which are exceedingly thick and muscular. The birds^sometimes fed in water which reached to their bodies, and the treading or danc-ing motion, which has been well described by former writers, was employedwhile the head was submerged.He did not observe that the birds posted sentinels while feeding;but W. E. D. Scott (1890) describes the operation quite fully, asfollows
:
All the time the birds were feeding there were three small parties, varyingfrom two to five individuals, that were apparently doing a sort of picket duty.At each end of the line and about 100 yards from it was posted one of theseparties, offshore and at the center of the line and some hundred yards away thethird party was stationed. About every half hour the indviduals composing thesepicket squads would take wing, fly to the flock in line and alight, and presently,that is in less than a minute, another or part of the same picket squad wouldleave the flock and fly to the point left but a few minutes before. I am not surethat the entire squad was changed at such times, but the pickets taking the placethat had been left only a few minutes before, were generally one or two moreor less in number than the party they apparently relieved. I never saw morethan five individuals in a party, and now and then there was only a single senti-nel, but generally from three to five. The birds at these outposts did not ap-pear to be feeding, but were apparently guarding against any attempt to surprisethe main body.C. J. Maynard (1890) obtained some evidence that the flamingofeeds at night; he writes:
A.t one time, late in January, we had penetrated into the interior of the islandmany miles, and had reached the borders of a large, shallow lake, near the shore ofwhich was a mangrove island. During the daytime we had seen numbers of fla-mingos and I was assured by my guide that they fed near this island at night. Ac-cordingly about sunset we concealed ourselves among the mangroves of the islandand awaited the coming of the flamingos. As the sun disappeared numerous cor-morants, pelicans, and herons began to settle on the low trees over our heads, andone large brown pelican alighted so near me that I could have touched it with my
10 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMgun barrel. As soon as the short twilight gave place to darkness, we heard the-honk of the flamingos and soon they began to arrive, each group alighting witha splash in the water near. Soon hundreds had gathered, and although we couldhear them wallowing about, so dense was the darkness that neither my guideor myself could see a single bird.Behavior.?J. L. Bonhote (1903) gives us an interesting picture ofthe behavior of a large flock of flamingos, writing as follows:I had been watching at a distance an immense flock of 700 or a 1,000, feeding,,preening, and wading about, and, desiring a closer inspection, had approachedto within 20 yards of the nearest bird when I stumbled and thus gave them thealarm. As soon as they saw me they all bunched up together, their long necksstretched up as high as possible, and all I could see was a mass of living scarletstreaks. Although I remained absolutely quiet, the birds would not settle downagain; at first four or five, then the layer about four deep nearest me, then thenext layer, and so on and so on, slowly rose expanding their jet black wings anddisplaying, as they did so, the pink of their backs and the gorgeous scarlet oftheir under wing coverts. Thus they went slowly filing off in a long irregularcolumn till not one was left, and, as they wended their way across the sky, onesaw first the contrast of black and scarlet till it gave place to an intermittantline of red, gradually fading away in a pink haze on the eastern horizon. Sucha blaze of moving color, set in the deep blue of a tropical sky in the light of theafternoon sun, forms a spectacle of natural beauty which cannot be surpassed.Doctor Chapman (1908) writes:Flamingos in flight resemble no other bird known to me. With legs and neckfully outstreched, and the comparatively small wings set halfway between billand toes, they look as if they might fly backward or forward with equal ease.They progress more rapidly than a heron, and, when hurried, fly with a singularserpentine motion of the neck and body, as if they were crawling in the air.As noon approached, the birds disposed themselves for sleep. The long necks-were arranged in sundry coils and curves, the heads tucked snugly beneath thefeathers of the back, and, for the first time, there was silence in the red city.Suddenl}'?one could never tell whence it came?the honking alarm note was given.Instantly, and with remarkable eff'ect, the snakelike necks shot up all over theglowing Vjed of color before me, transforming it into a writhing mass of flamingserpents; then as the alarm note continued and was taken up by a thousandthroats, the birds, like a vast congregation, with dignified precision of movement,gravely arose, pressing their bills into the nests to assist themselves. Undercircumstances of this kind the birds rarely left their nests, and it was diflficult todetermine the cause of their alarm. Often, doubtless, it was baseless, but attimes it was due to a circling turkey vulture, the gaunt ogre of flamingodom,which, in the absence of the parent birds, is said to eat not only eggs but nestlings.Possibly some slight sound from my tent, where, with ill-controlled excitement,I was making photograph after photograph, may have occasioned the deep-voicedwarning huh-huh-huh.Of the notes of the flamingo, he (1905) says:The notes of the adults are varied in character. The commonest is the loudhuh-huh-huh, already mentioned, the second syllable of which is strongly accented.This call was given in a low, deep tone and in a higher one of less volume, adifference which I considered sexual, the louder voice being, presumably, that ofthe male. This was the alarm call, and indeed was heard whenever there wasany commotion in the colony. Other calls were a deep nasal, resonant honk^
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 11honk, honk, honk, even more gooselike in tone than the first call mentioned, ahenlike, drawled cah-cah-cah-cah, and a broken cut-leek.That the flamingo can run well on its long legs, when wounded orwhen molting and unable to fly, is well illustrated by the followinginstance noted by Mr. Gilford (1913):Where the ground is clear, and the bird's movements are unimpeded by rocksand bushes, the flamingo is a good runner, being able to cover ground veryrapidly, and giving a person a lively chase. At James Bay, James Island, ayoung bird not quite able to fly got through the bushes fi'om the lagoon to theocean beach. I pursued it for nearly half a mile south along the beach late oneafternoon. I was, however, unable to overtake it before it reached the rocks atthe end of the beach. Perceiving that it would be caught if it remained on thebeach, the bird stepped into the water and struck boldly out from shore, swim-ming over an eighth of a mile. As soon as I left the beach, it returned andcommenced walking up and down again in the attempt to find its way back tothe lagoon. The following morning it had disappeared.At a lagoon 4 or 5 miles northwest of Sullivan Bay, James Island, on July 28,an adult bird was found without flight feathers. New ones were just appearing,which were very tender, bleeding profusely when bruised. This bird was a fastrunner, racing up and down the smooth beach of the lagoon, until finally it waschased into a cul-de-sac. It tried to escape through the brush, but of coursetripped and fell, bruising its wings, feet, and bill. It realized its inability to fly,for it did not make any attempt to use its wings until the very last.D. P. Ingram (1S94) relates the following incident, which showsthat the flamingo is also a good swimmer:A flock of American flamingos came flying down about parallel with the coast,and about 100 yards out over the water. When nearly opposite I selected mybird and gave him one barrel, which brought him down at once. I immediatelyselected my next bird and gave him the other barrel. The game was a long dis-tance off at the first and had turned their course somewhat and were still furtheroff at the second shot. I saw that my bird was hit but did not at once comedown, but left the fl.ock and turned his course at about right angles, directly outover the ocean, gradually lowering, and after flying about half a mile it struckthe water. One of my men, who was a very expert sculler and who was on mylarge boat, which lay at anchor out about 200 yards distant, at once took hissmall boat and started for my prize, expecting to go and pick it up as it wasdown in the water. He soon saw that the bird was making about as good head-way out in the ocean as he was, when he doubled his energy. When he hadapproached within about 50 yards of the bird it arose and flew, this time goingabout the same distance that it did the first time, before it was again compelledto take to the water. He then gave up the chase, being fully a mile and a halffrom shore, the bird having made almost two-thirds as good time as he could insculling his boat. When the bird raised to fly he was somewhere in from 30 to50 fathoms of water.Enemies.?Aside from man flamingos have few enemies. Thereare very few predacious animals or birds, in the regions they inhabit,which are large enough to prey on the adults; and the adults, thoughgentle and practically defenseless, are generally wary enough to escapeeven from man. Young birds and eggs are often destroyed by turkey
12 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMbuzzards, and the presence of one of these vultures near a breedingrookery always causes considerable excitement. Much mortalityamong young birds and eggs is also caused by heavy rains, floodingthe rookeries. But the worst enemies of these birds are the Bahamanegroes who raid the rookeries before the young birds are able to flyand round them up in large numbers. The young birds are easilycaught and form an important food supply for the natives; whatbirds they can not dispose of at once are salted down in brine forfuture use. The negroes are also very skillful in capturing the oldbirds by stealthy approach behind a screen of branches. A heavytoll has been thus levied for many years on the eggs, young birds, andadults until these beautiful birds seemed to be threatened with exter-mination. But fortunately, now that suitable laws have been enacted,the flamingos are receiving a reasonable degree of protection and thereis hope that these interesting birds will long continue to give color tothe Bahama landscape. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Tropical zones of the Americas, including the islands ofthe Caribbean Sea. East to southern Florida, (formerly Cape Sable)
;
the Bahama Islands, (great Abaco, Andros, etc.) ; eastern Venezuela,(formerly the Delta of the Orinoco River) ; and French Guiana,(formerly, Cayenne). South to east central Brazil (Praia do caju-tuba). West to the Galapagos Archipelago (Charles Island). Northto Cuba (Isle of Pines) .and Yucatan (formerly, Rio Lagartos). Theflamingo apparently does not breed in the interior of South Americaand it has become extinct over much of the area where it once bredin large numbers.Casual r<26'orc?,s.? Nonmigratory in the usual sense of the word, theflamingo is known outside of its breeding range only as a casual oraccidental visitor. One was taken on De Bardien Island, SouthCarolina, September 17 or 18, 1876, and Audubon states that othershad been taken in the vicinity of Charleston. One was seen atBermuda in 1849; there are several records for both coasts of Floridaand for many of the islands in the Carribbean Sea, where it is notknown as a breeder. Nelson and Goldman collected specimens atSan Fehpe, Yucatan, April 23, 1901, and McAtee saw a single in-dividual in Cameron Parish, western Louisiana, December 6, 1910.Most supposed records for this bird for the State of Texas have beenfound to refer to the roseate spoonbill, which bears the name "flam-ingo" among the natives of the Texan coast; but the author is in-clined to accept a sight record made b}^ R. D. Camp at Bahia GrandeOctober 15, 1912, after a severe Gulf storm.Egg dates.?Bahama Islands: 32 records, March 2 to July 14; 16records, May 11 to 16. Galapagos Islands, February 26.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 13Order HERODIONES, Herons, Storks, Ibises, etc.Family PLATALEIDAE. SpoonbillsAJAIA AJAJA (Linnaeus)ROSEATE SPOONBILL . r ;.HABITSThis unique and beautiful species is one of the many which havepaid the supreme penalty for their beauty and been sacrificed by theavaricious hand of man, who can never resist the temptation to destroyand appropriate to his own selfish use nature's most charming crea-tures. He never seems to realize that others might like to enjoy anoccasional glimpse at a group of these gorgeous birds, clearl}^^ outlinedin pink and white against a background of dark green mangroves;nor does he appreciate how much a Florida landscape is enhanced bythe sight of a flock of "pink curlews" fading away over the tree tops,until the glow of rose-colored wings is lost in the distant blue of thesky. All his sordid mind can grasp is the thought of a pair of prettywings and the money the}^ will bring when made into ladies' fans!And so a splendid bird, once common in Florida and all along theGulf coast to Texas, has been gradually driven from its former hauntsand is making its last stand in a few remote and isolated localities.The roseate spoonbill never enjoyed a wide distribution, nor was itever found commonly very far inland. Audubon (1840) implies thatin his time it wandered as far north as North Carolina, though it wasnot common even in South Carolina; he also speaks of a specimensent to Wilson from Natchez, Mississippi. Dr. Frank M. Chapman(1914) writes:In 1858, when Dr. Henry Br\'ant visited Pelican Island, on Indian River, hefound not only brown pelicans, but also roseate spoonbills nesting there. Buteven at that early date these beautiful and interesting birds were prey for theplumer, some of whom. Dr. Bryant writes, were killing as many as GO spoonbillsa day, and sending their wings to St. Augustine to be sold as fans. From thattime almost to this, " Pink Curlews," as the Floridan calls them, have been amark for every man with a gun. Only a remnant was left when the NationalAssociation of Audubon Societies protested against the further wanton destruc-tion of bird life, and through its wardens and by the establishment of reservations,attempted to do for Florida what the State had not enough foresight to do foritself.Writing at the time when the destruction of plume birds was flour-ishing, W. E. D. Scott (1889) says:The record in regard to the species in question is even more shocking than thatof the flamingo. The roseate spoonl)ill was 10 years ago an abundant bird on theGulf Coast of Florida, as far north at least as the mouth of the Anclote River.The birds bred in enormous rookeries in the region about Cape Romano and tothe south of that point. These rookeries have been described to me bj' men who
14 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES N4 xIONAL MUSEUMhelped to destroy them, as being frequently of many acres in extent and afford-ing breeding grounds to thousands of roseate spoonbills. The birds bred in Jan-uary and were in the best plumage late in November and in December. Theydo not seem to have bred north of Charlotte Harbor, so far as I am able toascertain, but immediately after the breeding season was finished, and as soon asthe young were able to shift for themselves, there was a great dispersal of thebirds to the northward, particularly along the coast, though they were commonat points in the interior. All this is changed. I have spent the past four wintersand two summers in Florida. My old hunting grounds have all been carefullyretraversed, some of them many times, and the roseate spoonbill is almost asgreat a stranger to me as to my fellow workers who live the year round inMassachusetts.Nesting.?I have twice visited one of the few remaining breedingresorts of the roseate spoonbill in Florida, in 1903 and 1908. Wehad toiled all day, dragging our skiffs over miles of mud flats, polingthem through several lakes and laboriously pushing and haulingthem through the tortuous channels of sluggish streams, choked withroots and fallen tree trunks, in the almost impenetrable mangroveswamps of extreme southern Florida. The afternoon was well spentwhen we emerged on the open waters of Cuthbert Lake and sawahead of us the object of our search, a mangrove island, about amile distant, literally covered with birds. It was a beautiful sightas the afternoon sun shone full upon it; hundreds of white and blueherons, and a score or two of beautiful "pink curlews" could beplainly seen against the dark green of the mangroves, like featheredgems on a cushion of green velvet. As we drew nearer the picturebecame more animated, we could see the birds more clearly and webegan to realize what a variety of birds and what a host of them thefar famed Cuthbert rookery contained. The taller trees in the centerof the island were dotted with the great white American egrets,perhaps 300 or 400 of them, watching us from points of vantage; onthe mangroves below them, among the hundreds of white ibises, wecould see about 75 or 100 of the rare roseate spoonbills; the outeredges of the mangroves, growing in the water, were black withFlorida cormorants and anhingas; and everywhere were flocks andclouds of Louisiana and little blue herons. The egrets and thespoonbills were the first to leave; the former rose deliberately, longbefore we were within gunshot range, and flapped lazily away ontheir broad white wings; the latter were equally shy, flying aroundthe island, circling to a considerable height and then flying straightaway, with their necks outstreched and their feet extended, in longlines or in wedge-shaped flocks; we watched them longingly as theyfaded away in the distant sky with the blush of sunset glowingthrough their roseate wings. Then hundreds of white ibises wererising from the mangroves with a mighty roar of wings and scores ofcormorants were dropping off the outer branches into the water.When fairly in their midst, the air seemed full of the smaUer herons,
WORITE AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 15flopping up ahead of us, drifting around the island and floating overus; and mingled with them were circling water turkeys, soaringturkey vultures, and hovering fish crows, ready to pounce onunprotected eggs.We landed on the island and found it much like other islands ofits class in southern Florida; it was not over two acres in total extent,with not over an acre of dry land in the center. The dry land wascovered mainly with black mangroves, mixed with some whitebutton-woods; it was surrounded by a wide belt of red mangrovesgrowing in the mud and water, which was 3 feet deep at the outeredge.The nesting sites of the roseate spoonbills were in the densest partof the red mangroves among the nests of the white ibises. On myfirst trip to this rookery, on May 1, 1903, we saw only 12 spoonbiUsin the colony and found only three nests, one containing a singleheavily incubated egg, one a handsome set of three eggs and theother holding two downy young, not quite half grown. The nestswere all on nearly horizontal branches of the red mangroves, nearthe edge of the water, and were from 12 to 15 feet above the mudor water. They were easily recognized as they were quite differentfrom the other nests in the rookery; they were larger than the nestsof the ibises or the small herons and were made of larger sticks;they were about the size of a water turkey's nest, but were moreneatly made without the use of dead leaves, so characteristic of thelatter species. The nests were deeply hollowed and were lined with stripsof inner bark and water moss. At the time of my second visit, onMarch 29, 1908, the spoonbills had increased to 75 or more, but wewere too early to find them well along with their nesting. A numberof nests had been built or were in process of construction, but onlyfour contained fresh eggs; there were one set of four, one set of threeeggs and two nests with one egg each. All of the nests were groupedtogether, well inside the rookery, in the densest and most shadyportion and placed on the lower branches of the red mangroves withmore or less water or soft mud under them. The nest containinfi;the set of four eggs was about 10 feet up on a horizontal branch; itwas a large nest of course sticks, lined with finer twigs and with thedead and yellow leaves of the red mangrove; it measured 16 inchesin outside diameter, 7 inches inside and was hollowed to a depth ofabout 2 inches. The other nests were similarly constructed.One of the principal objects of my trip to Texas in 1923 was tofind the breeding grounds of the roseate spoonbills; many observershad seen them in flocks at various points along the coast, but theirnesting places had not been discovered. We were told that theynested on the islands in the bays, where the herons breed; and GeorgeFinlay Simmons said he had found nests and young birds on one of
16 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe islands late in the season. The nests were built on the groundamong the sunflowers after the herons had finished breeding andgone; and Mr. Simmons said he found pink feathers in some of thenests. Such nesting habits, so different from the customary habitsof the species, must have been very unusual or merely casual.But I think we solved the mystery when we found large numbersof roseate spoonbills nesting in the midst of an immense rookery ofwhite ibises away off in the wilds of Victoria County. It took usfour days to locate this rookery, by watching the lines of flight of thebirds to and from their feeding grounds, in an immense tract ofswamps and heavily forested country in the lowlands along the Guad-alupe River. This rookery is more fully described under the whiteibis. The center of abundance of the spoonbills was a partially dry,but muddy, spot surrounded by water where a group of large trees,.water oaks, and large elms, afforded some shade over a denser growthof small trees and bushes below. Here a great many nests were-grouped closely together, from 6 to 15 feet above the ground, in thesmaller trees and bushes. Spoonbill's nests were also scatteredall over the rookery among the nests of the white ibises, but usuallyin the more shady places. The spoonbills' nests were easily recog-nized as they were larger, better made and more deeply hollowed ;they were made of larger sticks and were lined with small twigs andwith leaves, both green and dry. Most of the nests at that date.May 30, held three or four eggs, but mau}^ had small, pink, downyyoung; we did not find any large young.Eggs.?The roseate spoonbill lays ordinarily three eggs, sometimesonly two, often four eggs and very rarely five. The eggs are easilyrecognized. In shape they vary from ovate to elliptical ovate or evenelongate ovate. The shell is thick and rather roughly granulated,with no gloss. The ground color is usually dull or dirty white andthe egg is more or less evenly covered with spots and small blotchesof various shades of brown, "chestnut," "auburn," "russet," or"tawny"; occasionally the markings are concentrated around thelarger end. A particularly handsome set has a pinkish, creamy whiteground color, more or less uniformly covered with dashes and spotsof lavender, purple and drab, over which spots of various shades ofbrown are quite evenly distributed. The measurements of 40 eggsaverage 65 by 43.9 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasured 71.5 by 42.5, 68.1 by 47, 60.2 by 44.4, and 66 by 41millimeters.Young.?The two young, referred to above, in the feeble, help-less stage, unable to stand as yet, were curious looking birds, flabbyand fat, with enormous abdomens and soft ducklike bills; their colorincluding bill, feet, legs, and entire skin, was a beautiful, deep, rich,salmon pink; they were scantily covered with short, white down.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 17
which was insufficient to conceal the color of the skin; the wing quillswere well started, but still in sheaths. The bright pink color wasvery conspicuous at quite a distance and could be seen throughthe intereticos of the nest, which was covered with whitish excrement,as were also the surrounding branches and the ground below; theyare no neater than herons in this respect.Dr. Frank M. Chapman (1914) says of the behavior of the youngbirds:On April 17, 1910, I found a colony of about 200 pairs of roseate spoonbillson Pajaro Island, in Tamiahua Lagoon, on the Gulf coast of Mexico, south ofTampico. Most of the nests contained well-grown young at least a month oldand probably older. Allowing a month for hatching, and it is evident that thesebirds begin to lay about the middle of February. In the Mexican colony, fourwas the usual number of young. They were well-behaved youngsters and,in the absence of their parents, rested peacefully in their homes, or occasionallyventured on thrilling excursions of a few feet to the adjoining limbs. But whentheir parents returned, they were all attention and on the alert for food. Atsuch times they usually stood in a row on the edge of the nest facing the oldbirds, and in most comical manner swung the head and neck up and down. Ihave seen balanced mechanical toys which would make almost exactly the samemotion. The toys, however, were silent, while the little spoonbills all joined ina chorus of tremulous, trilling whistles, which grew louder and more rapid asthe parent approached. What their parents brought them I could not see, nor,for that matter, could they. But with a confidence born of experience, the birdthat had the first opportunity pushed its bill and head far down its parent's billtojget what ever was there. This singular operation sometimes lasted as long as10 seconds, and it was terminated only by the parent which, much against thewill of its offspring, disengaged itself; then, after a short rest, a second young-ster was fed, and thus in due time the whole family was satisfied. The youngnow sank contentedly back in the nest, and the old ones stood quietly by, orwent back to the shores and marshes for further supplies.Audubon (1840) says:During the moult, which takes place in Florida late in May, the young of thepreceding year conceal themselves among the close branches of the mangrovesand other trees growing over narrow inlets, between secluded keys, or on bayouswhere they spend the whole day, and whence it is difficult to start them.Toward night they return to their feeding grounds, generally keeping apart fromthe old Vjirds.Plumages.?The downy, young, roseate spoonbill is a "pink curlew"and a real "spoonbill." The living young when seen in the nest isdecidedly pink in appearance, bright, rich salmon pink, but this is dueentirely to the color of the skin; the bill and feet are practically thesame color. This color fades more or less in the dried skin to "orangepink" or "light salmon orange" and in some cases to dull yellow orbuff; one specimen that I have had in my collection for over 20 yearsis still quite pink. The bill is broad and flat, Hke a duck's bill, andsomewhat decurved. The young bird, when first hatched, is entirelycovered with a sparse growth of short white down, through which
18 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe pink skin shows plainly. The down increases in length and den-sity until the bird is entirely covered with thick wooly down. Thewing quills appear at an early age and the first, or juvenal plumageis aquired before the young bird leaves the nest. This is mainlywhite, with a shght suffusion of pink under the wings and in the tail;the crown, cheeks, and throat are covered with white plumage, andnot naked as in adults; in the juvenal wing the outer primaries aredusky-tipped, about haK of the outer webs and less than half of theinner webs, the amount of dusky decreasing inwardly; the prir . "Vcoverts and the greater wing coverts, are similarly marked. aoThe first winter plumage is a continuation of the juvenal, ''i?Tprogressive changes toward maturity. The head and neck rcL '^^white, but the mantle and breast become gradually pinker. In so.
'
juvenal birds a little carmine appears in the lesser wing coverts andupper tail coverts during the winter and spring, but usually thert ^no trace of this color during the first year. The dusky-tipped wingcoverts are molted before spring, but not the remiges. The tail ismolted and replaced by one which is very pale buff. The feath?i &dhead and the juvenal primaries are retained until the first completemolt takes place in summer, from June to September.At this molt, the first postnuptial, the young bird assumes a plum-age which is much like that of the winter adult. The head, crown,cheeks, and throat, become wholly or partially naked; the wings,tail, and body are all pink, but with no carmine; and the neck andpart of the breast are white. Sometimes this second winter plumageis worn without much change through the following spring; but usu-ally at the second prenuptial molt, in late winter or early spring, asecond nuptial plumage is assumed, including the buff tail, the car-mine lesser wing coverts and more or less of the roseate and carminecolors in the body plumage. This plumage is much like the adultnuptial, but the highest perfection of plumage is not assumed untilthe following year, when the young bird is nearly three years old.The adult apparently has a complete postnuptial molt in summer,mainly in July, August, and September, and an incomplete prenuptialmolt in January, February, and March, which involves the tail, thelesser wing coverts and most of the contour plumage. In thehighest perfection of the adult nuptial plumage there is much richcarmine in the lesser wing coverts and in the upper and lower tailcoverts; a bunch of curly carmine feathers adorns the center of thebreast, which is also suffused with pink and with "ochraceous buff";sometimes the neck is mottled with a few carmine feathers; and thetail is a rich "ochraceous buff." I have seen birds in full nuptialplumage in November and December, but am inclined to think thatthese are exceptional. In most of the birds that I have calledwinter adults the carmine markings have been lacking or nearly so,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 19the pink colors have been paler and more restricted and the tailshave been pink instead of buff; however, these may be secondwinter birds and adults may show very little seasonal change; butmaterial showing the postnuptial molt of adults is scarce.Food.?Audubon (1840) has described the feeding habits of thisspecies very well, as follows
:
They are as nocturnal as the night heron, and, although they seek for food attimes during the middle of the day, their principal feeding time is from near sunsetuntil ^ylight. To all such feeding grounds as are exposed to the tides, they be-^"'' jmselves when it is low water, and search for food along the shallow marginsiven off bj^ the returning tide. Few birds are better aware of the hours
"i the waters are high or low, and when it is near ebb you see them
'4^ their way to the shore. Whenever a feeding place seems to be produc-L. iiie spoonbills are wont to return to it until they have been much disturbed,and persons aware of this fact may waylay them with success, as at such timeson' ^ly shoot them while passing overhead. To procure their food, the spoon-bills urst generally alight near the water, into which they then wade up to thetibia, and immerse their bills in the water or soft mud, sometimes with the headand even the whole neck beneath the surface. They frequently withdraw thesepari; however, and look around to ascertain if danger is near. They move theirpartially opened mandibles laterally to and fro with a considerable degree ofelegance, munching the fry, insects, or small shellfish, which they secure, beforeswallowing them. When there are many together, one usually acts as sentinel,unless a heron should be near; and in either case you may despair of approachingthem. I have never seen one of these birds feeding in fresh water, although 1have been told that this is sometimes the case. To all those keys in the Floridas,in which ponds have been dug for the making of salt, they usually repair in theevening for the purpose of feeding; but the shallow inlets in the great saltmarshes of our southern coasts are their favorite places of resort.N. B. Moore says in his notes that this species feeds in both saltand fresh water and that he has found in the stomachs fishes, prawnsor shrimps, and coleopterous insects.There arc very little other data available as to the food of theroseate spoonbill, but G. B. Benners (1887) says:I noticed one of these birds while feeding, and after it caught a fish it wouldbeat it against the water before swallowing it. This was done apparently forthe purpose of killing the fish.Behavior.?In flight the spoonbills show tlieir relationship to theibises; when flying in flocks they usually form in diagonal lines or inwedge-shaped flocks, each bird a little behind and to one side of thebird ahead of it, so as to take advantage of the aerial waves causedby the advancing flock, after the manner of wild geese. The headand neck are fully outstretched, with the bill pointing straightforward, and the feet are extended backward under the tail andprojecting beyond it. The wings, which are large for the size of thebird, beat the air steadily with rather slow, long strokes. I haveoccasionally seen spoonbills set their wings and scale like ibises, but
20 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthis is not so customary with spoonbills as with pelicans, cormorants,and ibises.Audubon's (1840) account of their behavior is well worth quoting;he writes:The sight of a flock of 15 or 20 of these full-dressed birds is extremely pleasingto the student of nature, should he conceal himself from their view, for then hemay observe their movements and manners to advantage. Now, they all standwith their wings widely extended to receive the sun's rays, or perhaps to courtthe cooling breeze, or they enjoy either seated on their tarsi. Again they allstalk about with graceful steps along the margin of the muddy pool, or wade inthe shallows in search of food. After awhile they rise simultaneously on wing, andgradually ascend in a spiral manner to a great height, where you see them crossingeach other in a thousand ways, like so many vultures or ibises. At length, tiredof this pastime, or perhaps urged by hunger, they return to their feeding groundsin a zigzag course, and plunge through the air, as if displaying their powers offlight before you. These birds fly with their necks stretched forward to theirfull length, and their legs and feet extended behind, moving otherwise in themanner of herons, or with easy flappings, until about to alight, when they sailwith expanded wings, passing once or twice over the spot, and then gently com-ing to the ground, on which they run a few steps. When traveling to a distantplace they proceed in regular ranks, but on ordinary occasions they fly in a con-fused manner. When the sun is shining, and they are wheeling on wing pre-vious to alighting, their roseate tints exhibit a richer glow, which is surpassed onlyby the brilliancy of the scarlet ibis and the American flamingo.The vocal performances of the roseate spoonbill are not elaborateor conspicuous. The only note I heard from them on their breedinggrounds was a grunting croak in a low key and so subdued as not tobe audible at any great distance. Doctor Chapman (1914) refers toit as ''a low, croaking call." Audubon does not mention it, Mr.Benners (1887) describes it as "a sort of cluck like a hen."FaW.?After the breeding season is over, either early or late in thespring, these birds spread out over a wider territory, which theyoccupy more or less regularly during the summer, fall, and earlywinter. This spreading out includes what might be called a north-ward migration; it is between breeding seasons that the northwardextension of range is made. The birds which breed on the eastcoast of Mexico, in the lagoons south of Tampico, migrate in thespring northward to the coast of Texas and perhaps beyond. Onthis subject Samuel N. Rhoads (1892) writes:On the 28th of May, accompanied by Mr. Priour, I sailed down to the mouthof the Nueces River in search of these birds. At a distance of 2 miles a coupleof large flocks could be described as a dull rosy streak along the water's edge.We approached near enough to make, with the aid of a glass, an excellent surveyof the flocks in the act of feeding before they noticed our presence. Whenwithin about 200 yards of them, the whole company of four or five hundredindividuals simultaneously raised their heads and faced about. On approachingsome 50 yards nearer, the sudden righting about just mentioned was succeededby a most interesting series of maneuvers, consisting of a contraction and fillingin of all the gaps in the line; and just as this was completed, with a rush of
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 21
wings and a glorious burst of color, they arose. Many other detachments joinedthem until the entire flock numbered about 600. Most of these alighted some2 miles off, while a few returned to their former feeding ground. The spoonbillsnow leave the vicinity of Corpus Christi the latter part of February, and thougha few stragglers sometimes remain all the year, none have been known to breedon the Texas coast of late years. This state of affairs is probably due to theirpersecution and to the destruction of the forests between Corpus Christi andBrownsville, which used to reach nearer the river mouths, affording this formerlyabundant species suitable rookery sites. It is probable that most of the flock ofbirds seen on Nueces Bay were raised somewhere on the coast south of Browns-ville. After raising their young in comparative safety, they return yearly tothis spot to spend the summer and early winter months, arriving in considerablenumbers, even so early as the latter part of April, and attaining their maximumnumbers in the latter part of May. Their evident attachment to the vicinity ofNueces Baj' must be due to the facilities it affords them in the great item of foodBuppl}', for the reception accorded these birds by Corpus Christi gunners is farfrom encouraging.The spoonbills which breed in southern Florida wander far north-ward after the breeding season; Audubon (1840) took one 10 milesnorth of Charleston, vSouth Carolina, and says:The spoonbills are so sensible of cold, that those which spend the winter onthe Keys, near Cape Sable in Florida, rarely leave those parts for the neighbor-hood of St. Augustine before the first days of March. But after this you mayfind them along inost of the water courses running parallel to the coast, anddistant about half a mile or a mile from it. I saw none on any part of the St.John's river; and from all the answers which I obtained to my various inquiriesrespecting this bird, I feel confident that it never breeds in the interior of thepeninsula, nor is ever seen there in winter. The roseate spoonbill is foundfor the most part along the marshy and muddy borders of estuaries, the mouthsof rivers, ponds, or sea islands or keys partially overgrown with bushes, andperhaps still more commonly along the shores of those singular salt-water bayousso abundant within a mile or so of the shores, where they can reside and breedin perfect security in the midst of an abundance of food. It is more or lessgregario'is at all seasons, and it is rare to meet with fewer than half a dozen to-gether, unless they have been dispersed by a tempest, in which case one of themis now and then found in a situation where you would least expect it. At the ap-proach of the breeding season, these small flocks collect to form great bodies, as isthe manner of the ibises, and resort to their former places of residence, to whichthey regularly return, like herons.Warden Krocgel, of Pelican Island, saw a flock of 60, in June, 1913,on the Mesquite Inlet Reservation, far north of the breeding rangeof this species.Winter.?In southern Florida the roseate spoonbill is resident allthe year round, but it frequents different localities in winter andwanders about more, feeding in large flocks in the shallows of theBay of Florida, in the muddy inlets along the shore and in the shal-low lakes and sloughs near the coast. One of their favorite feedinggrounds is a large, so-called "slough" near Cape Sable, but verydifferent in character from the typical western prairie slough. This92642?26t 3
22 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
is apparently a submerged forest, killed by inundations from the sea,the remains of which are still standing, tall, dead trees, many of themof large size, bare and bleached. During the fall and early winterthe slough is full of water but at the time we were there, in April, itwas partially dry in spots, but mostly soft and boggy, with sluggishstreams and numerous shallow muddy pools scattered through it, form-ing fine feeding grounds for spoonbills, ibises, and other water birds.There is another favorite resort of the spoonbills on one of the keyswhich has a fair sized lake in the centre. Large flocks of "pinkcurlews," as they are called by the natives, had been seen almostdaily flying to and from this lake. Owing to this fact we were ledto suppose that we might find a breeding rookery here, but a day'ssearch failed to reveal even a single bird. I am inclined to inferthat they come here only to feed in the shallow muddy waters ofthe lake or to roost in the mangroves around it.I have seen and several other observers have reported seeing flocksof roseate spoonbills, numbering from half a dozen to 50 or 60 birds,at various points on the coast of Texas during the spring. One largeflock constantly frequented the chain of islands between Mesquiteand San Antonio Bays on May 15 and 16; we spent some time chas-ing them from one island to another, but could not drive them awayfrom that vicinity. Our guides felt confident that they would nestthere in June, as it was here that Mr. Simmons had found the nestsreferred to above. The theory has also been advanced that theseare birds which have bred on the coast of Mexico earlier in the seasonand wandered north after the breeding season. Most of these birdsthat I saw were in immature plumage, though some few seemed tobe nearly adult, perhaps barren or unmated birds. I beheve thatthey were all nonbreeders and were simply wandering around inflocks. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?South and Central America, islands of the Carribbean Sea,and tlie Gulf and south Atlantic coasts of the United States. Eastto the Atlantic coast of Florida (Indian River), the Bahama Islands(Great Inagua), eastern Brazil, (Para). South to the central part ofeastern Argentina (near Buenos Aires) . West to the coast of Chile(Santiago), Peru (Lower Ucayali River), Costa Rica (La Palma),Nicaragua (San Juan del Sur), and Sinaloa (Mazatlan). North toSinaloa (Mazatlan), Texas (Galveston Bay, Victoria County, andBeamont), and the coast of Louisiana (Cameron Parish and LakeArthur). This range has been greatly restricted within the last fewdecades and the species is now probably extirpated from most of theAntillean Islands and from other regions where it was formerly acommon breeder. In South America it is resident and of generaldistribution on both coasts and in the interior along the larger rivers
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 23Casual Records.?Although the spoonbill is resident throughout itsbreeding range, small flocks and solitary birds have been recordedfrom long distances both to the north and to the south. A greatlyemaciated specimen was collected near Kidney Cove and the remainsof a second were found at Whalebone Bay, Falkland Islands, in July,1860, while Sclater and Hudson record a specimen from the Straits ofMagellan.In the United States stragglers have been taken or noted in Cali-fornia (San Bernardino, June 20, 1903); Utah (Wendovcr, July 2,1919); Colorado (Howardsville, June, 1888, and Pueblo, August,1890); Kansas (Douglas, March 20,1899); Wisconsin, (near Janes-ville, August, 1845); Indiana (Vincennes, spring of 1856, and Port-land, July 14, 1889), and South Carolina (Charleston, June, 1879,and Yemassee, fall of 1885).Egg dates.?Florida: 25 records, January 4 to June 6; 13 records,January 16 to May 1. Louisiana: 8 records, May 22 to June 2.Family THRESKIONITHIDAE, Ibises.GUARA ALBA (Linnaeus)WHITE IBISHABITSThe sluggish upper waters of the St. Johns River in Florida arespread out into extensive marshes, broad lakes, and small ponds, chokedwith water hyacinths, "lettuce," and "bonnets," and dotted withfloating boggy islets or more substantial islands overgrown with wil-low thickets. Here we found a paradise for water birds, many milesfrom the haunts of man, in which Florida ducks and various speciesof herons and gallinules were breeding in security. It was a joyto watch the graceful aerial evolutions of the stately wood ibises andto mark the morning and evening flights of the white ibises betweentheir feeding ground and their rookeries in distant swampy thickets.Sometimes in large, loose flocks and sometimes in long, stragglinglines, they were always recognizable by their snowy wliiteness andtheir rapid wing beats. Wherever we went in southern Florida wefrequently found them on inland lakes and streams, feeding in theshallow, muddy waters, or flying out ahead of us as we navigatedthe narrow creeks in the mangrove swamps. Once I suprised a largeflock of them in a little sunlit, muddy pool in a big cypress swamp;they were feeding on the muddy shores, dozing on the fallen logs orpreening their feathers as they sat on tlie stumps and the branches ofthe surrounding trees; what a cloud of dazzling whiteness and whata clatter of many black-tipped wings, as they all rose and went dodg-ing off among the trees.But, perhaps, my most interesting experience with the white ibiswas in Texas, in 1923, whereafter much eft'ort we succeeded in locating
24 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
a big breeding rookery in Victoria County. Somewhere in the valleyof the Guadalupe River, we had heard, was a colony of this species.With the help of what local talent we could find, we explored theswamp and bayou forests along the river, where the large cypress,tupelo, gum, water oak, and magnolia trees were draped in long fes-toons of Spanish moss; we skirted the borders of numerous lakes andopen marshes; and we penetrated the dense marshy thickets of wil-low.-^, button-bushes, huisache, and other brush, wading through milesof muddy water and fighting our way through thorny tangles. Fre-quentlywe saw the ibises flying over us, but always theywent on beyondus to some distant point, tolling us on and on, deeper and deeper intothe recesses of an immense tract of endless swamps, streams, and ponds.By taking observations from the tops of the highest trees we couldfind, we finally got their bearings from several directions and locatedtheir rookery about 3 miles away. Apparently their feeding groundswere scattered all over this big tract, in the more open marshes andmeadows. Birds were constantly fl}nng to and fro between theirfeeding grounds and their breeding rookery, but towards dark theirmovements were all in the direction of the latter. We eventuallyfound the rookery, to which I shall refer later.Courtship.?I have never seen the courtship of this species, norcan I find anything about it in print. As the breeding season ap-proaches, the bill, face, gular pouch, and legs of the male, which atother seasons are dull flesh color, become deep, brilliant red incolor and form a striking contrast with the white plumage. Evi-dently a decided distention of the gular pouch forms an important partof the nuptial display. Audubon (1840) says: ''The males at thisseason have the gular pouch of a rich orange color, and somewhatresembling in shape that of the frigate pelican, although proportion-ally less." C. J. Pennock refers to this twice in his notes sent tome on the habits of this species in Florida. On April 1, 1917, thebirds were apparently mating and wore indulging in a series of out-landish noises; watching them at a distance of 40 or 50 feet, with apair of good glasses, it appeared that the males distended the gularpouch to the size of "a good-sized lemon" and contracted it againas they uttered "their dulcet notes"; he describes the color of it as
"rich deep vermilion or Turkey red." Again on May 2y, 1917, heobserved another bird, within 20 feet, make a similar display andestimated that the pouch extended about an inch and a half belowthe bill, "fiery red in color, the bill, face and legs being of the samecolor."Nesting.?^Audubon (lcS40) gives a description of an interestingcolony which he found on an island 6 miles from Cape Sable, Florida.Besides the ibises there were
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NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 25Breeding there the brown pelican, the purple, the Louisiana, the white, andthe green herons, two species of galUnule, the cardinal grosbeak, crows, and pigeons.The vegetation consists of a few tall mangroves, thousands of wild plum trees,several species of cactus, some of them nearly as thick as a man's body, andmore than 20 feet high, different sorts of smilax, grape vines, cane, palmet-toes, Spanish bayonets, and the rankest nettles I ever saw. As we entered thatwell-known place, we saw nests on every bush, cactus, or tree. Whether thenumber was one thousand or ten I can not say, but this I well know?I counted47 on a single plum tree. These nests of the white ibis measure about 15 inchesin their greatest diameter, and are formed of dry twigs intermixed with fibrousroots and green branches of the trees growing on the island, which this birdeasily breaks with its bill; the interior, which is fiat, being finished with leavesof the cane and some other plants.On my two visits to Cape Sable in 1903 and 1908 we found nosigns of this rookery and no island that answered his description.Most of the colonies of white ibises that I have seen have been infresh-water lakes or marshes at some distance from the coast. Myfii'st experience with the nesting habits of this species was in thegreat Cuthbert rookery in Monroe County, Fla., to which I havemade two visits, and which I have fully described under the preced-ing species. As we approached the little island the ibises arose in agreat white cloud from the red mangroves and circled about oveiom" heads, uttering their peculiar grunting notes of protest. Weestimated that there were about 1,000 ibises in the colony. Theysoon settled down into the trees again when we landed and were con-stantly peering at us through tlxe foliage while we were examiningtheir nests. The ibises' nests occupied the intermediate belt, on theouter edge of the larger trees on the dry land and on the inner edgeof the red mangroves over the mud and shallow water, the interiorof the island being occupied by the herons and the outer edge of themangroves by the cormorants. The nests were rather closely grouped,at heights varying from 8 to 15 feet on the horizontal branches ofthe mangroves, often on very slender branches; only a few wereplaced in the white " buttonwoods ." They were very carelessly andloosel}^ made of dry and green leaves of the mangroves, held togetherwith a few small sticks and lined with fresh green leaves. The nestsare probably added to as the eggs are laid or as incubation advances.The nests which contained only one egg were very small, flims}'structures, hardly large enough to hold the egg, often measuring onlysix inches across, while those with three eggs were larger, 10 inches ormore across, and better made. They generally lay four eggs, and insuch cases have large and well-built nests. At the time of our visit.May 1, 1903, the ibises in this rookery were only just beginning tolay, as most of the nests contained one or two eggs, none more thanthree, and all the eggs we collected were fresh. This was ratherremarkable, considering that 15 days later, at Alligator Lake, where
26 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthese ibises were breeding in immense numbers, they had young ofall ages, many of them able to fly.On the west coast of Florida, in Pinellas County, I found twobreeding colonies, which I visited several times during the spring of1925. A small colony of 60 or 75 pairs occupied a small island inHolmes Pond, about 3 miles north of Clearwater. This is a marshypond overgrown with pickerel weed and arrowhead around the border,and with "bonnets" {Nymphaea) and white pond lilies in the deeperportions ; there are a few boggy islands in it covered with small treesand bushes and some scattered patches of saw grass.When Mr. Baynard first showed me this pond, on December 27,1924, no ibises were seen or even mentioned; so I was surprised tofind on my next visit, on April 7, a fine little colony estabUshed thereand well along with its nesting. I waded out to the island in watermore than waist deep and found an interesting little mixed colony ofWard, little blue, Louisiana, and black crowned night herons amongwhich the ibises were nesting. It was a treacherous, boggy, half-float-ing island, thickly overgrown with large elders ( the largest I haveever seen), willows, bays, wax myrtles, and a tangle of small bushesand vines. The nests of the ibises were placed at the lower levels,from 6 to 10 feet above the mud or water, and were similar in con-struction to those described above. Some of the nests were not yetfinished, some held incomplete sets and some had three or four eggs.I visited this colony again on April 22, when some of the nests con-tained small young.One of the largest and most prosperous colonies of Florida waterbirds that I have ever seen is on a largo island known as Bird Key,in Boca Ceiga Bay, Pinellas County. It is now permanently establi-shed as a United States Bird Reservation, under the auspices of theBiological Survey, and is carefully guarded by an efficient warden,Harold Bennett. The whole island is heavily and thickly woodedwith red and black mangroves, buttonwoods, willows, bays, and othertrees and shrubs ; the principal forest growth is made up of largeblack mangroves, many of which are 25 or 30 feet high and somehigher. I made seven trips to this rookery during the winter andand spring of 1924 and 1925. When Mr. Bennett fii-st took me tothe island, on December 23, very few birds were in evidence, exceptthat a number of Ward herons were already nesting in the tops ofthe tallest trees; they increased in numbers later. I did not visitthe island again until March 11, when I found things in full swing;thousands of American egrets were well along with their nesting andapparently all had eggs; the Florida cormorants were still moreabundant and wore busy with thoir courtships and nest building inthe tops of the tall black mangroves; the Ward heron's nests mostlycontained young; and a small colony of yellow-crowned night herons.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 27in another part of the island, were building their nests. Only a fewwhite ibises were seen, feeding in the muddy pond holes or flying over
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they had not yet begun nesting. It was not until April 7 that wefound the ibises well started with their nesting; they were located inanother portion of the island, where there were several muddy pondssurrounded by red mangroves of small or medium size and where themuddy soil was covered with a foot or so of water at high tide.Many nests were in process of construction and some held one ortwo eggs. The nests were typical of the species, placed at low eleva-tions in the smaller red mangroves, closely grouped and poorly madeof twigs and green leaves of the mangroves. Surrounding them andmixed with them to a certain extent were the nests of large numbersof Louisiana herons and a few snowy egrets. I twice saw two rose-ate spoonbills in their vicinity, but could find no nest. A few littleblue, green, and black-crowned night herons were also seen on theisland. Brown pelicans were first seen building their nests, on theflat tops of the low mangroves, on April 14, and on April 21 some olthem had eggs. On the latter date some of the ibises had smallyoung in the nests, peeping loudly like young chickens. I was unableto visit this most interesting rookery again, but hope it will continueto flourish.The northernmost breeding colony of white ibises that 1 have everheard of was discovered by that veteran ornithologist, Arthur T.Wayne (1922), on May 20, 1922, in Charleston County, South Caro-lina. It was "in a heavily wooded reservoir of cypress trees" in alarge swamp known as Penny Dam Backwater. "Nests were placedin practically every cypress bush, one small bush containing five, eachof which held from two to three eggs. All the nests were built insmall cypress trees or bushes over water varying from 3 to 4 feet indepth." In describing the nests he says:The foundation in many cases consisted of Spanish moss (Dendropogon usne-oides) Hned with this material in the gray (living) state together with cypresstwigs in leaf, and with a base and support of dead cypress twigs arranged in acircular manner. A typical nest measures from out to out 2 feet, and is circularin outline.Besides the ibises, there were breeding in the rookery water-tur-keys, American egrets in large numbers, Louisiana herons, little blueherons, black-crowned night herons, and grackles. Although Mr.Wayne had hunted through this swamp practically every season forthe past 30 years, he had never found the white ibises nesting herebefore.Eggs.?The white ibis lays ordinarily four eggs, sometimes onlythree or even two and very rarely five. Average eggs vary in shapefrom ovate to elliptical ovate; extremes are blunt, short ovate or
28 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
elongate ovate. The shell is smooth or finely granulated and with-out any gloss. The ground color is usually bluish or greenish white,varying in the brightest specimens from "pale olivine" to "paleglaucous-green"; in some eggs the ground color is pale buff, from
''cream buff" to "pale olive buff'." The eggs are usually hand-somely marked with wide variation in patterns. They are irregularlyspotted and blotched with various shades of brown; the commonestshades on the handsomest eggs are "bay, " "chestnut," and "au-burn"; the darkest markings vary from "light seal brown" to "cin-namon brown," and the lighter markings from "buckthorn brown"to "clay color." Sometimes the eggs are uniformly spotted all overthe entire surface, with or without large blotches; sometimes thespots or blotches are concentrated at the larger end; and sometimesthe eggs are very sparingly marked or even nearly immaculate. Themeasurements of 80 eggs average 57.6 by 38.3 millimeters; the eggsshowing the four extremes measure 66.2 by 39.2, 53 by 42.3, 62 by 38and 54.5 by 34 millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation is said to be 21 days. Audubon(1840) says:The young birds, which are at first covered with a thick down of a dark graycolor, are fed by regurgitation. They take about five weeks to be able to fly,although they leave the nest at the end of three weeks, and stand on the branches,or on the ground, waiting the arrival of their parents with food, which consistsprincipally of small fiddler crabs and crayfish. On some occasions, I have foundthem at this age miles away from the breeding places, and in this state they areeasily caught. As soon as the young are able to provide for themselves, the oldbirds leave them, and the different individuals are then seen searching for foodapart.The breeding rookery I visited in Victoria County, Texas, on May30, 1923, referred to above, gave me my best impression of the behaviorof young white ibises, for we reached it at the time of tlieir greatestactivity. Having previously located the probable site of the rookeryfrom a distance we found it quite a long trip ii\to it, through a seriesof meadows, swamps, thickets, and groves of heavy forest growth.Wlien we reached the thickest and wettest pji/t of the big swampwhere the willows, cypress, water oaks, and bu/ton bushes grew, andwhere the drier spots supported a heavy groA^th of live oaks, elms,tupelos, sweet gums, and black gums, festooned with long beards ofSpanish moss, we began to see the birds flying from their nests.Way up in the tallest trees were the nests of tJie Ward herons andlower down those of the Mexican cormorants atid water turkeys andin a clump of willows on the edge of an open jspace was a colony ofAmerican egrets. The air was full of white ibises, flying about inall directions, and often with them came a Hash of pink and carmine,as a band of roseate spoonbills flew out into the open, circled andreturned to alight on the bare tops of some tall dead trees, favorite
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 29perches, which were often filled with both of these species. We werenow in the center of the rookery; wading in mud and water nearlyto our armpits, where big alhgators had left their tracks on theexposed mud banks, we soon came to the main nesting grounds ofthe white ibises, in a thick growth of small trees and button bushes.The place seemed alive with them; every tree and bush was as fullof their nests as possible, at heights varying from 4 feet above thewater to 14 feet or more. The nests were much smaller than thespoonbill's nests, were made of lighter sticks and were not so wellmade; they were lined with dry and green leaves. Some nests stillcontained three or four eggs, but by far the greater number contained,or had contained, young of various ages. Only the smaller youngremained in the nests when we approached; all that were half grownor more began climbing out of the nests and traveling through thebranches to get away from us; there were hundreds of them, scram-bling through the trees and bushes in droves; it was a lively scene.Though awkward and ungainly in appearance, they were reallyexpert climbers and made surprisingly good progress, using bills andwings as well as feet, in climbing and performing many acrobaticstunts. Short falls were frequent and often they fell into the water;where they went flopping off over the shallows or even swimming inthe deep open water. If not too hard pressed, they preferred to hud-dle together in the tops of the trees. Many of them were alreadyon the wing. How the parents ever find their young in such confu-sion is a mystery.Plumages.?The downy, young, white ibis is far from white. Thehead is glossy black, the throat and neck brownish black, the backis "mouse gray" and the under parts "pale mouse gray." The downis short and thick on the head and short and scanty on the body.The bill is pale flesh color with a black tip.The Juvenal plumage is a striking combination of dark brown andwliite in marked contrast. The head and neck are mottled withdark brown and grayish white; the upper back, wings and outer half ofthe tail, are "clove brown" or "warm sepia" ; the lower back, upper tailcoverts and entire under parts are pure white. This plumage is wornthrough the first summer and fall, without much change except agradual fading; by January the browns have faded to light, dingyshades. In December the first prenuptial molt begins, with the ap-pearance of a few wliite feathers in the back. The molt then spreadsduring the late winter and early spring, involving the scapulars, wingcoverts, and tail, in varying amounts; generally some of the juvenalrectrices are retained until the first postnuptial molt; and sometimesa few new white secondaries arc acquired during the spring. In thisfirst nuptial plumage young birds show a great variety of color pat-terns, but there is always more or less white, usually a preponder-92G42?26t 4
30 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMence of it, in the mantle and body plumage and the head and neck isalways mottled with dusky and white.At the first complete postnuptial molt, during the following sum-mer, the young bird assumes a plumage which is nearly adult,including the white primaries with the bluish black tips; but somesigns of immaturity remain all through the second winter and spring.Young birds breed in the second nuptial plumage, in which the headand neck is still more or less mottled with dusky and a few brownfeathers are retained in the body plumage. At the second postnup-tial molt, when over 2 years old, the young bird assumes the fullyadult dress.Adult apparently have a complete postnuptial molt and an incom-plete prenuptial molt. The winter plumage of the adult, worn inthe fall and early winter, differs from the nuptial only in havingmore or less dusky mottling in the crown and hind neck; the bill,face, and legs at this season are dull flesh color. The mottling onthe head and neck disappears at the prenuptial molt and the nakedparts become brilliant red, bright vermilion, or Turkey red; thegular pouch is distended in the nuptial display.Food.?A large breeding colony of ibises must soon exhaust thefood supply in the immediate vicinity of its rookery, although theproximity of a good food supply largely governs the selection of anesting site. For this reason ibises often have to travel long distancesto and from their feeding grounds. These flights occur mainly inthe early morning and in the evening in the inland localities and atthe proper stages of the tides on the seacoast. Their favorite feedinggrounds are in the muddy, shallow waters of small lakes, ponds, andbayous, or on the fresh or salt water marshes or meadows, wherecrawfish and fiddler crabs abound.Audubon (1840) describes the feeding habits, as foUows:The manner in which this bird searches for its food is very curious. Thewoodcock and the snipe, it is true, are probers as well as it, but their task requiresess ingenuity than is exercised by the white or the red ibis. It is also true that thewhite ibis frequently seizes on small crabs, slugs, and snails, and even at timeson flying insects; but its usual mode of procuring food is a strong proof thatcunning enters as a principal ingredient in its instinct. The crawfish often bur-rows to the depth of 3 or 4 feet in dry weather, for before it can be comfortableit must reach the water. This is generally the case during the prolonged heatsof summer, at which time the white ibis is most pushed for food. The bird, toprocure the crawfish, walks with remarkable care towards the mounds of mudwhich the latter throws up while forming its hole, and breaks up the upper partof the fabric, dropping the fragments into the deep cavity that has been madeby the animal. Then the ibis retires a single step, and patiently waits the result.The crawfish, incommoded by the load of earth, instantly sets to work anew, andat last reaches the entrance of its burrow; but the moment it comes in sight, theibis seizes it with his bill.Oscar E. Baynard (1913) has shown that the feeding habits ofibises are much more beneficial than is generally supposed; he writes:
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 31The ibis for their fondness of crayfish have about cleaned up the thousands ofacies of flooded marshes around Orange Lake and the other known fact thatcrayfish destroy thousands of the spawn of fish and I have noticed that lakes andponds that have lakes and ponds around them and no ibis are nearly alwaysdevoid of any great number of fish. Orange Lake has been fished with trapscontinually, but with the thousands of ibis and herons that use the lake as areservation have kept the crayfish down to such an extent that there are morefish to-day in Orange Lake than in many years. There are several thousand acresof marsh around this lake and this has given the fish plenty of places to spawn.As young fish eat millions of mosquitoes it stands to reason that with ibis andherons we have more fish and less mosquitoes, and any bird that does so muchgood to a State is of very great value and should be protected for that reasonalone.He reported that the contents of the stomachs of 50 young whiteibises contained 352 cutworms, 308 grasshoppers, 609 crayfish, and42 small mocassins, an interesting bill of fare of a beneficial character.Mr. Wayne (1922) says, of the feeding habits of the young:Young white ibises, when able to take care of themselves, do not, as one wouldsuppose, seek the principal food of the adult birds, which is crayfish, but huntfiddlers in the canals and estuaries of the salt or brackish water marshes adjacentto the fresh-water reservoirs. The reason for this habit is obvious since fiddlersare easy to catch whereas crayfish would require more skill and dexterity.Behavior.?Tlie flight of the white ibis is strong, direct, and ratherswift, with rapid strokes of the wings and varied with occasionalshorter periods of sailing. When flying in flocks the birds flap theirwings or scale in unison, but the scaling or sailing periods are muchshorter than with pelicans or cormorants. On their morning andevening flight they usually fly very low and in large flocks, close tothe water, over lakes, or along water courses, rising just over the treetops when necessary. The long curved bill, the pure white plumage ofthe adults, with their black wing-tips, and the parti-colored plumageof the young, are all good field marks, by which the species can eas-ily be recognized at any reasonable distance. Occasionally a flock ofwhite ibises rises high in the air to indidge in interesting aerial evo-lutions for sport or exercise.When frightened and forced to fly away from their feeding groundsor nests, they are apt to alight in large numbers on some convenienttree, preferably a large dead one with bare branches; they oftenperch for long periods on such favorite trees; preening their plum-age or dozing, standing on one leg, in an upright attitude, with thehead drawn down on the shoulders and the bill resting on the breast.A large tree full of white ibises is a pretty sight, especially if there area few roseate spoonbills scattered among them, as is often the case.The white ibis walks gracefully on the ground and is active in itsmovements; it also climbs nimbly among the branches of trees orbushes, where it is quite at home. It can swim well if it happens tofall into the water, but probably never does so from choice.
32 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMIt is not a noisy bird and its vocal performances are limited to afew soft grunting notes. One night, while waiting in my blind forthe ibises to come to roost on the trees around me, I heard a peculiarconversational note which I recorded as sounding like " walla, vmlla,walla.' ' Audubon (1840) says that on their breeding grounds thefemales are silent, "but the males evince their displeasure by utter-ing sounds which greatly resemble those of the white-headed pigeon,and which may be imitated by the syllables crool,croo,croo." Andagain he says that "if you disturb them when far away from theirnests, they utter loud hoarse cries resembling the syHables hunk, hunk,hunk, either while on the ground or as they fly off."Enemies.?Ibises are not generally regarded as game birds, butmany are shot for food in the regions where they are plentiful andwhere they are locally called "white curlew." That they have otherenemies than man is illustrated by the following account by Audu-bon (1840):The ibises had all departed for the Florida coasts, excepting a few of the whitespecies, one of which was at length espied. It was perched about 50 yards fromus toward the center of the pool, and as the report of one of our guns echoedamong the tall cypresses, down to the water, broken winged, it fell. The exer-tions which it made to reach the shore seemed to awaken the half-torpid alliga-tors that lay in the deep mud at the bottom of the pool. One showed his headabove the water, then a second and a third. All gave chase to the poor woundedbird, which, on seeing its dreaded and deadly foes, made double speed to-ward the very spot where we stood. I was suprised to see how much faster thebird swam than the reptiles, who, with j iws widely openod, urgad their heavybodies through the water. The ibis was now within a few yards of us. It wasthe alligator's last chance. Springing forward as it were, he raised his body al-most out of the water; his jaws nearly touched the terrified bird; when pullingthree triggers at once, we lodged the contents of our guns in the throat of themonster. Thrashing furiously with his tail, and rolling his body in agony, thealHgator at last sank to the mud; and the ibis, as if in gratitude, walked to ourvery feet and there lying down, surrendered itself to us. I kept this bird untilthe succeeding spring, and by care and good nursing, had the pleasure of seeingits broken wing perfectly mended, when, after its long captivity, I restored it toliberty, in the midst of its loved swamps and woods.Bird Key in Pinellas County, Florida, is infested, during the breed-ing season, with a horde of Florida crows and fish crows, which areconstantly hovering over the nests, looking for a chance to pounceupon and carry off any unguarded eggs. The crows have a whole-some respect for the long, sharp beaks of the herons, but the soft,bhint bills of the gentle ibises are less dangerous weapons, and thecrows work havoc among their eggs; every nest in the vicinity of myblind was cleaned out. Large numbers of black vultures and a fewturkey vultures live on this Key; and from the middle of April on agreat many man-o'-war birds visit it; probably all three of thesebu'ds destro}^ some eggs and young birds.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 33DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?South Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the UnitedStates; Central America; Greater Antilles and northern SouthAmerica. East to South Carolina (Mount Pleasant) ; Georgia (Alata-maha River); Florida (St. Johns River, Orange Lake, Indian River,Cuthbert and Alligator Lakes) ; Haiti (Sanchez). South to the coastof central Venezuela (Lake Valencia) ; and Peru (Santa Luzia) . Westto Costa Rica (La Palma) ; Nicaragua (Momotomba); and LowerCalifornia (La Paz). North to Texas (Nueces River and VictoriaCounty); Louisiana (Bayou Sara and Point Coupee) and Missis-sippi (Natchez).Migration.?The white ibis is resident throughout practically itsentire range althougli a slight movement in spring has been detectedin the United States. Early dates of arrival are Whitfield, Florida,March 17 (1903), and St. Marys, Georgia, also March 17 (1904). Anine years' average date of arrival at Bird Island, Orange Lake, Flor-ida, is April 1.Casual records.?Wanderers to the North have been recorded onseveral occasions: One near the mouth of the Colorado River inMarch, 1914; a few seen near Ogden, Utah, September 1 to October8, 1871; a specimen was taken at Barr, Colorado in 1890; two wereseen and one was secured in southeastern South Dakota in May, 1879
;
i flock of seven or eight, in immature plumage, wore seen near MountCarmel, Illinois, about May S, 1878; one was taken near SouthWoodstock, Vermont, in the summer of 1878; one was seen nearMilford, Connecticut, on May 23, 1875, by G. B. Grinnell; Giraud(1844) records two from Long Island, New York, one having beenshot at Raynor South, in the summer of 1836 and the other at Mor-iches early in March, 1843; and Pearson (1899) repoi-ts taking a spec-imen in immature plumage from a flock of three, near Beaufort,North Carolina, July 26, 1898.Egg dates.?Florida: 108 records, March 4 to August 17; 54 records,April 12 to May 11. GlIARA RUBRA (Linnaeus)SCARLET IBISHABITSContributed by Thomas Edward PenardThe scarlet ibis is a neotropical species inhabiting the coastal andlittoral areas of northern and eastern vSouth America from Venezuelato eastern Brazil. Beyond its breeding range it has been observedas an irregular visitant in Jamaica and south as far as the State ofSaO Paolo, where it is rare. Reports of its presence in Central
34 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMAmerica and in Cuba require confirmation. Within the borders ofthe United States it is accidental and its claim to a place on ourcheck list rests for the most part on questionable evidence.Wilson (1832) states that it was found in the most southern partsof Carolina and also in Georgia and Florida, but he does not sayupon what evidence his statements are based. He remarks that be-ing a scarce species with us, a sufficient number of specimens hadnot been procured to enable him to settle the matter with certainty.Nuttall (1834), adding Alabama to the range of the species, says" they migrate in the course of the summer (about July and August)into Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina"; but he, too, issilent as to the source of his information.Audubon (1840) remarks that he had seen only three in the UnitedStates, on the 3d of July, 1821, at Bayou Sara, Louisiana. He writes:They were traveling in a line, in the manner of the white ibis, above the topsof the trees. Although I had only a glimpse of them, I saw them suflBcientlywell to be assured of their belonging to the present species, and therefore I havethought it proper to introduce it into our Fauna.Dr. Elliot Coues (1865) mentions the scarlet ibis as being foundon the Rio Grande, and later (1872) speaks of having examined afragment of a specimen at Los Pinos, New Mexico. Many yearsafterward he assured Prof. W. W. Cooke (1897) that tlxere was noquestion of this.William Brewster (1883) found a specimen in the Museum of theCollege of Charleston, said to be from Florida, which he believed tobe authentic, but the chain of evidence is hardly sufficient.A record that has stood for many years is that of Willoughby P.Lowe ( 1894) who gave an account of a bird supposed to be a scarletibis, shot by one of a party that was duck shooting in May, 1876, atGrape Creek in Wet Mountain Valley, Custer County, Colorado.The specimen was preserved and later came into possession of Mr.Livesey. Prof. W. W. Cooke ( 1897) considered this account as trust-worthy, but Alfred M. Bailey of the Colorado Museum of NaturalHistory writes me that J. D. Figgins, who had occasion to trace thedata on this bird, had secured the specimen from England and thatit proved to be an unusually colored, white-faced glossy ibis. Mr.Figgins (1925) has recently published a statement to this effect.This specimen is now in the collection of the Colorado Museum ofNatural History.Walter Faxon (1897) considered the presence of a plate of thescarlet ibis among the drawings of Georgian birds by John Abbotas very good evidence of the species having occurred in that State;but the species could hardly be admitted to our check list on suchtestimony.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 35The records by H. E. Dresser (1866), H. B. Bailey (1881), W. E.D. Scott (1889), W. W. Cooke (1897a), and Beyer, AUison, andKopman (1908) need not be considered here.The most recent record is by R. A. Sell (1917) who saw a singlebird at Corpus Christi, Texas, after the storm of August 18, 1916.He says:On one of the drifts that contained 31 dead cattle besides the bodies of 215birds of various kinds, there stood a solitary scarlet ibis. Like a garnet in thesands, or a rosy promise of the morning sun, it stood, gracefully poised above theterrible ruin?an encouragement, an inspiration, an unfailing hope?not as therainbow suggesting the possibility of another destructive force, but as an ani-mated symbol that life is immortal.Later Mr. Sell (1918) gave an account of his investigations inTexas, quoting Prof. H. P. Attwater, W. N. Wilson, J. B. Sternberg,J. C. Carlson, H. E. Lea, J. G. Holman, J. H. Jones, Dr. F. H. Rus-sell, J. W. Woods, I. N. Heibner, and C. E. Bainbridge, a taxidermistwho had mounted a specimen as identified by him. He mentionsnine specimens that have been preserved: Two in Houston, two inSan Antonio, three in Galveston, one in Rockport, and one in CorpusChristi.Words are wholly inadequate when it comes to describing the scar-let ibis in its native surroundings. "Once seen, never forgotten."(Dawson, 1917) ; "scarlet livery of dazzling beauty." (Edwards,1847); "jets of flame." (Beebe, 1910); " glowing like the essence ofrubies." (Beebe, 1918); "like a rose-colored cloud lighted by themorning sun." (Hagmann, 1907); "beautiful red stains on thegreen background." (Leotaud, 1866); "the mangroves as it werespattered with blood." (F. P. and A. P. Penard, 1908); these aresome of the expressions used by writers who have seen this wonder-ful bird in life.Picture an unfrequented spot on the "wild coast" of South Amer-ica; a wave-scarred sandbar reaching out into the thick, muddy seaat the mouth of a mighty tropical river; unmapped beaches andtreacherous mud flats bordered by dark-green mangroves. Suddenlyfrom around a bend a flock of two score scarlet ibises break intoview, flying abreast in a compact row. They approach swiftly pass-ing almost within gunshot from where we stand and alight upon oneof the inaccessible mangrove islets and the surrounding flats. Underthe slanting rays of the morning sun these beautiful birds reflect themost dazzling scarlet, in sharp contrast with the dark-green foliage.William Beebe (1910) gives the following description of such ascene in Venezuela:The tide was falling rapidly, swirling and eddying past the boat, and the rootsof the mangroves began to protrude, their long stems shining black until thewater dried from them. Mud fiats appeared, and suddenly, without warning, aliving flame passed us?and we had seen our first scarlet ibis.
36 BULLETIX 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMPast the dark green background of mangrove foliage the magnificent bird flewswiftly?flaming with a brilliance which shamed any pigment of human art.Blood red, iatensest vermilion, deepest scarlet?-all fail to hint of the livingcolor of the bird. Before we could recover from our delight a flock of 20 fol-lowed, flying close together, with bills and feet scarlet like the plumage. Theyswerved from their path and alighted on the mud close to the mangroves, andbegan feeding at once. Th3a a trio of snowy-whibe egrets with trailing plumes;floated overhead; others app-3 ire i above thetop? of the trees; a host of sandpipersskimmed the surface of the water and scurried over the flats. Great Cocoi heronsswept majestically into viev\^; curlews and plover assembled in myriads, lining themud flats at the water's edge, while here and there, like jets of flame against themud, walked the vermilion ibises.Courtship.?Apparently very littlo is known of the courtship of tliescarlet ibis. Charles L. Bull (1911) is the only one, so far as I know,who has had anything to say about it. He writes of a pair of captivebirds
:
He began bowing and shaking his wings, and dancing up and down before herwith spread wings and fluffed shoulders and crest. For a few moments sliepaid no attention, then something stirred within her and she shyly pecked athim. At this he danced harder than ever, and soon she joined him, dancing ashe danced, bowing as he bowed, shaking out her wings and yammering as hedid.Mr. Bull confirmed the above in a letter to me, in which he says:The courtship antics are my own observation. There were a number of scarletibis in the Bronx Zoo when I lived for two years near its entrance. They werekept in the big flying cage an.d not long after they were put out in the spring Iwatched a pair going through the dancing and raising of the scapulars, bowing, etc.The male was most attentive, offering the other bits of food and making the curiousyammering (I have no other words for it) sound, opening and closing the bill rapidly.They carried a few sticks about but to the best of my knowledge went no further;too many other birds trying to do the same thing.Nesting.?The breeding season of the scarlet ibis does not come atthe same time of the year in different parts of its range, but thechoice is apparently the season of heavy rains.In Surinam they breed diu-ing the so-called "big rainy season" whichbegins about the end of April and lasts until the middle of August.W. C. van Hcurn (1912), however, also mentions February as thetime.Edwards (1847) says that they appear on the island of Marajo atthe mouth of the Amazon in June and at once set about formingtheir nests. He also remarks that according to Captain Appletonthe breeding season on Marajo is February.August Kappler (1887) says that the scarlet ibis builds its artlessnest of brush in inaccessible places on low trees (Kappler, 1854), thatthe eggs are laid in the rainy season in May and June.Richard Schomburgk (1848) says that they use the nests severalseasons in succession.
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 37Scarlet ibises have defmito nesting districts in unfrequented partsalong the coast, particularly near the mouths of rivers. In speakingof these nesting sites in Dutch Guiana, F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908)say (translated) :Among the largest nesting colonies, or so-called " Fiamingo-nissi," in Surinam,are those of the Hermina flats, Via-via flats, and the banks of the Motkreek.At Hermina flats there is a mangrove island of not more than two acres inextent, where scarlet ibises breed in such great numbers that the mangrovesappear to be, as it were, spattered \vith blood.They further say:Old, blood-colored birds begin breeding first, after which the rest follow.Hunters and fishermen in Surinam ai'e unanimous in declaring that the scarlet ibisbuilds no nests, but makes use of those of the sabakoes (herons and egrets) especiallyLeucophoyjc candidissima, whose young of the second brood they throw out ofthe nest. Schomburgk a'so mentions this in his "Guiana Reisen," and D. E.Mackintosh asserts that he has on several occasions seen the scarlet ibis throwyoung herons out of their nest. After the victory the conquerors sometimesenlarge the nest.C. A. Lloyd (1897), who records Mr. Mackintosh's observations,referred to above, writes:D. E. Mackintosh, who has paid much attention to the coast birds of Surinam,asserts that the scarlet ibis or currie-currie, Eudocimus ruber, never builds anest of any sort, but takes forcible possession of those of the small egret, Ardeacandidissima, for the purpose of depositing its eggs. He states that he has oftenwitnessed the ibis in the act of tumbling the young egrets out of the nest.The small egret breeds in vast " rookeries " along the seacoast, and Mr. Mack-intosh has seen several square acres of low courida bushes dotted with their nests.During the breedin;; season large numbers of yoimg egrets fall a prey to theblack carrion vulture, Cafharista atrata, which may be seen hovering around thebreeding grounds on the lookout for a chance to swoop down on some unguardednest and carry off its contents. The old birds vigorously defend their nestsagainst attacks of the vulture, but as the scarlet ibis appears on the scone theyimmediately desert their charges and fly away.Of their breeding on the island of Cavianna at the mouth of theAmazon, Gottfried Hagman (1907) writes (translated):Mexiana and the near-by island, Cavianna, certainly fulfill the requirements ofan Eldorado for water birds. Unlike Mexiana, Cavianna possesses in its interior
"aturiaes" (Drepanocarpus-Bestdndc), which, on account of the tangle of bran-ches arc almost inaccessible to man. Here nest in company big colonies of countlesspairs of Tantalus ajaja and Eudocimus, which, owing to the absence of aturiaes,never build on Mexiana.Edwards (1847) gives the following interesting description of anesting colony near Jungcal, at the mouth of the Amazon:Turning suddenly we left the bordering forest for a canebrake, and instantlybroke full upon the rookery. In this part the scarlet ibis particularly hadnested; anrl the bended tops of the canes were covered by half-grown birds in
38 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMtheir black plumage, interspersed with many in all the brilliance of age. Theyseemed little troubled at our approach, merely flying a few steps forward, or cross-ing the stream. Continuing on, the flocks increased in size; the red birds be-came more frequent, the canes bent beneath their weight like reeds. Wood ibisesand spoonbills began to be numerous. The nests of all these filled every placewhere a nest could be placed; and the young ibises, covered with down, andstanding like so many storks, their heavy bills resting upon their breasts anduttering no cry, were in strong contrast to the well-feathered spoonbills, beauti-ful in their slightly roseate dress, and noisily loquacious. Passing still onward, weemerged from the canes into trees; and here the white herons had made theirhomes, clouding the leaves with white. Interspersed with these were all thevarieties mentioned before, having finished their nesting, and being actively en-gaged in rearing their young. We had sailed above a mile, and at last, seemingto have approached the terminus, we turned and went below a short distance toa convenient landing, where we could pursue our objects at leisure. The boat-men at once made their dispositions for basketing the young birds; and soon,by shaking them down from the nest, and following them up, had collected asmany as they desired. We wandered a long distance back, but the nests seemed,if anything, more plentiful, and the swarms of young more dense. At the soundof the gun the birds in the immediate vicinity rose in a tumultuous flock andthe old ones circled round and round, as though puzzled to understand the dangerthey instinctively feared. In this way they offered beautiful marks to our skill;and the shore near the canoe was soon strewed with fine specimens. Evidentlythis place had been for many years the haunt of these birds. Not a blade ofgrass could be seen; the ground was smooth and hard and covered withexcrement.Eggs.?The number of eggs per clutch is usually two, sometimesthree, and rarely four. F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) describe theyolks as being very red, "peculiarly resembling blood/' and the albu-men as thinner than that of a hen's egg.In size as well as in color the eggs resemble those of the white ibis,Guara alba. They vary in shape from oval and short ovate toelliptical ovate. The ground color is grayish, bluish, or greenish,rarely yellowish white, spotted, smeared, and blotched with dullblackish brown, red-brown, and paler shades of brown, chiefly aroundand at the large end, where the markings frequently form a blotch.Some eggs are almost entirely unspotted while others are covered allover with blotches, smears and spots. These markings can be almostentirely removed by washing. Naturally unspotted eggs are rare.Examples with a ring at each end, or at the small end only, areextremely rare. Occasionally runt eggs are found.The measurements of 135 eggs in my collection, all taken at Her-mina-flats near Coronie, Surinam, in June, 1902, average 56.4 by 37.3millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 64.3 by37.3, 59.2 by 41.7, 50.0 by 37.6, and 54.4 by 33.0 millimeters.Young.?F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) state that the period ofincubation is 24 days and that both sexes incubate. The chicks areborn helpless and remain in the nest where they are cared for by bothparents. When old enough to shift for themselves the young birds
XOKTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 39form separate flocks, traveling apart from the adults. This habit hasbeen observed by several writers. Schombm*gk (184S) thought itremarkable that the young birds, up to the time they acquired thescarlet hverylivedin companies by themselves. Leotaud (1866) addedthat the flocks generally consisted of individuals of the same age andwere known in Trinidad as a " troupe de flamants gris, " or " flamantsroses," or "flamants rouges," according to the state of plumage.More recently F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) and W. C. van Ileurn
?(1912) have also commented upon this habit of segregation. Never-theless mixed flocks are not uncommon.On September 27, 1921, I watched a flock of about 30 scarlet ibises,a dozen of which were feeding on the exposed flats near a small man-grove island at Braamspunt at the mouth of the Surinam River. Therest were on the island or were perching on the mangroves. Among
?the scarlet adults were four in the juvenile brown plumage. There
"Was nothing in the behavior of the members of this particular troop
^3Uggesting segregation.Mr. Beebe (1909) who has seen great numbers of these birds in
-northeastern Venezuela, also makes mention of mixed flocks. Hewrites
:
These birds were seen only on the Cano San Juan, from the very mouth up toa distance of several miles inland. Not a bird was visible at high tide but withthe uncovering of the mud-fiats, the scarlet ibises began to appear singly and in:small flocks. They were, without doubt, the most abundant bird in all the man-
.grove region into which we penetrated. In ever}' flock of 30 or 50, some 6 or 8would be birds in the brown plumage.Elsewhere Mr. Beebe (1910) speaks of a flock of seven of whichtwo were in fully adult plumage, while the others while the otherswere only three-quarters grown and feathered wholly in brown andwhite. He judged from their actions that they were members of asingle family.Plumages.?Very little is known about the downy young. F. P.and A. P. Penard (1908) described it as blackish above and whitishbelow. Dr. Hermann Burmeister (1856) writes that the nestling ispale brown with whitish underparts, and Dr. H. Schlegel (1863) de-scribes a very young bird, as having a brown bill with a wide yellowband.In the young bird, soon after leaving the nest, the head, neck,mantle, wings, sides of breast, scapulars, and tail are grayish brown,over the darker feathers of which, particularly on the wings, thereappears to be a greenish sheen under certain conditions of light; thelesser wing coverts obscurely edged with paler shades; some of thetail feathers edged with white at the base; feathers of head and neckedged with gray; entu*e lower back, rump, thighs, and under partspure white, including the wing lining, tail coverts, and axillars, the
40 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMlatter finely and obscurely spotted with gray centrally along the basaihalf of the shaft.When about 6 mouths old a few whitish or pale orange feathersappear in the lesser wing coverts; the under parts, lower back, rump^thighs, and tail coverts now have a decided salmon or rosy wash, butthe axillars are still white; basal half of tail feathers white. A fewmonths later we find conspicuous patches of salmon or rose in thelesser wing coverts and the interscapular region, and tjie under parts,rump, and thighs have become if anything a little rosier, but theaxillars are still white, otherwise there seems to be no change inappearance.The moult following this period is slow and ill defined. The birdpasses gradually through every stage and condition of mixed brown,gray, white, rose, and scarlet, but through it all the outer primariesparticularly the first, and for a time the tail, remain dusky. Thehead and neck, and nape are the last to become uniformly scarlet.The fully adult bird is deep scarlet throughout with the exceptionof the tips of the four outer primaries which are of a deep blue coloralmost black.F, P. and A. P. Penard (1908) describe the changes of plumage ofthe Surinam bird as follows (translated)
:
During the breeding season the plumage of very old birds appears to have ablood tint. Only the ends of the first four primaries are blacic. It seems as ifnature had, as it were, driven the colors of youth to the wing tips, of which afew vanes are sometimes scarlet, too.After the breeding season the blood-red fades more or less to scarlet. Theyoung birds differ entirely from the adults, the plumage consisting of brownishor whitish tints. Hunters say that the scarlet ibis requires at least three oi fouryears to attain the fully adult plumage. The moulting or rather color changeis a study in itself. We have seen moulting birds from January to December.As a rule the feathers of the back begin to change first, but these are also thelast to attain the brilliant scarlet color. Generally we meet with scarlet ibisesin adult plumage but with the feathers of the neck partly black, partly rose, orpartly naked, washed with rose. Even during the breeding season this is thecase. Birds in partly adult plumage, i. e., irregularly marked with blackish, white,and scarlet, look very odd.Hunters assert that albinism also occurs in the form of a pale rose tint. Thewriters have never seen one of these abnormal individuals.Food.?Scarlet ibises feed on the beaches and exposed mudflats orin the shallows, often in company with herons, spoonbills, curlewsand other shore birds, walking or wading and prodding for hiddenmorsels. In feeding the flocks tend to scatter and single individualsor pairs may then be seen far from the main flock, sometimes manymiles from the coast.According to F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) the food of the scarletibis consists of small fish, spawn, and insects. Leotaud (1866) alsomentions soft mollusks, and Rev. Charles B. Dawson (1917) bivalves
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 41and crustaceans. Mr. Beebe (1910) found in the stomach of a youngfemale t he chetae or claws of a small crustacean, each about one-third ofan inch in length. Leotaud (1866) says that a scarlet ibis in captiv-ity made itself useful in destroying the larvae of noxious insects.He says that the bird never lost an opportunity of following anyonewho was spading the earth, in order to seize the morsels that wereuncovered. Of another captive bird the Rev. Mr. Dawson says thatit ate banana but preferied a diet of bread and milk to anythingelse.The scarlet ibis feeds its young after tlie manner of the pelican.F. P. and A. P.Penard (1908) state that the old birds gather thefood in the elastic gular pouches. Arriving at the nest they opentheir bills and allow the young to take out the fish and other food.Edwards (1847) describes the habit of feeding in the following words
:
We were amused by the manner of feeding the young scarlet ibises. In thethroat of the old female bird, directly at the base of the lower mandible, is anenlargement of the skin, forming a pouch, which is capable of containing aboutthe bulk of a small hen's egg. She would return from fishing on the shallowswith the pouch distended by tiny fish, and allowed her young to pick them outwith their bills.F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) state furtlier that if tlie parentsare killed at this time there are always others ready to take up theduties of foster parents.Behavior.?Scarlet ibises live in communities, sometimes very largeones, the members of which scatter after the breeding season andwander in small flocks, or in pairs, or singly, along the coast andrivers, seldom venturing far from the coast. The detached flocksand stragglers return towards night to certain places to roost. AugustKappler (1887) says that they pass the night perched close togetherin high trees. Individuals which I have seen sleeping (in captivity)stood on one foot with the head and the long bill turned back andresting on the back.Hagmann (1907), speaking of the birds in Brazil, says that they areto be seen on the coast in the evening in big flocks returning from Mexi-ana to their nesting sites in Cavianna. According to F. P. and A. P.Penard (1908) the males appear to be more numerous than thefemales.When traveling from place to place the {light of the scarlet ibis isswift. In fl3nng the birds arrange themselves abreast in a line. F. P.and A. P. Penard (1908), Schomburgk (1848), W. C. van Heurn(1912), and Edwards (1847) speak of this manner of flight, but Leo-taud (1866) says that in flying the individuals follow each other insingle file, and when the flock is large form an interminable lino. OnSeptember 28, 1921, I saw a flock at the mouth of the SurinamRiver, the members of which flew swiftly, close together, in an irreg-ular line, side by side, not one behind the other. I did not notice
42 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMany leader, but the Rev. Mr. Dawson (1917) speaks of shooting "the-captain of a red brigade as he led his troop to his evening feedingground." William Beebe (1909), writing about a large flock hesaw in northeastern Venezuela, says:On the evening of March 26 a flock of not less than 500 swung back andforth across the Cano ahead of us, in a series of graceful evolutions before risingand drifting out of sight over the dark-green mangroves, like a great cloud ofliving flame.Charles L. Bull (1911) describes evolutions like these and in a letterdated December 27, 1923, writes me the following confirmation:I saw the big flock performing its evolutions, circling and wheeling in a veryhigh development of the flock instinct. You asked me if I noticed any leader in-the flock. No. It seemed to me that the entire flock would wheel as one bird,,much as flocks of starlings I have seen, and some of the shorebirds, Sanderlings,I think.Persecution has had its effect upon the scarlet ibis in making itwatchful and retiring. Mr. Beebe (1909) says of birds in Venezuelar
"they are quite wary and when feeding did not allow one to approachwithin gun-shot before flying." W. C. van Heurn (1912) has alsonoted this but remarks that young birds are much easier to shoot.Hunters and fishermen in Surinam assert that scarlet ibises aremore difficult to approach than they were about 20 years ago, andthat the large flocks which at one time were to be seen at the mouth ofthe Surinam River, have moved eastward along the coast to theMotkreek, where they are much less liable to be molested.Notwithstanding this shyness the scarlet ibis has a well developedtrait of curiosity. A. E. Brehm (1871), in describing the nesting ofPorphyria hyacinthinus in captivity, says that it was necessary to-protect the nest from inquisitiveness of a scarlet ibis.In September, 1921, while on my way from Braamspunt to Para-maribo, a pair of adult scarlet ibises passed slowly side by side overour boat, as if they were watching us. One of this pair had a brokenleg which dangled down loosely. Further up river, I saw a singlebird, in brilliant plumage, dodging in and out of the mangroves, appar-ently following along in pure curiosity. Occasionally it would stoopto pick up something, but it seemed to me that inquisitiveness ratherthan search for food governed its action.Scarlet ibises are attracted by any bright red object. I quote frontF. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) (translated)
:
Their partiality for anything red deserves mention. Hunters make use ofthis by waving a piece of red cloth or by laying a dead bird of briglit plumage insome open place, sure of attracting passing ibises.The vocal performance of the scarlet ibis is not very noteworthy.Indeed, its notes are so seldom heard that there are local proverbs
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 43
relative to the bird's muteness. Rarely does it make any sound ex-cept in fear or excitement. F. P. and A. P. Penard (1908) describethe notes as harsh and disagreeable. In speaking of a large nestingcolony at Hermina-flats, they say (translated)
:
A shot in their midst causes the whole flock to rise, Hke a red cloud, with agurgling give, give, and fly to the higher trees. Feeling themselves safe there,each one seems to have something to say and does it with much hissing. Fre-quently there is a quarrel and then one chases the other away. In so doing theyrattle their bills.Rev. Mr. Dawson (1917) says that the only note he ever heard acaptive bird utter was a low, harsh grunt.Game.?As a game bird the scarlet ibis is in greater favor than theherons or egrets. I quote the following from F, P. and A. P. Penard(1908) (translated):A few persons make their living in hunting the scarlet ibis during the breedingseason. But this is a very cruel practice. Mercilessly the birds are shot whilesitting on their eggs or standing beside their young, after which they are saltedor dried, transported in barrels full to the city and sold at 25 cents (Dutch) each.Fresh or dried the meat has a somewhat oily flavor.G. E. Bodkin and C. T. Matthey (1921) in their notes on shootingin British Guiana say:It is not often possible to obtain a shot at these birds. Apparently they aregetting scarcer than they used to be owing to continued persecution. They arecertainly not so common on the inhabited parts of the coastlands as formerly.The young birds?before they attain the scarlet plumage?occasionlly givesport, but to shoot them in any numbers it is necessary to go to out of the wayplaces like the mouth of the Pomeroon River, Dauntless, or the mouth of theWaini River in the northwestern district most of them fearsome, mosquito-riddenspots.Kappler (1887) says that the fat ibises, in comparison with thelean egrets, are well worth shooting. He speaks of shooting seventeenat one shot. Again he (1854) says (freely translated)
:
In the rainy season (May and June) the red ibises, here erroneously knownas flamingoes, as well as other birds belonging to the order of rie 'ons, lay theirEggs and young aie particularly prized by Indians who occasionally makespecial expeditions to the nesting sites. One day my neighbors came in two bigcanoes to the post, on their way after eggs. After I had treated them to somebrandy they promised to bring me a basket of eggs. A few days later bothcanoes returned, fully laden with eggs and emaciated young birds. They gaveme about 100 of these eggs, which were green, spotted with black, and the sizeof a small hen's egg. Immediately I began preparations to make an omelet, butdiscovered to my disappointment that there was only one fresh egg in the lot.AU the rest were addled or rotten or in an advanced state of incubation. Isuspected a joke. But as my mind was set on an omelet I started in a canoe tothe village, where I found the women cooking eggs. They were all like mine.In a soup of yelks floated birds in all stages of incubation, richly spiced withSpanish pepper, and this mess they ate gluttonously.
44 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMCaptivity.?Young birds can be easily tamed, but never attain thedeep scarlet plumage of the free bird.Dr. Max Schmidt ( 1880) speaks of a bii-d which had been in captivity10 years, 5 months, and 14 days, and was then still living. Pelzeln(1871) mentions another brought from Brazil bySpixand Martins, thatlived 14 years. Adult birds soon lose their brilliant plumage, fadingor rather moulting into the rose livery. This fact has been observedby many writers. Mr. Beebe (1909) gives the following account:I obtained a bird from an Indian who had broken its wina; and had cared forit until it recovered. It was in full adult plumage, scarlet from tip of beakto tip of toe. Shortly after placing it in the flying cage in the New York Zoo-logical Park it moulted all the feathers on the head and neck, and a scatteringthrough the scapulars, coverts, and back. The new plumage, with the exceptionof the lesser coverts, came in pale salmon instead of the original brilliant scarlet,and at the present date the contrast is striking. The salmon tint of the newplumage is exactly that of another individual, which has been in captivity sinceFebruary, 1905, and has now, (December, 1909) passed through five annualmoults. So in the case of my ibis, the loss of color was not gradual but sudden,and its cause was certainly not due to absence of sunlight, heat, or moisture. Iam not yet prepared to say, however, that change in food alone was the cause.Whether a diet of fish and frogs would prevent this fading as Dr.Th. Lorenz (1871) asserts has not, so far as I know, received con-formation.A, D. Bartlett (1866) records an instance of a female scarlet ibisthat preferred to mate with a male white ibis rather than one of itsown species. He writes:A female of this bird has been in the aviary with other birds since March, 1864;and not withstanding that there were three of her own species in the same aviary,she paired with a v.iiite ibis in June last. These two birds built a nest upon theground, composed principally of twigs, pieces of birch broom, sticks, etc., uponwhich was laid an egg of a pale green, thickly spotted and blotched with a dirty-brown color. The egg was constantly attended by both birds, and the nest wasraised considerably under the egg by the constant addition of material, the eggbeing rolled from side to side as the sticks, etc. were placed under it. This raisingthe nest continued for about 10 days, after which time the birds began to incu-bate, taking turns on the egg. After setting four weeks, the egg was found tobe addled, and was removed in order to save the specimen, which is now on thetable.Kev. Charles B. Dawson (1917) gives the following accoimt of awounded bird which he placed in an aviary with several other birds
:
I turned him into a large aviary wherein were already established a few tamepigeons and wild doves, a bahama duck, a hanaqiia, and a tinamou. Here hislong beak gained for him a deference which its weakness and bluntness scarcelywarranted. The pigeons would scatter at his awkward approach, but I soon pro-tected their particular dominical with a few narrow strips of wood. In an avi-ary, birds soon settle themselves down in a particularly corner which they defendwith all the sense of justice lying behind proprietary rights. And so in this case,for this ibis is an amiably-disposed bird, and having taken up a specially selectedcorner, he lived in peace with his novel associates.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 45But at first he would not eat, and simply ignored the choicest viands put beforehim. Then I had to resort to forcible methods and even so he persistently re-jected food of all kinds, including fish and prawns. On the fourth day when Iwas on the point of considering the case hopeless, he, mirabile dictu, retained apiece of banana I had given him almost in despair. After that he retained nearlyall the food I gave him and would even open his beak to submit to the processof feeding. On the twelfth day I saw him helping himself to bread and milkfrom the pan. Finally he seemed to prefer this diet to anything else. He wasby this time quite accustomed to the altered conditions of his life; he would standfor hours in the trough of water, sunning himself and shaking his wings, or hewould walk about prodding the sand for possible crabs.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Northern South America. East to the coast of Venezuela,(mouth of the Orinoco River); Trinidad; British Guiana (Waini andBerbice Rivers); French Guiana (Georgetown, Cayenne); easternBrazil (Counany River, mouth of the Amazon River and Para).South to the southern coast of Brazil (Sao Paulo Iguape, and Para-nagua). It apparently does not breed in the interior. North to thecoast of Venezuela (Puerto Cabello, Lake Valencia, and MargaritaIsland)
.
Breeding ran^'g.?Northern and eastern South America from Vene-zuela to the mouth of the Amazon. Nesting has been reported fromTrinidad (Leotaud) ; Surinam: Germina flats, Via-via flats, Motkreek(F. P. and A. P. Penard); Brazil; Marajo, Cavianna (Hagmann),and Jungcal (Edwards).Casual records.?Probably it has occurred casually, when driven bysevere storms, in the West Indies and on the Gulf coasts of Louisianaand Texas, but all of the records are more or less unsatisfactory andgenerally not substantiated by specimens with authentic data. TheUnited States records are explained in the early part of the life his-tory.Egg dates.?Dutch Guiana: 52 records. May 2 to July 10; 26records. May 2 to June 4.PLEGADIS FALCINELLUS (Linnaeus;GLOSSY IBISHABITSThe status of the glossy ibis, as a North American bird, is a puz-zling problem, which it is difficult to solve with our present limitedknowledge. It is widely distributed and well known in the tropicaland subtropical regions of the Eastern Hemisphere, but in this hemi-sphere it seems to have a very limited breeding range, in which it israre, and to occur elsewhere only as a straggler. It is known to breedin very limited numbers in Florida and Cuba, probably in Jamaicaand possibly in some of the other West Indies. There are numerous
46 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
casual records as far north as Nova Scotia and Quebec and as farwest as Wisconsin and Colorado; it seems likely that these recordswere made by wanderers from Florida or Cuba and not by stragglersfrom the Eastern Hemisphere. The problem is complicated by thefact that the white-faced glossy ibis has been found breeding in Flor-ida. Mr. William Brewster (1886) obtained a set of eggs of thiswestern species from Mr. C. J. Maynard, who received them " directlyfrom the collector, a young man by the name of Lapham?accom-panied by the skin of the female parent, which was shot on the nest."The specimens were "taken April 18, 1886, at or near Lake Wash-ington (near the head of the St. Johns River), Florida." Anothervery interesting, but puzzling, fact was discovered by Oscar E. Bay-nard (1913), who has given us the best account of the nesting habitsof the glossy ibis in Florida. He collected one of the parent birdsand thought at first that it was a white-faced glossy ibis, because thebare skin of the head was "pure white where the feathers join theskin for the full length across the front of the head extending downto the upper corner of the eye" and again "starting at the lower cor-ner of the eye, the white streak extends down to the lower side ofthe lower mandible." This is well illustrated in his two photographs.This white sHn might easily be mistaken for the white feathers inthe face of the white-faced species and thus lead to much confusion.I can fmd no allusion to this character in any of the books on Amer-ican or European birds and it seems hardly likely that all could haveoverlooked it, if it is a common character in normal birds. Mr. Bay-nard's bird may have been an abnormal bird; or this may be anoverlooked character, perhaps present only during the height of thebreeding season, in a distinct species found only in Florida and theWest Indies, where it is a rare bird and seldom collected.Nesting.?Mr. Baynard's (1913) observations in Florida give usabout all the information we have on the home life of this species,in North America; he writes:Glossy ibis bred on Orange Lake for four years of the five since I first saw itthere; this year they did not nest there for some cause. I have seen glossy ibisonce in 1912 in the month of November on the flats of the Miakka River and ontwo occasions on the canal that is the extension of the Caloosahatchee Riverleading into Lake Okeechobee. I have heard of it being seen by a hvmter andtrapper on the Kissimmee River, but it must be considered very rare in Florida.I have talked with scores of hunters and trappers, men who are observant andknow their birds well, and but two have described the "black curlew" to me,and neither of them saw it in the nesting season, so no doubt the only nestingrecords for Florida are from Alachua County, where for four years I havefound them nesting on Orange Lake. For the four years previous to 1909 Iknow it did not nest on Orange Lake, as I spent too much time there to miss see-ing it. It must have bred there formerly though, as I understand a set was takenin that section about a dozen or more years ago by a gentleman who was stay-ing in Micanopy.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 47The following observations were made during a period of eight weeks, duringwhich time I had two pairs of these birds under daily surveillance. In lookingfor a suitable place to put up my photographic blind I stumbled onto these twopairs just beginning to build their nests, the second for the season, as all of thefirst built nests had been abandoned after being looted by the fish crows whichswarmed in the rookery. Both parent birds aided in the construction of thenest, and I could not see that one bird did any more of the work than the other. Idid note, however, that in one case the female selected the site and in the otherthe male did the selecting. Both nests were built at a height of about 10 feetin thick elder bushes, and about 3 feet from the tops of the bushes, as plainlyshown in the accompanying photographs. The nests were ready for eggs at theend of the second daj', although the nests were not finished by any means.Glossy ibis have the same characteristics as the white ibis in that they continueto add to their nest even up to the time that the young are able to leave it, sothat by the time the eggs are ready to hatch the nest will be almost double thesize that it was when the first egg was laid. An egg was laid each daj^ until onenest contained four and the other three. Incubation did not start until afterthe last egg had been laid a full day. After the first egg was laid, however, thenest was never without one or the other of the pair close by, something that wasvery necessary in this rookery on account of the thieving fish crows. Duringthe period of incubation, which lasted in each case exactly 21 days, I noticedthat the female did most of the incubating; the male, however, put in about 6
"hours out of the 24 covering the eggs. The female sat all night and until about8.30 or 9.00 a. m., when the male came in from his morning hunt for food; onhis approach to the nest he would give his call when about 50 feet away and hismate would immediately answer and spring up from the nest and pass him inthe air sometimes 25 feet from the nest. The male would always fly directlyto the highest twig above the nest and after about five minutes of careful preen-ing his feathers he would give three or four calls in a medium tone and springdown to the nest, stand a few minutes examining the eggs and then go stalkingthrough the bushes until he found a twig that suited him, break it off with hisbill and take it back to the nest and after placing it on top settle down to athree hour job of incubating, getting off the nest, however, usually once duringthat time and getting another twig to add to the nest. The female wouldreturn and give her bleating note about 50 feet from the nest when the malewould stand up and wait for her to alight in the bush over the nest, then would?nsue about 15 minutes of as neat courting and billing and cooing as one will?ver see being done Ijy a pair of doves. This loving disposition toward eachother seems to be characteristic of the glossy ibis, as every pair that I haveobserved have done it. The white ibis will occasionally do it, but not for anysuch length of time as the glossy. They will stand erect and seem to rub theirbill against the other one, all the time making cooing (guttural, I must admit)notes of endearment, they will preen each others feathers and act just like acouple of young humans on their honeymoon; these loving scenes continuediuntil the young were able to fly, never seeming to diminish at all. This traitI certainly admire, and while it is known to exist in birds that mate for life, is
?seldom seen in birds that are supposed to mate only for a season.Eggs.?The glossy ibis lays three or four eggs, probably more oftenthe latter. They are ovate, elliptical ovate or elongate ovate in shape.The shell is smooth or very finely pitted, with little or no gloss. Thecolor varies from "Niagara green" to "pale Nile blue." The meas-surements of 75 eggs average 52.1 by 36.9 millimeters; the eggs showing
48 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe four extremes measure 57.8 by 38, 57.5 by 43, 47 by 34, and 5G'by 33.5 millimeters.Young.?Mr, Baynard's (1913) notes on the behavior and feedinghabits of young glossy ibises are well worth quoting in full, as follows:After 21 days had elapsed three of the eggs hatched. The same routine was-carried on, however, as when they were incubating; the female doing most ofthe covering, but both birds doing the feeding of the young. Until the youngwere 5 days old one bird always stayed at the nest and it was at this period thatthe last egg laid was hatched. I hardly expected it to hatch. This last hatchedbird was considerably smaller than the three others were at time of hatching andalways seemed to be more ^r less dwarfed until about time for them to leave thenest, when there was little difference to be seen in the size, but lots of differencein their activity, the last hatched one being the most active of the entire lot.The disposition of the young at all times in both nests was fine. All werevery active and restless after a week old, and at the age of two weeks wouldnot stay in the nest at all but stray out to the ends of the limbs of the bushes inwhich the nests were placed, returning, however, to the nest to be fed, as I neverobserved on any occasion the old one feeding the young any place but on thenest. In this they differ from the white ibis, as they will feed the young whereverthey find them and seem to let the youngsters tyrannize over them. On severaloccasions I noticed one or the other of the young when at the age of about 3weeks try to make his parents come to him to feed him, but it never worked, a&the old one would pay not the slighest attention to him, and when it looked as-though the parent was through feeding and about ready to go away the young-ster would give in and come climbing down to the nest, where the old wouldtreat him just as if he had been there all the time. I never noticed any of theyoung fighting among themselves, like the herons will sometimes do, but at aUtimes they acted like well-behaved children, the only exceptions being that thethree older birds would often take turns in trying apparently to swallow the lasthatched baby. He was sure a hardy scamp or he would never have lived throughthe treatment he had to undergo. When the young are over 3 weeks old overhalf the food of these glossy ibis would be moccasins. I kept a record of thefood by making the young disgorge after the old ones had fed them. This item-ized record will appear further along. The manner of the glossy ibis in feedingis to regurgitate the food up in the throat or mouth and for the young to puthis bill, and many times head, down the old one's throat and take his portion.After one bird has been fed the second and third will get their turns, never longerthan three minutes apart and usually immediately. I have seen the three youngget two portions each in about seven minutes. Quick work this. They wouldeach get four to five portions at each visit of the parent; when young, however,they would get as high as seven or eight turns. They would, of course, at thistender age, be unable to take on a very large quantity, and it would also be in afiner state of digestion, as many times I have seen the parent return from feedingand stand around and caress the young and not offer to feed until an hour hadelapsed. This no doubt was to allow the food to digest to a point where theyoung would be able to eat it. But after the young had reached the age of 2weeks and more this was never necessary, as they could at that age take anythingfrom a portion of a half grown moccasin to a grown crayfish. At this age of theyoung the meal, if a moccasin, would be disgorged into the nest, and being halfdigested, be pulled into small enough portions to be capable of being swallowedby the young, who would take this up from the nest themselves. In no otherinstances did I ever see them pick up any food themselves until after they were
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 49quite large, when they would reeat the disgorged food that I had made them"cough up." In every case, however, the old bird fed from the throat, with theexception of the moccasins.The old birds showed a great deal of intelligence in the feeding of the lasthatched chick. They would feed the oldest three in every case three or fourportions before they would ever notice the baby. This was no doubt due tothe fact that it was unable to assimilate the food in as coarse a stage of di-gestion as its older brethern and apparently the parents knew this, because whenthey started to feed the baby they would give him as many meals as he caredto take and would never offer to give the older ones any more until another visitfrom the feeding grounds. As the young grew it necessitated many visits to themarshes for food because they were a hungry bunch all the time. I spent usu-ally 8 to 10 hours a day in the bhnd photographing ^nd making notes and nodaj' during the four weeks after the young hatched did the parents make lessthan six trips each with food for the young and they made on some days as highas 11 trips each, the last ones being late, sometimes after dark. These last trips,however, were usually for their own food, as only on three occasions, did Iever see the old ones offer to feed the youngsters when returning late.After the end of the sixth week the young spent all their time flying down tothe edge of the island and wading and feeding in the shallow water, returning,however, at night to roost on the old nest. The old ones, at this stage, willfeed them wherever the\^ can find them, and after the young are about 7 weeksold they will leave with the parents to their feeding grounds and stay with themreturning at night to roost. At about this time all the ibis of both species areusually able to fly and it is not long then when some day they all leave as sud-denly and mysteriously as they came in. They have probably pretty well cleanedup the hunting grounds of all the crayfish, etc., and move of necessity rather thanchoice. It is at this period that they are found in the Northern States. Atwhat time they return south I am unable to state.Plumages.?The plumages and molts of the glossy ibis are appar-ently similar to those of the white-faced species.Food.?Mr. Baynard (1913) made a careful study of the food ofthe young glossy ibises; his itemized summary of 194 meals givesthe following totals: 412 cutworms, 1,964 grasshoppers, 1,391 cray-fish, and 147 snakes. He says that the adults feed "principally oncrayfish, cutworms, grasshoppers, and other insects and youngmoccasins," from which it would seem that they are very usefulbirds. He figures it out in this way:Total of 3,914 vermin in 194 meals, or an average of 20 to each meal. Asthe young would average seven meals apiece each day this would mean 28 meals,and 20 vermin to the meal would make 560 vermin for a day's feed for theyoung alone. The parents fed these young for about 50 days, making the totalof vermin destroyed by this one nest of birds about 28,000, and this is sayingnothing of what the old birds ate, which would be at least half of what theyoungsters devoured, making a total of 42,000 vermin eaten while rearing onenest of young. When we stop to think that there were about 9,000 pairsof ibis, including both the white and glossy on this lake in 191? that success-fully reared nests of young, one can hardly conceive of the many millions ofnoxious insects and vermin of all kinds destroyed. The vast amount of good toany section of the country where this vast army of ibis nest can hardly bereckoned in dollars. The cutworms and grasshoppers, we all know what great
50 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMdamage to growing crops they do; the crayfish destroys the spawn of fish, whichin turn live off the eggs and young mosquitos. The deduction is self-evident to-anyone when we consider the vast amount of territory in Florida that is coveredwith water. The crayfish also destroy levees on the rivers and cause thedestruction of millions of dollars damage to growing crops.Snakes, especially the moccasins, which, by the way, comprised 95 per cent ofthe snakes captured by the ibis, do lots of harm. Moccasins in rookeries destroythousands of eggs and young birds, and even if they didn't they are so deadlypoisonous that anything that helps to keep them down to reasonable numbersis welcome.Behavior.?I must quote again from Mr. Baynard (1913) regard-ing the behavior of this species:The disposition of the old glossy ibis towards the other ibis and herons is notgood. I will have to admit that the glossy is pugnacious towards them, andone will never find an occupied nest of any other species as near as 10 feet to aglossy nest when they have reached the point where it is about time for the youngto hatch. They will run off ibis and herons regardless of size and all the otherbirds seem to recognize their superiority and leave. Then happens a peculiarthing. The fish crows will, of course get the deserted eggs at once and then theglossy ibis will begin dismantling these old nests, pulling them apart and drop-ping the sticks down on the ground, or in the water, whichever happens to beunderneath, saving any sticks that appeal to them and taking them back totheir own nest. I noticed that it took six days for this pair to dismantle 14white ibis nests and 3 little blue heron nests that they had made leave. Theworst of it was that one of the white ibis had baby young in and when theydied the glossies threw them out of the nest. It is barely possible, however,,that the pair of white ibis that had used this nest were killed on their feedinggrounds and failed to return, as this is the only instance where I ever noted theglossy dismantling a nest occupied by young.The notes of the glossy ibis are very hard to explain so that any one wouldhave the least idea how they sounded. The note of the white ibis is three grunt-ing notes, sometimes uttered distinct, but more often sounding like a continuousnote. The glossy starts off exactly like the white ibis with a grunting sound andthen uttering four distinct notes resembling what to my mind best explains them?the bleating of a young calf or sheep. The ibis sounds as though there was some-thing in the throat that gives a guttural sound. I became quite expert in imi-tating them, so much so that I could many times fool the yovmg, but as for writ-ing it, that is beyond me. This note is usually used in all cases when they ap-proach the nest and when they are leaving and just as they take wing. Theyhave another scries of notes they use when caressing each other and caressingthe young and the female has a very soft note, sort of cooing, that she uses whenfeeding the young when they are only a few days old. The young themselvesnever appear to make any notes except when trying to avoid a person, when theyutter a squawking note of fear. The two nests in question were placed quiteclose to each other and as the young arrived at the age of two weeks and morethey could always recognize their parents' notes even before I could distinguishthem. I always knew which old birds were approaching by the actions of theyoung birds in the nest. They never in all the time I observed them made a mis-take and put on the alert and expectant look for the parents of the other nest.I could not distinguish any material difference in the notes of the four adult birds,with the possible exception of the female of the nest photographed; she appeared tohave a coarser tone to her calls. Glossy ibis appear to have less enemies than any
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 51
other of the birds in the rookeries. Fish crows appear to be the only thing thatbothei them and they in nearly every case secured the first sets. Man, ofcourse, is their next enemy, as is usually the case with any species but here inthis rookery they were not molested by man at all.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Tropical and subtropical regions of both hemispheres.Breeding range.?In the Eastern Hemisphere, east to China andBorneo, south to New Guinea and Australia, west to Egypt and Sen-egambia and north to Spain, Greece, and Persia. Definitely knownas a breeder in America only in Florida (Micanopy and Bird Island,Orange Lake). It probably nests also in Louisiana and in Mexico.Winter range.?Although generally resident in its breeding range,the glossy ibis has been taken at widely scattered localities. InAmerica these have been mostly to the north while in the EasternHemisphere it apparently occurs regularly in South Africa. It isknown as a straggler from Santo Domingo, Cuba, Jamaica (specimenin National Museum), and the Bahama Islands.Casual records.?It has occurred casually northward along thecoastal regions of the United States and southern Canada and isaccidental in the interior.There are two records for the District of Columbia (Washington,about 1817 and September, 1900); one for New Jersey (Great EggHarbor, about May 7, 1817); one for Pennsylvania (near Philadelphiain 1866) ; several for New York (Grand Island, Niagara River, August,1844, Cayuga Lake, 1854, and May 27, 1907, Tonowanda Swamp,May, 1884, Dunkirk, April, 1894, Seneca River, 1902; Howland Island,May, 1902, and also Southampton, Jamaica Bay, and Canarsie Bay);one for Connecticut (Middletown, May 9, 1850) ; a few for Massachu-setts (near Cambridge, about May 8, 1850, Nantucket, 1869, East-ham, May 4, 1878, and Orleans, May 5, 1878) ; and one for New Hamp-shire (Lake Winnepesaukee, October, 1858). Tliere is a specimen inthe Thayer collection from the island of Montreal, Quebec, taken May27, 1900; McKinley reported the occurrence of a specimen in PictouCounty, Nova Scotia, about 1865, while Brewer reported one seen onPrince Edward Island in August, 1878.In the interior the glossy ibis is known only as a straggler. Onewas taken from a flock of three in Marion County, Illinois, on Feb-ruary 27, 1880; two were seen, and one was taken near Fairport, Ohio,in 1848; a pair were shot near Hamilton, Ontario in May, 1857; aspecimen was secured at Lake Iloricon, Wisconsin, on November 8,1879; one was taken near Denver, Colorado, several years prior to1900, another was secured on the Arkansas River near Salida, Colo-rado, April 12, 1898, while a third Colorado specimen was collected atBarr in June, 1905. Accounts of the occurrence of this species in
52 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
other States have been either indefinite or have proved upon investi-gation to refer to the white-faced glossy ibis.Egg dates.?Florida: G records, April 1 to May 25. ContinentalEurope: 14 records, April 16 to June 13; 7 records, May 16 to 29,PLEGADIS GUARAUNA (Linnaeus)WHITE-FACED GLOSSY IBISHABITSMy first real aquaintance with this handsome bird was made inTexas in 1923, where we were told that there was a large breedingcolony of "bronze ibises" to be found way off on the prairies ofRefugio County. During a drive of some 70 miles over the roughmuddy roads through the "hog-wallow prairies," we had occasionallyseen little bands of ibises feeding in wet places, or straggling flocksof them flying from the shores of ponds or banks of rivers, aU head-ing in the same direction. They had been spread out over manymiles of country to feed and were now returning to their rookery;the direction of their flight helped us to locate it. So we turned off theroad and drove for some three miles across the prairie, picking ourway through scattered clumps of mesquite and huisache, or dodgingnumerous prickly-pear cacti, until we came to the shore of a marshylake. The shores of the lake were lined with tules and the center ofit was one great tule swamp, separated from us by 50 yards of openwater. Ibises were coming and going and over the tules a few ofthem were circling. But it was not until we had partially strippedand waded out to it, in water nearly up to our armpits, that werealized what a large colonj^ we had found.Nesting.?Before we reached the tules the birds began to rise andsoon there was a bewildering cloud of them circling overhead, utteringtheir pecidiar cries of protest. And looking through the more openspaces we could see the large brown birds leaving their nests, flopping offover the water or scrambling through the thicker tules. Many of thesewere young birds, for at that date. May 19, most of the eggs hadhatched and some of the young were able to fly. As soon as we enteredthe tules, which grew far above our heads, we began to find nests.Many of them were in the more open places where they could beplainly seen, but many more were in dense clumps of tules where itwas difficult to penetrate. Progress was so slow and so difficult, inthe deep water and dense tangles, that we did not attempt to explorethe whole rookery; I could form no definite idea of its extent or howmany birds it contained ; but as far as we could see over the bigexpanse of marsh, bjrds were constantly arising and alighting; theremust have been several thousands of them. The nests were built inmore or less open clumps of tules and attached to them; some werepartially floating shallow platforms barely above the water; others
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 53
were well made and built Up of 10 or 12 inches above the water.They were all made of coarse pieces of dead tules, the last year'sgrowth having been beaten down to form a foundation; they wereoften deeply cupped and were lined with finer pieces of tules and withgrasses. Only a very few nests still held eggs, usually three.The interesting colony, found near Brownsville, Texas, many yearsago, described by George B. Sennett (1878) and Dr. J, C. Merrill(1879), had long since disappeared; the swamp has been drainedand is now cultivated land. So far as I could learn there are nowno ibises breeding in that section of Texas. Doctor Merrill's (1879)account of it is as follows:On the 16th of May, 1877, Mr. G. B. Sennett and I visited a large patch oftule reeds growing in a shallow lagoon, about 10 miles from the fort, in whichlarge numbers of this ibis and several kinds of herons were breeding. The reedscovered an area of perhaps 75 acres or less, growing in water 3 or 4 feet in depthIrregular channels of open water traversed the reeds here and there, but the bot-tom was comparatively firm, and there was little difficulty in wading in any di-rection. Besides the ibises, the great and little white egrets, Louisiana and nightherons, and several other birds were breeding here. Often nests of all thesespecies were placed within a few feet of each other, but there was a tendency to-ward the different kinds forming little nesting groups of 10 or 15 pairs. Thereeds grew about 6 feet above the surface of the water, and were either beatendown to form a support for the nests, or dead and partly floating stalks of theprevious years were used for that purpose. It was impossible to estimate the num-ber of the ibises and different herons nesting here. On approaching the spotmany would be seen about the edges of the lagoon or flying to or from more dis-tant feeding grounds, but upon firing a gun a perfect mass of birds arose, with anoise like thunder, from the entire bed of reeds, soon to settle down again. Bothnest and eggs of the ibises were quite unlike those of any of the herons, andcould be distinguished at a glance. The nests were made of broken bits of deadtules, supported by and attached to broken and upright stalks of living ones.They were rather well and compactly built, and were usually well cupped, quiteunlike the clumsy platforms of the herons. The eggs were nearly always threein number, and at this date were far advanced in incubation; many nests con-tained young of all sizes.George Willett and Antonin Jay (1911) visited a large breeding col-ony of white-faced glossy ibises in San Jacinto Lake, in RiversideCounty, California, on May 28, 1911, which they describe as follows:In nearly every patch of tules was a nest or two of this species, and in thepatch farthest west which coveied about a half acre, there must have been atleast 200 nests. They were built on bent down tules, and were composed oftule stalks and lined with marsh grass. They were situated from 2 to 6 feetabove the water, the average height being ^bout 4 feet. About half the nestsexamined contained young and most of the others held badly incubated eggs.A very few fresh sets were found but the height of the nesting season was past.The sets almost invariably consisted of three or four eggs. In one or two in-stances sets of two incubated eggs were noted and three nests contained fiveeggs each, two nests six eggs each, and one nest had seven. It is probable thatsets numbering more than five eggs were deposited by more than one bird. Infact they invariably showed two different types of eggs. The color of the eggs92642?26t 5
54 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
evidently fades with incubation, as the heavily incubated eggs are a muchlighter blue than the freshly laid ones. This is probably the largest breedingcolony of these birds in southern California west of the mountains,A. O. Treganza writes to me that this ibis is not an uncom-mon breeder in suitable localities in Utah. There is a colony ofabout 100 pairs on the black sloughs about 8 miles from Salt LakeCity, a colony at the mouth of the Jordan River of about 100 pairsand he knows of four colonies, two of about 75 to 100 pairs and twoof about 150 to 200 pairs at the mouth of Bear River. They breedin company witli snowy egrets and black-crowned night herons andin three cases with Treganza herons, nesting in tules growing inwater about waist deep. In some instances the nests are made onthe dead tules of the year previous, which have been broken andmatted down by the winter snows, while in other cases they consistof entirely new nests attached to and on the new growing tules andreeds.Eggs.?This ibis usually lays three or four eggs, but five, six oreven seven have been found in a nest. They are ovate, ellipticalvateor elongate ovate in shape. The shell is smooth or very finelypitted, with little or no gloss. The color varies from " Niagaragreen" to "pale Nile blue." The measurements of 46 eggs average51.5 by 36 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure55 by 37, 52 by 38, 46 by 35.5 and 50.5 by 33 millimeters.Young.?Incubation is said to last for 21 or 22 days and probablyboth sexes incubate, as is known to be the case with the glossy ibis. Atthe time we visited the rookery in Texas, referred to above, we foundyoung of all ages from newly hatched to those which were able tofly. The youngest birds showed signs of fear, but remained inthe nest or made only feeble attempts to leave it But the olderbirds, one-third grown or more, were very timid and very precocial;they left the nests as we approached and scrambled off through thetules with great agility and skill; the larger ones tried to fly and, ifthey fell into the water, they flopped over the surface or swamaway.Plumages.?The downy young of the white-faced glossy ibis is nota beautiful creature. It is scantily covered with dull black down,through which the pin-feathers soon begin to show; there is a whitepatch on the back of the crown; the bill is pale flesh-color, black atthe tip and at the base, with a black band in the middle. Thisparti-colored bill is also characteristic of the juvenal plumage anddoes not disappear until September. In the juvenal plumage therich chestnut hues are wholly lacking; the head, neck, and underparts are dull grayish brown; but the plumage of the upper parts,back, wings, and tail, is a rich, glossy, metallic green. A partial moltin September produces a head and neck plumage much like that of
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 55the winter adult, streaked with brown and dull white. 1 have beenunable to trace the first prenuptial molt in young birds, but presum-ably a partial molt produces a body plumage approaching that ofthe adult. At the first postnuptial molt, which is complete, theyoung bird assumes the adult Avinter plumage. Winter adults havethe head and neck streaked with brown and dull white, as in thefirst winter; but the upper parts are glossed with purple, green, andbronze reflections, but Httle duller than in spring, and the under partsare rich chestnut brown. Adults apparently have a partial prenuptialmolt in early spring, March, and a complete postnuptial molt in Julyand August.Food.?Like the white ibis, this species often makes long flights toits favorite feeding grounds, along the banks of rivers and on theshallow margins of muddy pools, ponds, and marshes. On the'hog-wallow prairies" of the coastal plains of Texas are many suchpools, where we often saw this species feeding, walking about grace-fully and probing in the mud ; the crops of birds we shot here werecrammed full of ordinary earthworms. Its food also consists largelyof crawfish, various small mollusks, insects and their larvae, smallfish and frogs, newts, leeches, and various other forms of low animallife. Probably a certain amount of aquatic vegetation is alsoeaten.Behavior.?The name, ''black curlew" has been well applied tothis species, for at a distance in flight it certainly appears very darkcolored; its long curved bill stretched out in front and its legs ex-tended backward give it the shape of a curlew. It can be easilyrecognized at any distance. Its flight is strong, direct, swift and wellsustained. When traveling in flocks, it flies in long, diagonal lines,sometimes with the birds abreast, usually with steady, rapid wingstrokes, but varied occasionally with short periods of scahng.Dr. Frank M. Chapman (1908) was priviledged to see flocks offrom 10 to 40 of these birds perform a surprising evolution; he writes:In close formation, they soared skyward in a liroad spiral, mounting higherand higher until, in this leisurely and graceful manner, they had reached anelevation of at least 500 feet. Then, without a moment's pause and with thrill-ing speed, they dived earthward. Sometimes they went together as one bird,at others each bird steered its own course, when the air seemed full of plunging,darting, crazy ibises. When about 50 feet from the ground, their reckless dashwas checked and, on bowed wings, they turned abruptly and shot upward.Shortly after, like a rush of a gust of wind, we heard the humming sound causedby the swift passage through the air of their stiffened {Mnions.The same writer describes the note of this species as a "nasal ooh-ick-ooTi-ick.'' Dr. Joseph Grmnell (1918) records it as "a hoarseIca-onk, several times repeated."6^awe.?Ibises can hardly be considered desirable game birds; yet,under the name of "bronze i])is"in Texas or "black curlew" in
56 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMCalifornia, this species has been persistently hunted and sold in themarket as game. Prior to 1915 there was an open season on it inCalifornia, with a bag limit of 20 birds, but, as many of the birdsmigrated out of the State during the open season, no great reductionin its numbers was made by gunners.DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range. ?Western North America, including Mexico ; SouthAmerica, south of the Amazon Valley. Range discontinuous; prac-tically unknown from Central America (south of Mexico) andnorthern South America. In North America, east to Louisiana(Lake Arthur) ; Florida (one record, at Lake Washington). Southto Mexico (valley of Toluca, Mazatlan, and San Jose del Cabo).West to California (near Escondido, San Jacinto Lake, Los Banos,and Clear Lake). North to Oregon (Malheur Lake), Nevada(Washoe Lake), Utah (Bear River marshes), and Minnesota (onerecord for Heron Lake). In South America, east to Brazil (RioGrande do Sul), Argentina (Rozas, Cape San Antonio, and EstanciaSta. Elena). South to Argentina (Rio Negro). West to Chile(Santiago)
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Winter range.?In common with other members of this family,the white-faced glossy ibis is more or less resident in its breedingrange. It does, however, regularly withdraw from the northern andsouthern extremes. In North America it winters north to California(San Diego and Los Banos), Arizona (casually at Tombstone);Texas (Corpus Christi and Brownsville), and Louisiana (LakePrieu) . The winter range in South America appears to be regularlysouth to Argentina (Cape San Antonio or Buenos Aires). In thisportion of the range there is a distinct movement north in the latterpart of September, indicating that the principal breeding areas maybe located along the rivers and marshes of the interior.Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: California, SanFrancisco, March 28, and Fresno, April 20; Oregon, Malheur Lake,May 12; Arizona, Peck's Lake, Verde Valley, April 12; Idaho, Ru-pert, May 19; Colorado, Durango, April 7, and Barr, April 4; Min-nesota, Wilder, May 27.Fall migration.?Late dates of departure are: Oregon, MalheurLake, October 4; California, Dunlap, September 8; Colorado, Barr,October 3, and Colorado Springs, October 10.Casual records.?Stragglers have been noted in North America fromWashington (Clear Lake, about October 30, 1909); and British Co-lumbia (Salt Spring Island in 1884, Sardis, fall of 1904. and also atthe mouth of the Eraser River). It also has been recorded from theStraits of Magellan, Magallanes Territory, Chile, and from El Pozo,Diquis River, Costa Rica.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 57Egg (Za^es.?California: 92 records, May 20 to July 15; 46 records,May 28 to July 5. Texas: 35 records, April 15 to June 6; 18 rec-ords, April 22 to May 19.Family CICONIIDAE, Storks and Wood IbisesMYCTERIA AMERICANA LinnaeusWOOD IBISHABITSA striking and a picturesque bird is the wood ibis, also known inFlorida as "gannet" or "flinthead," both appropriate names. It isa permanent resident in the hot, moist bottom lands of our southernborders and seldom straggles far north of our southern tier of States.To see it at its best one must penetrate the swampy bayous of Lou-isiana or Texas, where the big water oaks and tupelos are draped inlong festoons of Spanish moss, or the big cypress swamps of Florida,where these stately trees tower for a hundred feet or more straightupward until their interlacing tops form a thick canopy of leavesabove the dim cathedral aisles. One must work his way through al-most impenetrable thickets of button willows, underbrush, and inter-lacing tangles of vines. He must wade waist deep or more in muddypools, where big alligators lurk unseen or leave their trails on muddybanks, as warnings to be cautious, or where the deadly moccassin maysquirm away under foot or may lie in wait, coiled up on some falleplog, ready to strike. If not deterred by these drawbacks, or by theclouds of malarial mosquitos or by the hot, reeking atmosphere ofthe tropical swamps, he may catch a fleeting glimpse of the big whitebirds or hear their croaking notes as they fly from the tree tops above.Probably he may see a solitary old "flint head" perched in the topof some old dead tree in the distance, standing on one leg, with hishead drawn in upon his shoulders and his great bill resting on hischest. Perhaps there may be a whole flock of them in such a tree
;
but the observer will not get very near them, for the wood ibis is anexceedingly shy bird, and a sentinel is always on the lookout. Oneis more likely to see the wood ibis on the wing, flying in flo(;ks to orfrom its feeding grounds, or circling high in the air above its breedingrookery. On the wing it shows uj) to the best advantage, sailinggracefully on motionless wings, a big white bird, with black flightfeathers in its long wings and in its short tail.Nesting.?My experience with the nesting habits of the wood ibishas been rather limited. In the big Jane Green cypress swamp, nearthe upper St. Johns Kiver in Florida, we found a breeding colony inApril, 1902. The cypresses here were the largest I liave ever seen,measuring 6 feet or more in diameter at the base, tapering rapidly toabout 3 feet in diameter, and then running straight up at about that size
58 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfor 75 or 100 feet to the first limb. The nests were placed in thetops of the tallest cypresses and far out on the horizontal limbs; theywere practically inaccessible by any means at our disposal, so we hadto be content with seeing or hearing the birds fly off.Near Cape Sable we were more fortunate, as the absence of cypressswamps in this region compelled the wood ibises to nest in smallertrees. We found a small colony of them breeding on an island inBear Lake, about 2 miles back from the coast. The birds were veryshy, leaving the island when we were about 100 yards away, and notcoming within gunshot afterwards. There were about 20 nests inthe tops of the red mangroves, from 12 to 15 feet from the ground;they were large nests, about 3 feet in diameter, made of large sticks,very much like the nests of the larger herons, and were completelycovered with excrement. All the nests held young birds in variousstages of growth.Willard Eliot (1892) describes a typical nesting colony of woodibises, found in southern Florida on March 23, as follows:Out in the center of the lake was a small island about 100 feet in diameter,with about 3 feet elevation above the water. There were several large cypresstrees besides a thick undergrowth of bay trees. What a sight met our gaze fromthe shore, the trees on the island were white with the ibises standing close to-gether on the limbs, besides a number of American egrets, Florida cormorants,and anhingas. The ibises were nesting and we could see a number of the birdssitting on their nests. Most of the nests were on the island, but we found twotrees near the shore, one had five nests and the other seven. After looking overthe field I proceeded to climb the first tree, a large cj'press, the nests were placed50 feet from the ground and were saddled flatly on the top of a horizontal limb.One limb had four nests in a row and were so close together that their edgestouched. A ty))ical nest was 18 inches across by 5 inches deep outside, onlyslightly depressed inside, made of coarse sticks lined with moss and green bayleaves. The eggs were chalky white and nearly always blood stained; the averageset is three but we found sets of two and four.In the spring of 1913 F. M. Phelps (1914) visited a large rookeryof wood ibises in the Big Cypress Swamp of Lee County, Florida, inwhich he estimated that there were not less than 5.000 pairs of thesebirds. lie says:Mr. Baynard, who visited this rookery in February, 1912, before the cypresstrees had leaved out, gave it as his opinion that there were not less than seven oreight thousand nests of the wood ibis here. Tree after tree bore from 12 to 20 ormore nests of this species, and m one I counted 32. Years ago before the egretsand spoonbills had become so sadly decimated, for they once bred here in largenumbers, it must have been a spectacle so imposing as to defy an adequate descrip-tion. The egrets, wood ibis, and spoonbills all nest high up in the cypress trees,very few under 50 feet and many 75 and 80 feet up. At this season, the middle ofMarch, nearly all the nests contained young. A few of the wood ibis and egretswere still Incubating eggs, but these were more than likely birds that had beenbroken up elsewhere.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 59Frederic H. Kennard has sent me some notes on a rookery fullyas large, if not larger, which he explored in Okaloacoochee Slough insouthern Florida. It was in some enormous cypress trees, 4, 5, 6, 7,and even 9 feet in diameter, grown well apart, so that most of themhad good, spreading tops. It had been for years the place where theSeminoles came for their dugouts, as it contained the biggest andfinest cypresses in the land. The rookery was perhaps from 100 to200 yards across, and he followed it for about half a mile or more.Not all the trees were occupied, but most of the good ones held 4 or5 to 20 nests apiece, clear way up on the tops of the trees. It wasalmost impossible to make any estimate of their number, even approx-imately, without spending a couple of days counting their nests,but there must have been several thousand flying about, or perchedsolemnly on the tops of the trees.His guide, Tom Hand, estimated that there were 10,000 nests, forfrom a tree he climbed he could see the nests extending along theedge for a mile. At the other end of the rookery they all appearedto be building their nests. There was an almost steady stream ofbirds, perhaps 25 at a time, all flying to some live willows, breakingoflF twigs and flying back to the rookery with them. An old birdwould fly up to the willows and^alight, perhaps grasping several twigsin his feet, in order to get a firmer hold ; he would then saw, pull, andyank at some twig with his bill; if unsuccessful, he would try anothertwig until, at last, he could break one off and fly away with it. Inthe rookery they frequently saw the birds flying overhead with longtwigs or small branches, with the leaves still on them, or with longstreamers of moss for nest linings.Among the many courtesies extended to me by Oscar E. Baynardwas an excellent opportunity to make an intimate acquaintancewith a nesting colony of wood ibises; it was not as large as the onedescribed above, but the nests were fairly accessible and the birdswere rather tamer than usual. In the northern part of Polk County,Florida, lies a large tract of wilderness, unsettled and with no roadsworthy of the name; it is largely flat pine woods with numerouslarge and small cypress ponds or swamps scattered through it. Hereon March 7, 1925, after a 30-mile drive over some of the toughesttrails I have ever driven, through woods, bogs, and cypress swamps,we camped near the edge of a long cypress swamp and visited therookery in it the next day. We estimated that the colony consistedof between 200 and 300 pairs of wood ibises; no other species wasnesting with them. We had not waded more than 75 or 100 yardsinto the swamp, where the water averaged about knee deep, when webegan to see the ibises in the tree tops or on their nests. Thecypress trees were of fair size, 12 to 18 inches in diameter, heavily
60 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfestooned with Spanish moss, and the nests were mostly between 50and 60 feet above us. The birds were not shy at first and we hadno difiicuhy in approaching near enough to photograph groups ofthem perched on the nesting trees or on other tall dead trees in thevicinity. When we began climbing the trees they became morewary, but they perched on the tops of more distant trees and fre-quently flew over us. Some of the trees held only two or three nests,but most of them held from half a dozen to a dozen. The nestswere in or near the tops of the trees, mostly well out on the horizon-tal branches and often beyond our reach. They were surprisinglysmall and flimsy structures, not much larger than well made nightheron's nests, ill adapted, it seemed to me, to the needs of such large,heavy birds. The foundations of the nests were loosely made ofrather large, dead sticks, on which more substantial nests were builtof finer twigs and fresh, budding leaf stems of the cypress; somewere also partially lined with green leaves of bay, oak, or maple. Per-haps the nests would be added to, as incubation advances, as is cus-tomary with some of the herons. Most of the nests contained threeeggs, some only two, and at least two nests held four eggs. All ofof the eggs that we collected were fresh.Eggs.?The wood ibis lays usually three, sometimes four, eggs andvery rarely five. The shape varies from ovate to elliptical ovate oreven elongate ovate. The shell is smooth, but finely granulated orfinely pitted. The color is dull or dirty white or cream white, with-out any markings, except occasional blood stains .*^The measurements of 40 eggs average 67.9 by 46 milHmeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 73 by 46.2, 64.7 by 64.9,60.8 by 46.8 and 70.9 by 34.3 milUmeters.Young.?George M. Sutton (1924) gives the following interestingaccount of his visit to a colony of wood ibises, in which the youngbirds were about ready to fly:As evening came I noticed that from the hammock far to the westward issuedforth strange sounds the like of which I had never heard. I accredited them toalligators and bullfrogs, thinking at the time that Florida 'gators and frogs prob-ably could, and perhaps usually did set up such a disturbance. Although it wasso far away, the penetrating quality of the racket made us believe that the soundwould be very great close at hand. It was so far distant that we heard but anincessant mumbling, varied occasionally with higher shriller, tones.Although I constantly noticed wood ibises issuing in small flocks from thishammock, or returning to it, I never seemed to connect the strange sound withthe birds; it hardly seemed credible that birds should make such a noise. Butwhen we visited the 'Gator Lake hammock on March 20, we found that thestrange noises of the days before had come from a large "Flint-head" colony.As we approached, the racket increased steadily, and soon we could detect indi-vidual grunts, loud and deep-throated; shrill squeals, incessant and angry; bel-lowing, coughing, deep wheezing, bleating?all in the most unbelievably hurried.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 61
earnest fashion, as though their fervor had to be kept at white heat all eveninglong. Even now we could not really see the birds, save those few which occa-sionally flew out to investigate us, or to search a feeding ground for the evening.But it was strangely exciting to listen, and to picture in our minds what mightbe going on in that dense hammock to the accompaniment of the weird notes wewere hearing As we drew near, masses of the birds took wing and drifted about,soaring quite low for a time and gradually mounting higher and higher. Notuntil we had come very close did we realize that a large proportion of the colonywas young birds, fully fledged but standing about on somewhat uncertain legsand very hesitant to fly. They were droll creatures. They seemed aware ofour presence all the time but never turned their heads our way, seeming to pre-fer to listen intently and jump off with much flapping and squaking at what theyconsidered the psychological moment. Many of them where standing on theirlarge, flat, whitewashed nests; but I believe they had long since forgotten theirown cradles and were standing about regardless of family relationships. Occa-sionally one very near us would lose his balance, and, hanging by his neck andtoes, after much hideous noise and commotion would finally regain his perch orflap away. On the heads of the full-fledged young the Juvenal feathering wasstill apparent. Many of them stood about with open mouths?whether bellow-ing or not.Plumages.?The downy young wood ibis is partially covered withshort, thick, wooly, white down; the front half of the head and thespaces between the feather tracts are bare. I have never seen anysmall juvenals, but Audubon (1840) says:The young are dusky-grey all over, the quills and tail brownish-black. Thehead all covered with down, excepting just at the base of the bill. After thefirst molt, the bare space extends over the head and cheeks; the downy feathersof the hind head and neck are dusky; the general color of the plumage is white,the quills and tail nearly as in the adult, but with less gloss.In the first winter plumage, which is worn without much changeuntil the first postnuptial molt, the posterior half of the head andthe whole neck is thinly covered with coarse, hairlike feathers, mixeddusky, brown and whitish, darkest and longest on the occiput. Thebody plumage is dull white. Some of the scapulars and tertials areextensively tipped with dull brown and the rectrices and remiges arebrownish black with dull greenish reflections. Most of the imma-ture birds that I have seen, taken from October to May fall into thisclass, hence I think that the fully adult plumage must be assumedat the first postnuptial molt in September and October, when theyoung bird is 15 or 16 months old. However, the young bird is notyet fully adult for some feathering still remains on the neck. Thescaly, bare head and neck of the old "flint head" are probably notacquired for at least another year. Audubon (1840) says:The wood ibis takes four years in attaining full maturity, although birds ofthe second year are now and then found breeding. This is rare, however, forthe young birds live in flocks by themselves, until they have attained the age ofabout 3 years. They are at first of a dingy brown, each feather edged withpaler; the head is covered to the mandibles with short downy feathers, whichgradually fall ofl" as the bird advances in age. In the third year, the head is92642?26t 6
62 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMquite bare, as well as a portion of the upper part of the neck. In the fourthyear, the bird is as you see it in the plate. The male is much larger and heavierthan the female, but there is no difference in color between the sexes.The complete molt of the adult apparently occurs in Septemberand October; I have seen no evidence of a molt in the spring or ofany seasonal difference in plumage.Food.?The wood ibis is mainly a fresh water bird and prefers tofeed in shallow, muddy ponds, marshes and sloughs; but it also re-sorts occasionally, perhaps often to salt-water mud flats and shoals.I frequently saw them in winter, usually from two to four birds,feeding on the extensive mud flats of Boca Ceiga Bay in companywith American egrets, little blue, Louisiana, and Ward herons. Theymust fly long distances to feed, for this locality, in Pinellas County,Florida, is at least 100 miles from the nearest known rookery. Twobirds were seen occasionally in a little pond hole on Long Key besidea much frequented road, where they fed with the egrets, totally un-concerned with many passing automobiles. I once sat and watchedthem feeding within 20 yards of my blind and was much impressedby the loud clattering of their bills, as they walked about with long,deliberate steps, feeling for their food and scooping it out of the mudand water. A method of feeding, that 1 have never seen or readabout, is described in some notes sent to me by Mr. Kennard, basedon observations made by his guide. He reported watching a num-ber of them at close range. They were in some open water with avery muddy bottom, walking back and forth, dragging their billsbeside them, pointed downward and backward, opening and shut-ting them repeatedly, as if sifting the mud through them, after themanner of flamingos, lie says that on moonlight nights numbersof them may be seen feeding in the sloughs; and on a cloudy, rainyday they could be seen all over the prairie, feeding, perhaps ongrasshoppers.Audubon's (1840) account of the feeding habits of the wood ibisis worth quoting, as follows:This species feeds entirely on fish and aquatic reptiles, of which it destroys anenormous quantity, in fact more than it [eats; for if they have been killing fishfor half an hour and have gorged themselves, they suffer the rest to lie on thewater untouched, when it becomes food for alligators, crows, and vultures, when-ever these animals can lay hold of it. To procure its food, the wood ibis walksthrough shallow muddy lakes or bayous in numbers. As soon as they have dis-covered a place abounding in fish, they dance as it were all through it, until thewater becomes thick with the mud stirred from the bottom by their feet. Thefishes, on rising to the surface, are instantly struck by the beaks of the ibises,and, on being deprived of life, they turn over and so remain. In the course of10 or 15 minutes, hundreds of fishes, frogs, young alligators, and water snakescover the surface, and the birds greedily swallow them until they are completelygorged, after which they walk to the nearest margins, place themselves in longrows, with their breasts all turned toward the sun, in the manner of pelicans and
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 63
vultures, and thus remain for an hour or so. Besides the great quantity of fishesthat these ibises destroy, they also devour frogs, young alligators, wood rats,young rails and grakles, fiddlers and other crabs, as well as snakes and smallturtles. They never eat the eggs of the alligator, as has been alleged, althoughthey probably would do so, could they demolish the matted nests of that animal,a task beyond the power of any bird known to me. I never saw one eat any-thing which either it or some of its fellows had not killed. Nor will it eat an ani-mal that has been dead for sometime, even although it may have been killed byitSflf. When eating, the clacking of their mandibles may be heard at the dis-tance of several hundred yards.Grinnell, Bryant and Storer (1918) record the stomach contents ofthree wood ibises taken in Imperial County, California; one contained3 tadpoles, 4 water beetles, 2 paddle bugs, and some moss and slime
;
another, 9 tadpoles, a water beetle, 9 dragon fly larvae, and a carp;and the third held 10 carp, a catfish, 2 bony tails (fish) and a watercricket. Another bird from the same region examined by Dr. HaroldC. Bryant (1919) had in its stomach 10 seeds of the screw bean, 2 seedsof mesquite, parts of 4 water beetles and some finely comminutedvegetable material.Behavior.?In flight the wood ibises are splendid birds and onenever tires of watching them, as they fly along in flocks, high overthe tree tops flapping their long wings or scaling at intervals, all inperfect unison. Even more interesting are the spectacular aerialevolutions in which these birds so often indulge. Rising in a flock,they soar in wide circles, mounting higher and higher, crossing andrecrossing in a maze of spirals, until they are almost beyond visionin the ethereal blue. Then suddenly they dash downward and repeatthe operation or else drift aw^ay on motionless wings until lost tosight. They are easily recognized at a great distance, great whitebirds with jet black flight feathers, with long necks and heavy billsand with long legs extended far beyond their short black tails.Distance lends enchantment to this species; the sign of the cross,so boldly written in black and white on the distant sky, one standsand admires; but not so with the awkward, ungainly fowl that wesee perched on a tree in a hunched-backed attitude of uncouth indo-lence. Its behavior on the ground is well described by Doctor Coues(1874) as follows:The carriage of the wood ibis is firm and sedate, almost stately; each leg isslowly lifted and planted with deliberate precision, before the other is moved,when the l)irds walk unsuspicious of danger. I never saw one run rapidly, sinceon all the occasions when I have been the cause of alarm, the bird took wingdirectly. It springs powerfully from the ground, bending low to gather strength,and for a little distance flaps hurriedly with dangling legs, as if it was muchexertion to lift so heavy a body.Wood ibises are among the wariest of birds. Even on their breed-ing grounds it is usually difficult to approach them; when they firstrise from their nests they may circle once around the intruder and
64 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthen they disappear and do not return. When feeding or whenperched on a tree resting and dozing there is always a sentinel on thewatch; even when roosting at night they are difficult to approach;the crackling of a twig, the rustling of underbrush, the slighest soundor the glimpse of a man, which their keen ears or eyes can detect,will put them on the alert; it is then useless to attempt a closerapproach; they are off and will not return.The only note I have ever heard from an adult wood ibis is a hoarsecroak, usually uttered when disturbed or frightened. It is generallya silent species. Young birds are very noisy, however.Enemies.?The wood ibis has not suffered much from the hand ofman; it is so wary that it is not easily approached and is generallywell able to take care of itself; its plumage has never been muchin demand, for it is not an attractive bird at close quarters; and ithas never been considered a game bird, as its flesh is tough and un-palatable. It has few natural enemies and so it is likely to survivefor a long time in its native wilderness.Willard Elliot (1892) writes.:A great pest of all rookery birds is the crow, and if an ibis leaves the nest foran instant down comes the black dare-devil with a scream of delight and grabsan egg by sticking his bill into it and flying away. The ibis seems to be verymuch afraid of them and I have seen a crow almost take an egg out from underone of them and they would croak and draw back their bills as if to strike, butnever did.Audubon (1840) says:One of the most curious circumstances connected with this species is, that al-though the birds are, when feeding, almost constantly within the reach of largealligators, of which they devour the young, these reptiles never attack them;whereas, if a duck or a heron comes within the reach of their tails, it is immediatelykilled and swallowed. The wood ibis will wade up to its belly in the water, aroundthe edges of "alligators' holes," without ever being injured; but should one ofthese birds be shot, an alligator immediately makes toward it and pulls it underwater. The garfish is not so courteous, but gives chase to the ilMses wheneveran opportunity occurs. The snapping-turtle is also a great enemj- to the youngbirds of this species.Dr. Henry Bryant (1861), on a visit to a rookery in Florida, foundthe alligators very aggressive; he writes:The moment the boat which I had liad hauled there was launched, the alliga-tors assembled for the purpose of examining the new visitor; and before we hadarrived at the breeding place there were more than .50 following the boat, thenearest almost within reach of the oars. On shooting a bird, the instant ittouched the water it was seized bj' an alligator; and I was obliged to kill half adozen of these creatures before I could secure a specimen, and even after this Iwas generally obliged to fire one barrel at the bird and the other at the nearestalligator.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 65DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?Southeastern United States, Central and SouthAmerica south to Patagonia. East to South Carohna (ColletonCounty); Florida (Amelia Island, St. Johns River, St. Augustine,Orlando, Lake Kissimmee, Lake Okeechobee and Cape Sable) ; Cuba;British Guiana (Georgetown); Brazil (Monte Negro, Para, andIguage) . South to Brazil (Rio Grande do Sud) ; Uruguay (RioNegro, and Sta. Elena); Argentina (Concepcion, Barracas al Sudand Cordoba). West to Argentina (Tucuman); Peru (UpperUcayali River and Tumbez) ; Ecuador (Babahoyo, probably) ; CostaRica (La Palma and Rio Frio) ; Nicaragua (Escondido River, proba-bly); Guatemala (Coban); Mexico (southeastern Yucatan, CozumelIsland, Tepic, Mazatlan, and the Gulf of California). North to north-western Mexico (GuLf of California) ; Texas (Corpus Christi) ; Louisi-ana (Cameron and Bayou .Sara); and Mississippi (Rodney).Postbreeding summer range.?Alter the breeding season there isgenerally in the United States, a distinct northward movement ofboth adults and immatures. At this time the species may be locallycommon in southern California (San Diego, Saticoy, San BernardinoValley, Oceanside, Dagget, Bixby, Claremont, Dominguez, and LosAngeles); Arizona (Santa Cruz River, Yuma, Needles, Temple, andthe valleys of the Colorado, Gila, San Pedro, and Bill WilliamsRivers) ; northern Texas (Gainesville) ; New Mexico (Fort Fillmoreand Fort Thorn) ; southern Illinois (across from St. Louis, Mo.) ; andsoutheastern Indiana (Lyons, Bicknell, near Brookville, and TerraHaute)
.
Winter range.?In winter the wood ibis withdraws only a shortdistance from the extremes of its breeding range. It is occasionallyfound wintering as far north as Royal Palm Hammock, Florida(Hurter, 1881) and Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (Wayne, 1910).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival: Florida, Orlando,March 5, Indian River, March 28, Smyrna, March 29; Mississippi,Biloxi, March 21; Texas, Corpus Christi, March 25.Fall migration?Late dates of departure: Florida, Amelia Island,November 2, Indian Key Reservation, October 1 ; Mississippi,Rodney, September 25.Casual records.?Stragglers have wandered much farther than theregular postbreeding summer range and have been taken or notednorth to Montana (southwestern part of the State, June 18, 1911);Wyoming (Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Jidy 16, 1925); Colorado(two near Denver, August 30, 1902); Wisconsin (Racine, September10, 1868; another at La Crosse and a third on Rock River betweenJanesville and Edgerton) ; Michigan (Monroe, June 19, 1910);Massachusetts (Georgetown, June 19 1880, Chilmark, Martha's
66 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMVineyard, November 26, 1918; and Seekonk, July 17, 1896); Ver-mont (Bm-lincjton) ; and Ontario (Sincoe, November, 1892).Egg date^.?Florida: 54 records, December 8 to April 30; 27records, January 10 to March 21.JABIRU MYCTERIA (Lichtenstein)JABIRUHABITSThis large, stately stork is a South American bird. Its scanty claimto a place on our North American list rests on the fact that the headof a specimen, that had been taken near Austin, Texas, was donatedto the Philadelphia Academy of Sciences.It must be a magnificent bird, when seen in the freedom of itsnative wilderness. W. H. Hudson (1888) has well described it, asfollows
:
This is a majestic bird, the largest of the American storks; it stands 5 feethigh, and the wings have a spread of nearly 8 feet. The entire plumage is purewhite, the head and 6 inches of the neck covered with a naked black skin; fromthe black part extend two scarlet bands, the skin being glossy and exceedinglyloose, and run narrowing down to the chest. When the bird is wounded orenraged this loose red skin is said to swell out like a bladder, changing to anntensely fiery scarlet hue. The name " Jabiru " is doubtless due to this circum-stance, for Azara says that the Indian word Zabiru signifies blown out with wind.Nesting.?Gottfried Hagmann (1907) gives a good account of thenesting habits of the jabiru, which he calls the "tuyuyu"; ThomasE. Penard has kindly translated this, as follows:During my stay on Mexiana, 1901, I saw seven tuyuyu nests, of which sixwere on Mungubeiras and one on a Pao mulato {Calycophyllum spruceanum) , ofwhich the phonograph appears in the plate. In the year 1904 I again saw severalnests but it was not until the end of July 1905 that I succeeded in obtaining thefirst eggs. Through a herdsman I obtained, on July 27, 1905, two clutches, one oftwo, the other of three eggs. All the eggs were slightly incubated. On August3, 1905, I removed with the assistance of an old herdsman, a nest from a tallBombax munguba. It was a difficult and hazardous undertaking. A whole halfhour was spent in trying to throw the ropes in the right place over the lowestbranch, about 10 meters from the ground. On this rope I climbed, and sittingon this first branch I had now to throw the rope over the next branch and so onsince the trunk was still too great to embrace. Step by step I had to make myway, but the trouble was not in vain, because I found in the nest three eggs, hada splendid survey of the big nest and at the same time a comprehensive view ofthe almost endless Campo. The nest was built on a side branch, 15 meters fromthe ground and about 2 meters from the trunk. Since the wood of the Bombaxis very treacherous every precaution had to be taken to reach the nest itself.Only with the greatest pains did I succeed in removing the eggs. Carefullypacking the eggs in a tin box I lowered it with the rope to my companion whotook care of them. Slowly and carefully I made the return trip which requiredjust as much trouble and perseverance as the ascent.The nest was about 2 meters wide, and roimd. The under portion consistedof strong branches intertwined with smaller twigs, the inner part itself composedof a substantial bed of grass. There was no true cavity, on the contrary, the
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 67
nest was on top perfectly flat. All the nests I saw were so situated that theywere comparatively difficult of access. The old birds do not defend either theeggs or the young but at the approach of man fly away and do not return untilthey feel quite safe. I was able to determine with certainty that the same nestis used several years. If the eggs are taken from a nest, the tuyuyus will notlay again in the same nest the same year.Under the appropriate name, "negro cop, " C.A.Lloyd (1897)describes the nest of the jabiru very well, as follows:On the banks of the Awaricru the "negro cop" {Mycteria americana) breedsregularly. The nest, which is a rather bulky affair, consists of a bundle of sticksthese varying from half to one inch in circumference. It much resembles agigantic pigeon's nest and has but a very slight depression in the center for the re-ception of the eggs. These nests are generally placed on the large limbs of the silk-cotton tree {Eriodendron anfractuosum) parallel to the limb, and to avoid beingblown down by the wind are cemented by a thick layer of mud mixed with grasswhich on drying becomes hard and thus thoroughly secures the structure. Theeggs, which are about the size of those of a goose and of a dirty white color, arelaid in September, the usual number being four, but occasionally five are depos-ited.A graphic picture of an interesting nest is given by Robert H.Schomburgk (1841) , as follows:Near the entrance to the valley, and rising from 60 to 80 feet above the plain,is a columnar group of trap rocks, the largest of which has been named by theMacusis, Canuye piapa, or the Guava tree stump. Half a mile further westward,and not quite so high, is another mass of rocks, which the traveler might mis-take for the trunk of some large old tree, deprived of its leafy crown. It is agieat object of wonder amongst the Indians far and near, who call it pure-piapa," the felled tree." So complete was the illusion, that I almost doubted myguides when they told me it was the work of nature, and was composed of stone.The rock rises straight to a height of at least 50 feet, its sides are partly coveredby a red Lichen, and in some places it is more acted upon by the weather thanin others; the delusion being increased by the play of colors, the mind canscarcely divest itself of the belief that it is the gigantic trunk of a tree, the headof which, stricken by years, or shivered by lightning, lies mouldering at its foot.On its summit, a jabiru, a species of stork, had built its nest, above which wesaw the head of a young one. On our approach its mother hastened from a neigh-boring savannah to its protection, and perched on one leg, on the summit of therock, stood sentinel over the plain around.The rock may be considered sacred by the Macusi Indians but it did notafford an asylum to the poor bird; for before I was aware of it, or could preventit, we heard the report of a gun, saw the poor bird balance itself for a few mo-ments, and, pierced by the ball fall at the foot of the column. One of the Indianshad taken my rifle, and he being too unerring a marksman, even the heightwhich the bird had selected for its nest could not preserve its life.The nest shown in the photograph taken by Mr. J. R. Pembertonis described in the notes he sent me, as follows:Only one nest was found although other unoccupied large nests which wereseen in high trees may have belonged to this species. The nest, of which aphotograph was taken, was situated fully 60 feet above the ground on a slopingbranch of a giant dead tree. The nest was above the level of the tops of thesurrounding living trees so that a commanding view obtained from the site.
68 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThe material consisted, so far as could be seen with glasses from the ground, oflarge sticks which formed a great mass and resembled pictures commonly shownof nests of the common white stork of Europe. Both parents remained standingon the nest while I was near and they kept up a continual snapping of their im-mense bills, plainly to be heard where I was. The date was October 31, 1912and I do not know whether the nest contained eggs or young birds but imagineeggs because other forms of water birds such as herons, bitterns, etc., were foundelsewhere with eggs at about this time.Eggs.?In the Hagmann (1906) collection are eight eggs of the jab-iru, two sets of three and one of two, of which he says (translated byMr. Penard) : "Two of the clutches were taken on July 29, 1905, allthe eggs being slightly incubated. The third clutch I myself tookon August 3, 1905, two eggs of which were still fresh, the third beingdecidedly incubated." He describes them as "short and wide, largeend hardly distinguishable from the small end." The shell is "com-paratively thick, finely enchased; in two eggs of the same clutch thepole-zones are strikingly coarse granular." The color is " dirty grayish-white, with some yellow, without any markings whatever." Themeasurements of the eight eggs average 73.4 by 58.2 milhmeters; theyvary in length from 75.3 to 71.5, and in breadth from 60.5 to 55 mill-imeters. An egg in the United States National Museum, from BritishGuiana, measures 71.7 by 54.8 millimeters; it fits the above descrip-tion very well. Hagmann (1907) found four young in one nest. Twoeggs in the Penard collection are larger than the above; one is ratherpointed oval and measures 93 by 59 millimeters and the other is ellip-tical measuring 89 by 59 millimeters.Young.?Richard Schomburgk (1848) says of the young (trans-lated by Mr. Penard)
:
The number of young, which do not leave the nest until January or February,is usually two, seldom three. Both sexes incubate, taking turns, and as soon asone has satisfied its hunger it returns to the nearest branch on the nesting treeto keep its mate company, or in case of threatened danger which they frequentlysuffer from tiger-cats and monkeys, to give protection. Shy as we have foundthe bird on the Savanna, it was the more noticeable that it fearlessly watchedour noisy doings under the tree on which its nest was built. Love for its eggsand young caused it to pay no attention to the threatened danger.C. A. Lloyd (1895) writes:The young birds make their appearance about the end of October and are thenthe size of young ducks, and covered with a grayish-white down. They are un-able at first either to stand or squat up, but lie in the nest stretched at fulllength, with their heads on one side as if lifeless. The beak at this stage is per-fectly straight, showing not the slightest indication of the upward curve at thetip characteristic of the adult bird. When the nesting tree is approached themother bird stands upright in the nest as a signal to her mate, which is never far
oflF. He hastens at once to her side and strutting up and down, claps his mandi-bles together with a loud defiant click that can be heard some distance away.The young birds grow rapidly and in a few weeks are nearly the size of theirparents, but their bodies are still too heavy to be supported by their long weaklegs, and not until the first plumage is complete are they able to stand upright
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 69in the nest. The quantity of fish the j'oung birds consume is astonishing, andall day long the parents are constantly employed supplying them with food.For some time after leaving the nest the birds are of a light drab color, andthey only assume the snow-white plumage of the adult after several molts.C. Barrington Brown (1876) observes:I was greatly amused with the appearance of two young but fully-fledgedjabirus, which stood on their large flat nest, composed of sticks entwined together,on the branch of a large isolated tree, growing on the river's bank. Theylooked like two shipwrecked mariners on a rock in mid-ocean, waiting to be de-livered from their lonely watch by a passing ship. They stood there as if scan-ning the horizon, apparently deep in thought, shifting their position now andthen from one leg to the other, or taking a solemn and stately stroll round theconfines of their nest. Thus we left them, to await the time when their powersof flight would be sufficiently developed, to enable them to go forth into theworld and forage for themselves. They were fully feathered with a gray plum-age, which on moulting would change to pure white.Plumages.?In the Museum of Comparative Zoology, in Cambridgeare two downy young jabirus, as well as birds in juvenal and adultplumages. In the downy young the lores and the spaces around theeyes are naked; and there is a naked space encircling the centralpart of the neck. Below this naked space the lower neck and theentire body is completely covered with short, thick, white down,locally tinged with yellowish; the top and back of the head arethickly covered and the sides of the head and upper neck are scantilycovered with grayish white or yellowish white down.I have not seen a bird in the full juvenal plumage, which is evi-dently wholly grayish brown, or "wood brown." Hagmann (1907)says of two young birds, taken from a nest in October 1901 (trans-lated by Mr. Penard)
:
The birds were almost full fledged and were nearly full grown and defendedthemselves with their powerful bills. The otherwise naked head and neck weresparsely covered with a fine down; all the feathers were brownish, dirty white,without the slightest trace of the pure white adult plumage. During October,1901, I obtained si.K more young birds which I placed in the same pen with theyoung Euxenura. Toward the end of October a few feathers appeared here andthere; atour arrival in Para, at the end of November, 1901, the juvenal plumagewas already half replaced, but toward the end of January, 1902, traces of it couldstill be seen.This would seem to indicate that the adult plumage is acquiredduring the first year; but a note on the label of a specimen in themuseum at Cambridge states that the bird changes to white at 2years of age. This specimen was collected in Colombia on July 7and is still in transition plumage ; the crown, occiput, and cervix arescantily covered with dark brown, hairlike feathers, longest on theocciput, and tipped with yellowish; the mantle (back and wingcoverts) is a mixture of pure white and "wood brown" featherswith darker tips ("buffy brown"); the wings and tail are white,
70 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMtinged or washed with pale "wood brown"; all of the feathers of theupper parts have a silvery sheen; the under parts are white.Food.?Mr. Pemberton refers in his notes to the feeding habits ofthe Jabiru, as follows
:
When feeding in the meadows the birds work singly. Fish are proably eatenleast of all for never was a bird seen frozen after the fashion of a heron nearwater but they were always walking alertly, peering this way and that, with afrequent stab into the ground, often making great jumps after some rapidlymoving prey. The only food actually seen eaten consisted of snakes and I sup-pose that these together with other reptiles and batrachians form the greaterpart of their diet. On one occasion a gigantic bird standing near me was seento toss a writhing serpent fully 6 feet in length into the air, catch it, thrash iton the ground a few times, shake and generally maltreat it before finally placingit on the ground where it was doubtless then torn into segments, for it would bephysically impossible to swallow entire such a large snake. A Maguari stork(Euxenura maguari) which I killed in Patagonia contained among other thingsa large rail intact in its gullet, in fact the plumage was scarcely ruffled and noapparent injuries could be found on its body. This leads me to believe thatthe jabiru, which is a larger bird even than the Maguari stork, will catch anddevour almost any form of animal life which it can catch. Thus reptiles, batra-chians, mammals, fish, and birds must form its principal diet because all ofthese live in abundance in the moist meadows where the bird was seen feeding.Mr. Robert H. Schomburgk (1840) speaks of a captive bird whichattacked a cage containing an opossum "and having seized the pooranimal with its beak, drew it by force through the bars of its cage,and swallowed it without further hesitation." He also says:A species of AmpuUaria (greyanensis) is found in prodigious numbers in thelakes and swamps, as well as in the rivulets which meander through the savan-nahs, and it appears they constitute the chief food of the jabiru. In spite oftheir unshapely beak, they are able to remove the operculum most admirably,and to draw the mollusc out of its shell. I have found it difficult to procureperfect specimens of that AmpuUaria for my collections, although shells partlybroken or devoid of the operculum covered the low savannahs extensively whilein other parts I found the opercula equally numerous, but no shells.Behavior.?The same writer refers ^1840) to the behavior of jabirusin the following interesting manner:When the waters subside after the annual inundations, they frequent in smallgroups the sand banks of the river Rupunny in search of crustaceous animals.Nothing can surpass the gravity with which thej' stalk along; their measuredstep and upright bearing frequently amused my military companion while on ourfirst expedition in the interior, who was forcibly reminded of the parade, so thathe could not refrain while passing the beach from giving these feathered recruitsthe word of command, and they ever afterwards among ourselves went by thename of his recruits. Before they rise on the wing they prepare for their flightby taking two or three hops, by which they are better enabled to get on thewing. Their flight is light and graceful; and before they alight, or when rising,they first wheel round the place in gyral motions, either lessening or extendingthe circles according as it is their intention to do the former or the latter.They soar uncommonly high, and might vie with the eagle. Indeed they appearas a mere speck in the air. It is a beautiful sight to see a numerous flock on
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 71the wing. All appears confusion when they are first disturbed and rise in theair; they cross each other in the flight, and one would think from below theycould not avoid coming in contact; but scarcely have they reached a heightof 80 or 100 feet, when order is restored, and they begin flying in circles, risingwith each circle higher and higher. When on a more extensive journey, theyfly in a horizontal line, and change the leader like the cranes. When feedingon the savannahs, a party is always on the alert while the others seek for theirfood.The haunts and habits of this species are described in Mr. Pember-ton's notes, as follows:During October of 1912, while traveling in the southern part of the State ofMatto Grosso, central Brazil, jabirus were seen almost daily. The type ofcountry preferred is the open grassy meadowland bordering the great ParaguayRiver. Due to tropical rainfall this region is wet most of the time and themeadows contain a succession of small ponds, lagoons, and marshes and evenwhere these are lacking the ground itself is moist. Long winding narrow grovesof trees which evidently follow old drainage channels separate the meadowsinto units. Unquestionably these meadows abounded in the usual food of thejabiru for they were only to be found here.The bird is not gregarious to the slightest degree, at least, during this seasonof the year, and single birds or pairs were the only manner in which I saw them
?
usually single birds. While flying the bill is held close into the shoulders likethat of the Pelican, the legs are held straight back. A few slow flaps are followedby a long glide after the fashion of the pelican also and in fact I know of nobird which this species so much resembles when on the wing. It gives theappearance of being a much larger bird on the wing than the pelican, however,and in fact the extent may be greater.Hon. Hiram Bingham writes to me of his experience with the jabiru
:
The first jabiru we saw in southwestern Venezuela was about 5 leagues south ofBarinas, a town which flourished in the Colonial period. From Barinas we rodesouth in order to cross the Apure River at its junction with the Suripa. As Ihave said, about 5 leagues from Barinas we noticed a huge nest in the branches ofa very tall tree. One jabiru parent and two chicks were perched on the nest andseemed to have no fear of us at all, although the parent kept up a continuouswarning rattle with its long beak. We were impressed by the desolateness ofthis region. There was probablj^ not a house within 10 miles of the jabiru'snest, perhaps more. There were many monkeys in the jungles near by. Wesaw the other jabiru parent flying back to the nest just as we were leaving thevicinity. The sight was a splendid one. His great white body glistened in thesun, in striking contrast to the red neck collar. He flew slowly and verygracefully. The next day we crossed the Paguei River, which has a jungle2 miles wide on the south bank. A day or two later we crossed the Canagua,and on February 9, 1906, saw a large number of water fowl and perhaps a scoreof jabiru. I was so fortunate as to bring a jabiru down with my rifle. Hemeasured, standing, 5 feet 10 inches from the point of his beak to his toes. Thewing spread from tip to tip was 7 feet 10 inches. The beak was 12 inches long.The neck had almost no feathers, but a very tough, dark gray skin with abroad red band at its base. I took this skin with me as a trophy, but the redband soon faded out and the skin was finally lost during the course of the nextthree months of exploration. The body and wings were covered with beautifulwhite feathers, some of the wing feathers being 14 inches long. At that timethese had a commercial value, so that the birds were exceedingly shy, quite as shy
72 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMin fact as the egrets. It was practically impossible to get within gunshot ofthem?hence the use of the rifle. All the jabirus that I saw on the ground werestanding on the low sandy banks of streams. I was amused to notice that whenthe jabiru started to fly he was obliged to run along the beach for about 20 or30 feet before taking off. Later, when I learned to fly myself in Miami in 1917,I realized the necessity of running over the ground before taking off'. I alsoappreciated the difficulty the jabiru had in landing. At the time, it seemedrather ridiculous to see this great big, beautiful ffyer find it impossible to cometo rest on the ground easily and gracefully, as small birds do. Instead,he bumped and hopped along so that one got the impression his legs were aboutto break in pieces before he finally succeeded in stopping on the sandy shore.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Most of South America; accidental in the United States.A sedentary species that breeds generally throughout its normalrange. In South America the jabiru is found east to British Guiana(Georgetown) and northeastern Brazil (Para). South to southernBrazil (San Paulo, Asuncion, and the lower Pilcomayo River) andcentral Argentina (Buenos Aires). West to northwestern Argentina(Chiquinta and Chaco) ; Bolivia (Fortin Crevaux) ; Peru (Cerro dePasco and the Ucayali River) ; Colombia (Meta River) ; and CostaRica (La Palma, Nicoya, Rio Frio, and Miravalles). North toNicaragua (Escondido River); and Venezuela (Orinoco River).The species has been reported also from Mexico (Cosamaloapam inVera Cruz) ; and the head of a specimen that had been taken nearAustin, Texas, was donated to the Philadelphia Academy of Sciences.Family ARDEIDAE, Herons, Bitterns, etc.BOTAURUS LENTIGINOSUS (Montagu)AMERICAN BITTERNHABITSThough nowhere especially abundant, the American bittern iswidely and generally distributed over nearly all of the North Amer-ican continent and adjacent islands, wherever it can find the secludedbogs and swamps, in which it leads a rather solitary existence. Itis less gregarious and more retiring in its habits than the other herons,hence less conspicuous and not so well known, even in localities whereit is really common. Doctor Coues (1874) has well described itscharacter, as follows:No doubt he enjoys life after his own fashion, but his notions of happiness arepeculiar. He prefers solitude, and leads the eccentric life of a recluse, "forget-ting the world, and by the world forgot." To see him at his ordinary occupation,one might fancy him shouldering some heavy responsibility, oppressed with asecret, or laboring in the solution of a problem of vital consequence. He standsmotionless, with his head drawn in upon his shoulders, and half-closed eyes, inprofound meditation, or steps about in a devious way, with an absent-minded
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 73
air; for greater seclusion, he will even hide in a thick brush clump for hourstogether. Startled in his retreat whilst his thinking cap is on, he seems dazed,like one suddenly aroused from a deep sleep; but as soon as he collects his wits,remembering unpleasently that the outside world exists, he shows common senseenough to beat a hasty retreat from a scene of altogether too much action forhim.In spite of its peculiarities this recluse of the marshes has provedto be an interesting and an attractive object of study for many ob-servers, perhaps on account of difficulties to be overcome in makingonly a slight acquaintance with it. There is a certain fascinationin searching out and studying the home secrets of these shy denisonsof the swamps. On a warm spring evening, when the waters areteeming with new life and the trees and shrubberies are enlivened bythe migrating host of small birds, one loves to linger on its borderand listen to the voices of the marsh. Many and varied are thesounds one hears at such a time. The air is full of twittering swal-lows, coursing back and forth in seach of their evening meal; thespirited, resonant trill of the swamp sparrow is heard in the long,tufted grass of the open spaces ; the loud gurgling songs of the long-billed marsh wrens come from the cat-tail flags, where an occasionalglimpse may be had of the lively little birds; from way off in themarsh the clucking, clattering voice of the Virginia rail alternateswith the whinnying cry of the sora, only a few feet away. But abovethem all in intensity and volume are the loud, guttural pumpingnotes of the bittern, the weird, wild love notes of the "thunderpumper" or ''stake driver."Courtship.?The nuptial display of the American bittern, a remark-able and striking performance, has been well described by Mr.William Brewster (1911); I quote from his excellent paper on thesubject as follows:At morning and evening I have heard them pumping or have seen them flyingto and fro, or standing erect with heads and necks stretched up on the watchfor danger, but previous to to-day, (Apr. 17) I have paid little attention to them.Two, which I saw this morning, however, presented such a strange appearanceand acted in so remarkable a manner that I watched them for half an hour ormore with absorbing interest. When I first noticed them they were on thefarther margin of a little lagoon where red-winged blackbirds breed, movingpast it eastward almost if not quite as fast as a man habitually walks, onefollowing directly behind the other at a distance of 15 or 20 yards. Thus, theyadvanced, not only rapidly, but also very evenly, with a smooth, continuous,gliding motion which reminded me of that of certain gallinaceous birds and wasdistinctly unheronlike. Occasionally they would stop and stand erect for amoment, but when walking they invariably maintained a crouching attitude, v/iththe back strongly arched, the belly almost touching the ground, the neck soshortened that the lowered head and bill seemed to project only a few inchesbeyond the breast. In general shape and carriage, as well as in gait, theyresembled pheasants or grouse much more than herons. But the strangest thingof all was that both birds showed extensive patches of what seemed to be pure
74 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
white on their backs, between the shoulders. This made them highly conspicuousand led me to conclude at first that they must be something quite new to me andprobably because of their attitudes and swift gliding movements pheasants ofsome species with which I was unfamiliar. Thus far I had been forced to viewthem with unassisted eyesight, but when I had reached the cabin and they theedge of our boat canal directly opposite it, I got my opera glass and by its aidquickly convinced myself that despite their unusual behavior and the white ontheir backs they could be nothing else than bitterns.The white first appears at or very near the shoulders of the folded wings andthen expands, sometimes rather quickly (never abruptly, however) but oftenervery slowly until, spreading simultaneously from both sides, it forms two ruffsapparently almost if not quite equal in length and breadth to the hands of alarge man but in shape more nearly resembling the wings of a grouse or quailheld with the tips pointing sometimes nearly straight upward, sometimes moreor less backward, also. As they rise above the shoulders these ruffs spreadtoward each other at right angles to the long axis of the bird's body until, attheir bases, they nearly meet in the center of the back. Sometimes they areheld thus without apparent change of area or position for many minutes at atime, during which the bird may move about over a considerable space orperhaps merely stand or crouch in the same place. We frequently saw themfully displayed when the bitterns were "pumping" but not then more conspicu-ously, or in any different way, then at other times. When the bird was movingstraight toward us with his l^ody carried low and his ruffs fully expanded helooked like a big, white rooster having only the head and breast dark colored,the breast often looking nearly black. For in this aspect and and at the distanceat which we viewed him (perhaps 200 yards) the broad ruffs, rising above andreaching well out on both sides of the back and shoulders, completely maskedeverything at their rear while the head and the shortened neck, being carried solow that they were seen onh' against the breast, added little or nothing to thevisible area of dark plumage. When he was moving away from us in the samecrouching attitude the ruffs looked exactly like two white wings?nearly as broadas those of a domestic pigeon but less long?attached to either side of the backjust above the shoulders. When we had a side view of him the outline of theruffs was completely lost and there seemed to be a band of white as broad asone's hand, extending between the shoulders quite across the back. Thuswhichever way he moved or faced the white was always shown, most conspicu-ously, however, when he turned toward us.I was now joined by Miss E. R. Simmons, Miss Alice Eastwood, (the Cali-fornia botanist), and my assistant, R. A. Gilbert, all of whom became at oncedeeply interested in the birds which had stopped and were standing erect by thecanal about 20 yards apart. Suddenly both rose and flew straight at one another,meeting in the air at a height of 4 or 5 feet above the marsh. It was difficult tomake out just what happened immediately after this but we all thought that thebirds came together with the full momentum of rapid flight and then, clinchingin some way, apparently with both feet and bills, rose 6 or 8 feet higher, mountingstraight upward and whirling around and around, finally descending nearly to theground. Just before reaching it they separated and sailed (not flapped) off totheir former respective stations, .\fter resting there a few minutes the mutualattack was renewed in precisely the same manner as at first only somewhat lessvigorously. It was not repeated after this. Although a most spirited tilt (espe-cially on the first occasion), by antagonists armed with formidable weapons (thedaggerlike bills), we could not see that any harm resulted from it to either bird.When we crossed the river in a boat some 15 minutes later both bitterns were
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS / 5
still standing near the canal. Up to this time ooth had shown white continu-ously but it disappeared as we were approaching them. One took flight whenwe were in the middle of the river. We got within 20 yards of the other beforeit moved, and then it merely walked off the marsh.Nesting.?Strangely enough neither Wilson nor Audubon ever sawa bittern's nest. But much has been published on it since and nest-ing bitterns have been favorite subjects for photographers. It hasoften been said that the nest is hard to find, but I have never experi-enced any great difficulty in finding those for which I have looked
;
I have even found as many as five in one day.In Massachusetts the favorite nesting site seems to be in an exten-sive and rather dense cat-tail marsh, where the nest is at least par-tially concealed among the tall dead flags {Typha latifolia) of theprevious year's growth. While incubation is progressing the newgrowth of green flags is going on, so that by the time the young arehatched the concealment is complete. The nest consists of a practi-cally flat platform of dead flags, a foot or more in diameter and raisedonly a few inches above the surrounding water or mud. The colorof the eggs matches that of the flags almost exactly. Sometimes theflags are arched together over the nest, but moie often it is open above.The nests are sometimes placed in other kinds of swamps or floatingbogs, where whatever nesting material is most easily available is used
;
sometimes the eggs are laid on what is practically bare ground. Ionce saw a nest at least 50 yards from a wet meadow; it was foundby mowing a grassy slope; the nest was concealed in the long grass,but was on absolutely dry land, on which hay was regularly cut.In the sloughs and meadows near Crane Lake, Saskatchewan, wefound the American bittern nesting among the cat-tail flags andamong the bulrushes {Scirpus lacustris). It was here that I foundthe five nests in one day, referred to above, all of which were in oneslough less than a quarter of a mile square. This is at variance withthe statement I have seen in print that only one pair of bitternsnests in a marsh. The nests were the usual platforms of dead flagsor bulrushes, to match their surroundings; the measurements of thenests varied from 12 by 14 to 14 by 16 inches; they were built up 6or 7 inches above the water, which was from 1 foot to 18 inches deep.One of these bitterns sat on her nest contentedly while my companion,Herbert K. Job, photographed her at short range. We also found abittern's nest here on the open meadow, near the slough, where thegrass was rather short and the ground nearly dry.Dr. P. L. Hatch (1892) says that in Minnesota the nests "consistof small sticks, coarse grass, with more or less leaves of sedge brushand are placed directly on the ground in the most inaccessible bogmarshes and slough. Preferably a tuft of willowy sedge is chosenthat gives the nest a slight elevation, yet not uniformly so, for I find
76 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthem not infrequently placed between the bogs in the marshes thatare devoid of all kinds of brush. A rank bunch of grass that springsup in these places will most naturally be the place to look for tliemfirst, however."R. C. Harlow writes me that he has found the American bittern
"nesting regularly on the salt marshes of the coast from Cape Mayto Ocean County," New Jersey. William B. Crispin, of Salem, NewJersey, wrote me: "The only set I have taken contained three eggsbuilt in a dry meadow amongst tall, blue, bent grass, with little orno nest material except a few dry grass stalks."Several observers have noted that the bitterns usually make pathsleading to and from their nests, using one as an entrance and one asan exit; and they say that the bird never flies directly from or to itsnest, but runs out and flies from the end of one path in leaving andalights at the end of the other path and walks to the nest in return-ing. Ira N. Gabrielson (1914) had an opportunity to watch a bit-tern making one of these paths which he describes as follows:The paths were marked by a broken and trampled line of vegetation andended in a small platform. Our boat was placed directly across the path forleaving, and we had an opportunity to watch the building of a new one. Onthe first visit she walked off through the wild rice to the east of the nest, grasp-ing the upright stalks with her feet and climbing from one to another. Herweight broke numbers of them and made the beginning of the trail. After goingabout 25 feet, she commenced to break other stalks down and lay them in a pile.Some were already in the water and she soon had a platform capable of sustain-ing her weight. The reeds were seized in the beak and broken with a quicksidewise jerk of the head. When the platform was finished, she stepped uponit and stood there for a time before she flew away.Eggs.?The American bittern lays from three to seven eggs; theset usually consists of four or five, but six eggs are often laid. Theeggs are quite distinctive and are easily recognized. The shape var-ies from oval to elliptical ovate. The shell is smooth with a slightgloss. The color varies from "Isabella color" or "buffy brown" to
"ecru olive" or "deep olive buff." The measurements of 43 eggsaverage 48.6 by 36.6 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasure 54.2 by 38.6, 45.5 by 36, 48 by 33.6 millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation is about 28 days and the youngbirds remain in the nest for about two weeks. Mr. Gabrielson (1914)has made some very interesting observations on the behavior of youngbitterns and their feeding habits, from which I quote as follows:During the absence of the parents, however prolonged, no outcry was evermade by the 3'oung bitterns unless one of us went out of the blind and tried totouch one of them. When we did this they backed away from us, uttering acurious hissing sound and pecking viciously at our fingers. It was interesting tonote the change in their actions after the parent left the nest. For perhaps 10minutes they remained in the position assumed after feeding, as described above.At the end of that time they commenced to raise their heads and look around.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 77For the next hour they sat contentedly on the shady side of the nest, occasionallydipping the tip of the beak into the water but never drinking anything. In thenext half hour they began to grow uneasy and to keep watch for the parent.Every blackbird that flew above the nest caused each head to rise to its fullheight and silently watch his flight across their horizon. At times they seizedeach others' beaks in the same manner as the parent's was held. At other timesthey seized the reed stems crosswise and pulled vigorously on them, sometimesworking the mandibles as if chewing. This continued until the return of theparent, when all would assemble on one side of the nest and watch her approachthrough the reeds. No sanitary measures were noted, and the nest became arather unpleasant smelling place Ijefore our work was finished. At 9.55 a. m. Iheard the flapping of heavy wings and the female settled down into the rushesabout 20 feet from the nest. She consumed 10 minutes in covering that distanceadvancing a few steps and then remaining motionless for a time. When only 4or 5 feet away, she stopped for five minutes, remaining, as far as I could see,absolutely motionless, and then, apparently satisfied, stepped up to the nest.She progressed by grasping the upright stems of the aquatic plants and whenshe stopped to listen looked as though she were on stilts. As soon as she reachedthe nest, the yovmg commenced jumping at her beak, continuing this until onesucceeded in seizing it in his beak at right angles to the base. A series of inde-scribable contortions followed, the head of the female being thrown jerkily in alldirections and the muscles of the neck working convulsively. Finally her head andneck were placed flat on the nest for several seconds and then slowly raisedagain. As it came up the food came slowly up the throat into the mouth. Asthe food passed along the beak, the open beak of the young bird followed itscourse along until it slid into its mouth and was quickly swallowed. Theyoung one then released his hold and the parent stood with the muscles of the necktwitching and jerking. The remaining young kept jumping at the beak untilone secured a hold on it, when the process was repeated. By 10.30 all five ofthe brood had been fed. Each one after receiving the food staggered across thenest and lay down with the head and neck flat on the weeds and rjsmained inthis position for sometime before showing any signs of life again.He says further
:
An observation made in 1910 may be of some interest in this connection.While a piece of wild hay was being cut a nest of this species was uncovered andfour of the five young were killed before the team could be stopped. A smallpatch of hay was left standing about the nest and the young one placed in it.At this time he was fully feathered out but was unable to fly. The next daythe parent was noted flying into the patch of hay without anything in her beak.After she left I walked over and approached the young one, who immediatelystarted to run. Seeing that he could not escape, he stopped and disgorged thecontents of his stomach, An examination showed one garter snake about six-teen inches long, a meadow mouse and three crayfish, all partially digested.This observation seemed to prove that at this age the young were still beingfed by regurgitation.The following observation by Dr. Charles W. Townsend (1905) isof interest:On June 26, 1904, while looking for sharp-tailed sparrows in a salt marshreached only by the high s[)ring and fall tides, I started a bittern that flew offwith a complaining and frequently repeated quacking croak. Soon ^fter I be-came conscious that a series of four stakes, projecting above the grass, was in
78 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
reality the motionless necks and bills of four young bitterns. My companionnoticed them too, but thought they were the remains of a shooting blind. Theearly age at which this protective habit was assumed is interesting, for the birdswere entirely unable to fly, being only about two-thirds grown, and their scantyJuvenal feathers were tipped with the fluffy natal down. When closely approachedthey abandoned this method of deception, snapped their bills loudly in anger,erected the feathers of their necks, spread their feeble pin-feather wings, and sprangdefiantly at us, emitting a faint hissing snarl. One that I handled to examineclosely, spat up great mouthfuls of small fish. The manner in which theyattempted to escape was interesting. Crouching low, with necks drawn in andlevel with the back, they walked rapidly through the short grass, and we foundone drawn up in a small bunch at the foot of the camera stand. Both themotionless and the crouching postures are the familiar protective methods usedby the adults.Plumages.?The young bittern, when first hatched, is covered onthe head, back and rump with long fluffy, Hght buff down, " tawnyoUve" or "clay color"; the down on the under parts is more scantyand grayer or more whitish in color; the eyes are yellow, the billflesh color and the feet and legs flesh color tinged with greenish.The Juvenal plumage appears at an early age, a week or 10 days,showing first on the back, scapulars and neck. By the time thatthe young bird is half grown it is practically fully fledged, exceptthat the under parts are largely downy and a few shreds of downremain on the head. The juvenal plumage is much like that of thefall adult, but the crown is darker, the whole plumage is brightercolored and the black neck-ruffs are entirely lacking. The crown isdark "chestnut brown," variegated with dark "seal brown"; theback is "ochraceous tawny," tinged with "russet," sprinkled andbarred with dusty markings; the buff in the wing-coverts is "yel-low ochre" or "buckthorn brown." These bright colors soon fadeand before the end of October the black neck-ruffs have appearedso that the young bird assumes, during its first winter, a plumagewhich is practically adult.At the first postnuptial molt, the following smnmor and fall, theyoung bird becomes fully adult. This and all subsequent postnup-tial molts are complete. There is little seasonal change in adultplumages; the spring plumage is grayer above and paler below, lessbuffy, tlian the fall plumage; this change is probably due to wearand fading.Food.?The American bittern enjoys a varied diet and a largeappetite, but it is no vegetarian; it will feed freely, even gluttonously,on almost any kind of animal that it can find in the marshes andmeadows that it frequents or about the edges of shallow, muddy ponds.Its favorite food seems to be frogs or small fish, which it catchesby skillfully spearing them with its sharp beak, as it stands in waitfor them or stealthily stalks them with its slow and cautious tread.It also eats meadow mice, lizards, small snakes and eels, crayfish.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 79Tarious mollusks, dragon flies, grasshoppers, and other insects.Fish and other small creatures are gulped down whole, but the largervertebrates and crustaceans are more or less crushed and brokenbefore they are swallowed. Mr. Gabrielson (1914) describes itsfeeding habits as follows:The bittern soon came flying from the direction of the nest and dropped intothe grass a short distance from me and immediately became stationary. Thefrogs, which were as thick here as on the other shore, soon forgot her presencea.nd began to swim about or climb over the bogs. When one came withinreach, out shot the long neck and beak and seized him. He was hammeredagainst a bog a few times and swallowed. After securing a number in thisfashion she stepped up onto a bog and went to sleep. After a short rest sheflew a little way down the shore and went to hunting again. After her hunt andrest this time she flew heavily across the swamp toward the nest.Behavior.?When disturbed at its reveries under the cover of itsswampy retreat, the bittern surprises the intruder by a sudden butawkward spring into the air; with wings flopping loosely and feetdangling, it utters a croak of disgust, discharges a splash of excrement,and then gathers itself for a steady flight to a place of safety. Whenwell under way its flight is firm and even, somewhat like th^t of theother herons, but stronger and with quicker beats of its smaller wings.Its flight is so slow that it is easily hit and easily killed, even withsmall shot; when wounded it assumes a threatening attitude ofdefense and is able to inflict considerable damage with its sharp beak,which it drives with unerring aim and with considerable force.The bittern is not an active bird. It spends most of its timestanding under cover of vegetation, watching and waiting for its prey,or walking slowly about in its marsh retreat, raising each foot slowlyand replacing it carefully; its movements are stealthy and noiseless,sometimes imperceptably slow, so as not to alarm the timid creatureswhich it hunts. When standing in the open or when it thinks it isobserved, it stands in its favorite pose, with its bill pointed upwardand with its body so contracted that its resemblance to an old stakeis ver}'^ striking; the stripes on its neck, throat, and breast blend sowell with the vertical lights and shadows of the reeds and flags, thatit is almast invisible. Professor Walter B. Barrows (1913) has notedan interesting refinement of this concealing action, which he hasdescribed as follows:The bird, an adult bittern was in the charaotoristic erect and rigid attitudealready described and so near us that its yellow iris was distinctly visible. Then,as we stood admiring the bird and his sublime conttdence in his invisibility,a light breeze ruffled the surface of the previously calm water and set the cat-tailflags rusthng nodding as it passed. Instantly the bittern began to sway gentlyfrom side to side with an undulating motion which was most pronounced in theneck but was participated in by the body and even the legs. So obvious wasthe motion that it was impossible to overlook it, yet when the breeze subsidedand the flags became motionless the bird stood as rigid as before and left us
80 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
wondering whether after all our eyes might not have deceived us. It occurredto me that the flickering shadows from the swaying flags might have created theillusion and that the rippling water with its broken reflections possibly made itmore complete; but another gentle breeze gave us an opportunity to repeat theobservation with both these contingencies in mind and there was no escape fromthe conclusion that the motion of the bittern was actual, not due to shadows orreflections, or even to the disturbance of the plumage by the wind itself. Thebird stood with its back to the wind and its face toward us. We were within adozen yards of it now and could see distinctly every mark of its rich, brown,black, and buff plumage, and yet if our eyes were turned away for an instant itwas with difficulty that we could pick up the image again, so perfectly did itblend with the surrounding flags and so accurate was the imitation of their wav-ing motion. This was repeated again and again, and when after 10 or 15 min-utes we went back to our work, the bird was still standing near the same spotand in the same rigid position, although by almost imperceptible steps it hadmoved a yard or more from its original station.The most characteristic performance of the bittern, for which it isbest known and from which some of its names have been derived, isone in wh.ich it is more often heard than seen, its remarkable "thunder-pumping" performance. It is more frequently and more constantlyheard in the spring, as a part of the nuptial performance, but it maybe lieard at any time during the summer and rarely in the fall. Itis only within comparatively recent years that the mystery of thisdisembodied voice of the marshes Ixas been thoroughly cleared up byactual observations; many erroneous theories had previously beenadvanced, as to how the sound was produced. Anyone who has everskinned a male bittern in the spring, might have noticed that theskin of the neck and chest becomes much thickened and reinforcedwith muscidar and gelatinous tissues, so that it can form a bellowsfor producing the loud, booming sounds. These notes have been lik-ened to the sound made by an okl wooden pump in action and to thesound made by driving a stake into soft ground; the fancied simi-larity of the bittern's notes to two such different sounds is not somuch due to different interpretations by observers, as to the facttliat tliere are two quite distinct renderings of the notes, by differentbirds or by the same bird under different circumstances. Mr. Brad-ford Torrey (1889) has published some valuable notes on this subjecc,.from which I quote, as follows:First the l)ird opens his bill quickly and shuts it with a click; then he does thesame thing again, with a louder click; and after from three to five such snap-pings of the beak, he gives forth the familiar tris\ilabic pumping notes, repeatedfrom three to eight times. With the preliminary motions of the bill the breastis seen to be distending; the dilatation increases until the pumping is well underway, and as far as we could make out, does not subside in the least until thepumping is quite over. It seemed to both of us that the bird was swallowingair?gulping it down?and with it distending his crop; and he appeared not tobe able to produce the resonant pumping notes until this was accomplished. Itshould be remarked, however, that the gulps themselves, after the first one ortwo at least, gave rise to fainter sounds of much the same sort. The entire per-
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 81formance, but especially the pumping itself, is attended with violent convulsivemovements, the head and neck being thrown upward and then forward, likethe night heron's when it emits its quow, only with much greater violence. Thesnap of the bill, in particular, is emphasized by a vigorous jerk of the head. Thevocal result, as I say, is in three syllables; of these the first is the longest, and,as it were, a little divided from the others, while the third is almost like an echoof the second. The middle syllable is very strongly accented. The second mu-sician, as good luck would have it, was a stakedriver. The imitation was as re-markable in this case as in the other, and the difference between the two perfor-mances was manifest instantly to both Mr. Faxon and myself. The middle syl-lable of the second bird was a veritable whack upon the head of a stake. I haveno dilBculty whatever in crediting Mr. Samuel's statement that, on hearing itfor the first time, he supposed a woodman to be in the neighborhood, and discov-ered his error only after toiling through swamp and morass for half a mile. Onthis one point at least, it is easy to see why authors have disagreed. The faulthas not been with the ears of the auditors, but with the notes of the differentbirds. During the hour or more that we sat upon the railway we had abundantopportunity to compare impressions; and, among other things, we debated howthe notes to which we were listening could best be represented in writing. Neitherof us hit upon anything satisfactory. Since then, however, Mr. Faxon haslearned that the people of Wayland have a name for the bird (whether it is inuse elsewhere I can not say) which is most felicitously onomato-poetic; namely,plum-pudd' n' . I can imagine nothing better. Give both vowels the sound ofu in full; dwell a little upon the plum; put a strong accent upon the first syllableof pudd'n'; especially keep the lips nearly closed throughout; and you have asgood a representation of the bittern's notes, I think, as can well be put into letters.William Brewster (1902) writes:Standing in an open part of the meadow, usually half concealed by the sur-rounding grasses, he first makes a succession of low clicking or gulping soundsaccompanied by quick opening and shutting of the bill and then, with abruptcontortions of the head and neck unpleasantly suggestive of those of a personafflicted by nausea, belches forth in deep, guttural tones, and with tremendousemphasis, a pump-er-lunk repeated from two or three to six or seven times inquick succession and suggesting the sound of an old-fashioned wooden pump.All three syllables may be usually heard up to a distance of about 400 yards,beyond which the middle one is lost and the remaining two sound like the wordspump-up or plum-pudd'n while at distances greater than a half mile the termi-nal syllable alone is audible, and closely resembles the sound produced by an axestroke on the head of a wooden stake, giving the bird its familar appellation of
"stake driver." At the height of the breeding season the bittern indulges inthis extraordinary performance at all hours of the day, especially when theweather is cloudy, and he may also be heard occasionally in the middle of thedarkest nights, but his favorite time for exercising his ponderous voice is justbefore sunrise and immediately after sunset. Besides the snapping or gulpingand the pumping notes the bittern also utters, usually while flying, a nasal hainkand a croaking ok-ok-ok-ok.Winter.?The bittern migrates, as it lives, in seclusion, nor is itmuch more in evidence in its winter home in the Southern States andthe West Indies, where its habits are similar to those of the summerand fall. It is said to be only of casual occurrence in Bermuda, butCapt. Saville G. Reid (1884) says:
82 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMA regular visitor in the autumn, and occasionally in March, frequenting thesedgy patches on the edge of the mangrove swamps. To show how plentifullythey arrive in certain years, I may mention (though a cold shudder passesthrough me as I do so) that no less than 13 were shot by one officer, who shallbe nameless, in the autumn of 1875.Dr. Charles W. Townsend (1920) has found the bittern in Massa-chusetts in winter; he writes:In the severe winter of 1917-18, on December 16, I flushed a bittern from thesalt marsh near my house at Ipswich. It flew several hundred yards and alightedin a clump of tall grasses where I found it and again flushed it. There wassnow on the ground and the temperature that morning was 2? Fahrenheit.DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?North America from Florida and Southern Cali-fornia to Ungava and the Arctic Circle. East to Newfoundland(Humber River and St. Johns) ; Nova Scotia (Halifax) ; Maine(Bangor and Calais) ; Massachusetts (vicinity of Boston and CapeCod); New Jersey (Trenton and Cape May); North Carolina(Raleigh) ; South Carolina (near Charleston) ; and Florida (Mi-canopy). South to Florida (Thonotosassa) ; Kansas (Witchita) ; Colo-rado (Barr and Alamosa); New Mexico (Lake Burford, probably);Arizona (Mormon Lake); and California (Alamitos, Los AngelesCounty). West to California (Buena Vista Lake and Stockton);Oregon (Klamath Lake, Salem, and Portland); Washington (DouglasCounty); and British Columbia (Vaseaux Lake, Okanagan Valley).North to Mackenzie (Willow River and Fort Rae); Manitoba (FortChurchhill, York Factory, and the Severn River); Ungava (FortGeorge); and northeastern Quebec (Paradise).Winter range.?Principally the southern and Pacific coast States,but also, Mexico and Central America, south to Panama. East toNorth Carolina (Pea Island and Fort Macon) ; Georgia (Savannahand St. Mary's) ; Florida (Gainsville and Kissimmee) ; the BahamaIslands (Nassau); and Cuba (Isle of Pines). South to Panama(Panama Railway) ; Costa Rica (Reventazon and Laguna de Ocho-mogo); Honduras (Swan Island); and Guatemala (Cohan). West towestern Mexico (Mazatlan); Lower California (San Jose del Cabo,Colnett, and La Paz) ; California (Santa Barbara, and Napa) . Northto Oregon (Klamath Lake); British Columbia (Pitt Meadows nearVancouver); and Idaho (Minidoka); in the Mississippi Valley (cas-ually) to Illinois (Anna and Canton) and Indiana (Knox County andGreensburg) ; and on the Atlantic coast (rarely) to the District ofColumbia (Washington) and Virginia (Virginia Beach). Stragglersor belated individuals from regions north of the usual winter rangehave been reported from New Jersey (Haddonfield, January 21,1912); New York (Port Jefferson Harbor, January 26, 1912); and
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 83Massachusetts (Attleboro Falls, January 16, 1901, and Ipswich,December 16, 1917).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival on the Atlantic coast are:Virginia, Tomsbrook, March 11; New Jersey, Norristown, March 20;Massachusetts, Boston, March 25; Maine, Deering, April 4; NovaScotia, Pictou, April 15. In the spring in the Mississippi Valleybitterns have been reported from Missom*i, Monteer, March 26;Illinois, Liter, March 28, and Chicago, March 29; Ohio, Oberlin,March 25; Wisconsin, Madison, March 30; Michigan, Detroit, March12; and from Ontario, London, on April 12. In the Great Plainsarea bitterns arrive also in March and April; Kansas, Osawatomie,March 19; Nebraska, Dunbar, March 21; North Dakota, Bathgate,April 17; Manitoba, Greenridge, April 8; and Saskatchewan,Qu' Appelle, April 21. The advance through the Rocky Mountainregion is a little later; Colorado, Fort Lyon, April 7, and Salida,April 16; Wyoming, Fort D. A. Russell, April 23; Montana, south-western part, April 5, and Terry, April 23; and Alberta, Onoway,May 2.Late dates of spring departure are: Louisiana, New Orleans,April 7; and Arkansas, Pike County, April 23.Fall migration.?Early fall arrivals at the winter range are : SouthCarolina, Frogmore, August 26: Georgia, St. Mary's, September 12;Florida, Orlando, September 9; Texas, Swan, August 28, and SanAngelo, September 4.Late dates of departure on the Atlantic seaboard are: NovaScotia, Pictou, October 24; Maine, Phillips, October 30; Massachu-setts, Martha's Vineyard, November 1; New Jersey, Cape MayCounty, November 19; and Pennsylvania, Chester County, Decem-ber 8. In the Mississippi Valley : Minnesota, Minneapolis, October6; Wisconsin, Milwaukee, November 4, and Elkhorn, November8; Iowa, Emmetsburg, November 6; Ohio, Lakeside, October 29;Indiana, Goshen, November 1; Illinois, Rantoul, November 20; andMissouri, St. Louis, November 19. In the Great Plains area: Sas-katchewan, Qu'Appelle, October 16; Manitoba, Treebank, Novem-ber 6; North Dakota, Marstonmoor, November 9; and Nebraska,Long Pine, November 10. Bitterns leave the Rocky Mountain regionalso at late dates: Alberta, Whitford Lake, October 29; Montana,Terry, September 30; and Colorado, Mosca, October 23. An excep-tionally belated individual was seen near Fort Morgan, Colorado,December 28, 1904 (Felger).Casual records.?Stragglers from the normal range have been takenor reported from Porto Rico, Jamaica, Bermuda (Pembroke Marshes)
;
Greenland (Egedesminde in 1809); while tliere are about twenty rec-ords of occurence in Great Britain. It also has been reported fromGermany (near Leipzig).
84 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMEgg dates.?New England and New York: 30 records, May 12 toJuly 1; 15 records, May 23 to June 5. Illinois: 22 records, May 18to June 16; 11 records, May 25 to 31. North and South Dakotas:11 records, June 5 to July 21; 6 records, June 7 to 17. California:11 records, April 21 to June 25; 6 records. May 23 to June 21.IXOBRYCHUS EXILIS EXIUS (Gmelln)LEAST BITTERNHABITSThis pretty little bittern, the most diminutive of the heron tribe,is a summer resident in most of the United States and southernCanada. Messers. Dickey and van Rossem (1924) have recentlygiven a new name, Ixohrychus exilis hesperis, to a larger race of thisspecies inhabiting the western United States and Lower California.It is probably more widely distributed and commoner than is gener-ally supposed, for, on account of its quiet, retiring habits it is seldomseen and less often heard by the casual observer. Like the Virginiaand the sora rails, it sticks steadfastly to its chosen home in the innerrecesses of the dense cat-tail and reedy marshes; even when somesmall piece of marsh is making its last stand against the encroachmentsof civilization, the bitterns and rails may still be found there, attend-ing strictly to their own business, coming and going under the coverof darkness and unmindful of their outside surroundings. I canremember three such bits of marsh, near the centers of cities in Massa-chusetts, in which the rails and bitterns continued to breed untilthey were driven out as the marshes were filled.Thus this quiet, retiring, and seemingly timid bird may Uve itslistless life almost within our midst and without our knowledge, unlesswe choose to invade its home in the oozy bog, to wallow in mud andwater and to push through the forest of cat-tails and reeds. Therewe may catch a glimpse of it, as it flops feebly away just over thetops of the reeds or, if we stand and watch, we may detect a gentle,swaying motion in the rushes, as a strange object appears which wasnot there before, like a dry and yellow flag, tapering to a long sharppoint above and fading into the rushes below; now it stands stiff andstill like the surrounding flags; but if we stare at it long and hard,we can see tAvo bright yellow eyes watching us and can make out thedistorted form of a bird, the hiding pose of the least bittern. Howwell it matches its surroundings, how well it knows that fact andhow well fitted it is to survive among the tall, slender reeds and flags,one of nature's triumphs in protective mimicry!Nesting.?The nesting habits of the least bittern vary considerablyin various parts of its range, where it adapts itself to the conditionsit finds in different kinds of swamps. The commonest type of nestfound in Massachusetts is built in the tall, dense growths of cat-tail
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 85flags, which grow in water from 1 to 3 feet deep, rarely the latter.The nest is placed from a few inches to three or four feet, very rarelyfive feet, above the water. A foundation is made by bending downand interlacing the tops of the flags, on which a flimsy, flat nest of dryflags, grass, or reeds is built; this is so small, flat and apparently in-secure that it seems as if it would hardly hold the eggs, but it usuallyproves to be quite sufficient to hold both eggs and young as long asnecessary. The nest is usually placed where the flags or reeds growvery thickly and the tops are often interlaced above it for additionalconcealment; the nest is not conspicuous, but it can generally berecognized as a thick bunch in the reeds.Dr. B. R. Bales (1911) gives a very good account of the nestinghabits of the least bittern in an Ohio pond, as follows
:
This pond, or swamp, is from one-fourth to one-half mile across and the wateris from one to three feet deep. It is thickly dotted with buttonwood bushes.Wild rose thickets fringe the shores; saw grasses, tall water grasses, and calamusor sweet flag (from which the pond receives its name) are found in its shallowerplaces and cat-tails further out. It is an ideal nesting place for this species ; inJune, 1907, I found 14 nests between the fourth and the twenty-first. The nestsare mainly placed among the saw grasses in shallow water and are situated from6 inches to 2J^ feet above water; 18 inches is the average height. The nests arecomposed of saw grass blades, short lengths of smartweed stalks, slender twigsfrom the buttonwood, and about half the nests examined are lined with finergrasses; at the best the nests are very flimsy, frail, and loosely put together.Occasionally a nest is found composed almost entirely of a tall round watergrass, but nests so composed are always built in a clump of this variety of grass.Saw grasses are usually bent over to form a platform on which to build the nest;these grasses are often bent over a small branch of buttonwood to give stabilityto the platform. An occasional nest is built among the diverging twigs of thebuttonwood bush, much in the manner of a green heron nest, but nesting sitesof this type are rare.Dr. Clinton G. Abbott (1907) mentions a nest found in the marshesof Now Jersey which "was situated in the top of a tuft of sedges whichwas growing on a large floating bog. It was open to the sky andalmost surrounded by open water." Dr. Paul Harrington tolls me ofa nest, found near South Georgian Bay, which was composed entirelyof small sticks, no rushes being used in its construction, and placedin a clump of rushes 3 feet above the water. I have seen nests inTexas which were made partially or wholly of fine twigs and simi-hirly placed in cat-tail flags. Julian K. Potter has sent me severalphotographs of least bitterns' nests, taken near Camden, New Jersey;one of these was in a buttonbush (Cephalanthus) and was made ofsticks, laid radially, like the spokes of a wheel; another was prettilysituated in a clump of arrow head lily {SagiUaria).In Florida we found the least bittern fairly common, nesting in thebig saw-grass marshes and in the smaller bogs and sloughs, where the])ig, sleek boat-tailed grackles, in thoir glistening black plumage, were92G42?26t 7
86 BULLETIN 135;, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMswinging on the reed tops and pouring out their curious half-musicalnotes, where the bubbling notes of the marsh ^VTens greeted us fromthe dense growth below and where the deadly moccasin lurked in themorass under foot. Had we cared to explore such places more thor-oughly we doubtless could have found many more nests. In a smallslough, about 30 yards square, on Merritt's Island, full of large tus-socks of tall grass, as high as a man's head, we found two nests ofthe least bittern and five nests of the boat-tailed grackle. The bit-terns nests were merely crude platforms or shallow baskets of coarsestraws and grasses in the densest parts of the large tussocks. Onewas 24 and one 30 inches above the shallow water; the nests meas-ured 7 by 4 and 7 by 5 inches, and held four eggs each on April 26.Near Brownsville, Texas, we found several nests of the least bit-tern on May 23, 1923, in a marshy pond where the Mexican grebeswere nesting. The bitterns' nests were in small clumps of tall cat-tail flags; some were the usual nests of dead flags and others werepartially or wholly made of twigs of the water huisache, which wasgrowing in the pond. George Finlay Simmons (1915a) describesanother Texas nest, as follows:The nest was supported by several rushes, dead reeds, and the broken stem ofa small persimmon sapling growing in the pond. At this point the reeds andrushes were not so thick, and the nest and eggs could easily be seen at a dis-tance of 15 or 20 feet. The bottom of the nest just touched the water, whichwas there about 18 inches deep. The nest itself was quite firmly built, with fewloose ends projecting from the mass. It was built entirely of straight stems andtwigs of a brushy reed which grows about the ponds, quite different from theflexible reeds and rushes used in the construction of the nests of the other waterbirds of the region. It measured about 6J^ inches across the top and 5 incheshigh,being cone shaped and tapering towards the bottom. So flat was the topof the nest that it seemed the slightest jar would cause the eggs to roll oflF, forthere were no rushes or grasses to guard the sides of the nest as in the case ofthe rails and gallinules.Eggs.?The least bittern lays ordinarily four or five eggs, some-times six and very rarely seven. Richard C. Harlow writes to me
:
I have examined probably 50 of their nests; probably 70 per cent of thecomplete sets are five in number, though I have inspected seven nests holdingsets of six and one of seven, all undoubtedly laid by the same bird.The eggs are quite uniformly oval in shape, rarely showing a ten-dency towards elliptical oval or ovate. The shell is smooth but notglossy. The color is bluish white or greenish white. The measure-ments of 58 eggs average 31 by 23.5 millmeters; the eggs showingthe four extremes measure 33 by 25, 28 by 23.5 and 29 by 22.5 milli-meters.Young.?Both sexes incubate and the period of incubation is saidto be 16 or 17 days. Ira N. Gabrielson (1914) gives a very goodaccount of how the parents brood over and feed their young, whichhe observed from a blind, as follows:
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 87One or the other of the parents kept the nest covered throughout the day andboth assumed the same position. They sat on the nest with the wings spreadin such a manner as to give the body a curious flattened appearance while thehead and neck were extended to their full length with the beak pointing straightin the air. Occasionally the head was lowered for an instant to examine theyoung but almost immediately was raised again. Every bird that flew by waswatched and every movement in the surrounding vegetation seemed to be noted'by the bird on the nest. This position had the advantage of elevating the eyessome distance above the nest and gave the bird a better view of what was goingon around. I was curious to see how these newly hatched young would get theirfood; to see if they were fed as the young American bitterns had been. At 10.50the bright colored little male alighted on the platform behind the nest and stoodthere watching the female who was on the nest. From time to time he allowedthe beak to hang open and shook his head in a comical way. After he had beendoing this for 10 minutes, the female stepped from the nest and flew away. Themale took her place and stood, still shaking his head. All of the brood, includ-ing the one just hatched, were jumping at his beak. Finally one of them suc-ceeded in securing a hold on it and pulled his head down toward the nest. Hisbeak was seized at right angles by that of the young as in the case of the Amer-ican bittern. Instead of the violent contortions which preceded the act of regur-gitation in the other species, a few convulsive jerks of the throat and neck muo-cles brought the food into the mouth, from which it passed into that of the youngin the same manner as before. The food instead of being in a compact mass wasmore of a liquid containing pieces of small frogs and occasionally whole ones.These nestlings had not yet become proficient in their strange manner of feedingand more or less of the food material fell into the nest. When this happened,the young which were not receiving food at the time seized it and swallowed it.When two secured a hold on the same frog, an exciting tug of war followed untilone or the other was victorious. All five young were fed at each visit, and itseemed to be as instinctive for them to jump at the beak of the parent as it isfor other young birds to raise the opened beak. During the day the male andfemale alternated in the care of the nest but the brooding periods of the latterwere much the longer. She seldom remained away any length of time. On theother hand the male did all the feeding, four times, during the day. The femaleevidently hunted only for her own food during her absences from the nest whilethe male foraged for both the nestlings and himself. Both parents did their hunt-ing on an extensive mud flat about 200 yards from the nest.Doctor Bales (1911) says of the behavior of young least bitterns:Another nest discovered the same day contained six young in which the pin-feathers were showing. It is doutful if this nest would have been discovered,had I not seen one of the young birds clinging to one of the round water grassesfully a foot above the nest. While perched upon the slender, swaying watergrass, they have a peculiarly pert and saucy look that is ludicrous in the extremeThey are excellent climbers and use their long necks and bills in climbing byhooking the head over the perch and using it as a sort of hook to aid them inscrambling up. The feet are very strong. The young in this nest tried to peckmy hand as I placed it above them; they acted like trained soldiers, all peckingat exactly the same time, as if at a word of command.Plumages.?The downy young least bittern is well covered on thehead and back with long, soft, buify down, "ochraceous buff" to "lightochraceous buff"; the under parts are more scantily covered withpaler, more whitish down.
88 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMIn the Juvenal plumage the sexes are much alike, but the crownis darker in the young male and the dusky shaft streaks on the throat,breast and wing coverts are more conspicuous in the young female.The Juvenal plumage closely resembles that of the adult female; butthe crown and back are somewhat lighter brown, the feathers of theback and scapulars are edged or tipped with buffy, and the bufffeathers with dusky shaft streaks give the throat and breast a stripedappearance; the buffy, lesser wing coverts also have dusky shaftstreaks. The buffy edgings of the dorsal feathers generally wearaway before October, leaving the back clear biown; but the juvenalwing coverts are more or less persistent, especially in females, untilthe first postnuptial molt the next summer. At this complete moltin August young birds become indistinguishable from adults. Thereis apparently no well-marked seasonal difference in the plumages ofadults, but the sexual difference becomes apparent during the firstspring and is well marked thereafter.It now seems to be generally conceded that the dark form, knownas the Cory least bittern, Ixohrychus neoxenus (Cor}'), is not a distinctspecies, but a case of melanism or erythrism, such as occasionallyoccurs in other species of birds and animals. Some 30 specimenshave been recorded; the largest numbers have been taken in Floridaand Ontario; but it has also been taken in Massachusetts, New York,Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. It is a striking case of highpigmentation which seems likely to turn up almost anywhere withinthe range of the least bittern, and it is sometimes combined with tracesof albinism. It should not be called a color phase of a dichromaticspecies, as it occurs too rarely and irregularly. A dichromatic species,it seems to me, is one in which two color phases occur regularly, suchas in the reddish egret, the parasitic jaeger, and the screech owl.Since writing the above I have been much interested in what OscarE. Baynard has told me about the Cory least bittern. He has hadconsiderable field experience with it, has found several nests and isfirmly convinced that it is a distinct species. He says that these darkcolored birds never mate with ordinary least bitterns, but always withbirds of their own kind, breeding true to color. He also says thatthe downy young are coal black, "as black as young rails," that allthe young in the nest are also black and that he has never seenany buff colored young in the same nest with the black ones. Ifthese facts hold true in all cases they are strong evidences of thevalidity of the species.Food.?The least bittern is an active feeder, walking stealthilyabout in the marshes and bogs, and hunting for the various forms ofanimal life found in such places. One that Audubon (1840) had incaptivity was "expert at seizing flies, and swallowed caterpillars, andother insects." He has also found "small shrews and field mice" in
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 89its stomach. Small fishes tadpoles, and small frogs probably makeup a lai-ge part of its food; but lizards, snails, slugs, leeches, beetles,and other insects are included. One that C. J. Maynard (1896) hadin captivity killed and devoured a pet humming bird.Behavior.?When surprised or suddenly flushed the least bitternrises in weak and awkward, fluttering flight, with neck extended andfeet dangling, usually dropping down into the marsh again at a shortdistance; but when going somewhere on a long flight, it draws in itshead and extends its legs behind, after the manner of the herons, andproceeds with a strong, direct flight which may be quite protractedand rather swift. If not too much hurried, it seems to prefer toescape by walking, or climbing, through the reeds, at which it is veryexpert and makes remarkable speed. Where the water is too deepto wade and where the reeds grow close together the bittern walks,or even runs, through them at a height of 2 or 3 feet above the water,grasping a single upright reed or two or three of them together witheach foot; often it is a wide, straddling gait, with many long strides;it is accomplished with so much speed, skill, and accuracy as to seemlittle short of marvellous; like a squirrel in the tree tops, or a marshwren in the reeds, there seems to be never a slip or a missed step.When wading in shallow water, or walking on land, its movementsare quick and graceful, its head shooting forward at eacli step. Tofacilitate its passage through the narrow spaces between the reeds,its has the power of comprosing its body laterally; Audubon (1840)found by experiment that it would compress its body sufficiently topass through a space 1 inch wide.The well known hiding pose, or reedlike attitude, of tlie least bit-tern is well described by Dr. Arthur A. Allen (1915), as follows:I parted the flags and counted the eggs before I finally perceived that there,on the back of the nest and in perfectly plain sight, stood the female bird lessthan 3 feet from my eyes. Under other circumstances, I should not have calledit a bird, such was the strangeness of the shape which it had assumed. Thephotograph showing the "reed posture" gives one but a poor conception of thebird's real appearance at this time. The feafhers were fairly glued to the body,and the head and neck appeared no thicker than some of the dried reeds thatcomposed the nest. The bill, pointing directly upward, widened barely appre-ciably into the head and neck, and the feathers of the lower neck were held freefrom the body and compressed to as narrow a point as the bill at the other end.The neck appeared to be entirely separate from the body, which was flattenedso as to become but a part of the nest itself. There wa,s not a movement, not evena turning of the scrpentlike eyes which glared at me over the corners of themouth. Every line was stiff and straight, every curve was an angle. It mat-tered not that all about the vegetation was a brilliant green, while the bird wasbuffy brown. It was no more a bird than was the nest below it. I recalled thehabit of the American bittern of rotating so as always to keep its striped necktowards the observer, and I moved slowly to another side of the nest. But thisbird was not relying upon the color of its neck to conceal it. It was quite asiinbirdlike from any angle, and it moved not a feather.
90 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMBut this was not its only method of concealment, as was shown a few min-utes later. I parted the flags directly in front of the bird, to see how close anapproach it would permit. My hands came within 12 inches of it before itmelted away over the back of the nest. Its movements were apparently verydeliberate, and yet almost instantaneously it disappeared into the flags. It didnot go far, and in a very few minutes it came back. Very slowly it pushed itsvertical neck and upturned bill between the flags until it just fitted the spacebetween two of the upright stalks at the back of the nest. No longer were thefeathers drawn closely to the neck, which was at this time the only part visible.Instead, they were shaken out to their fullest expanse, and hung square acrossthe base, instead of pointed. The dark feathers arranged themselves intostripes, and simulated well the shadows between the flags. Again I movedaround the nest, and this time, instead of remaining motionless, the bird alsorotated so as always to present its striped front to me and conceal its body.This was evidently a second and entirely different stratagem.The same careful observer says of the notes of the male:His notes were guttural and dovelike, or even froglike when heard in the distance,resembling the syllables, uh-iih-uh-oo-oo-oo-oo-oooah, similar to one of the calls ofthe pied-billed grebe. The call, when given close at hand, often drew a responsefrom the female of two or three short notes, like the syllables uk-uk-uk.Docter Chapman (1900) describes the notes of the least bittern as:"A soft, low coo, slowly repeated five or six times, and which is prob-ably the love song of the male; an explosive alarm note, quoh; ahissing hah, with which the bird threatens a disturber of its nest; anda low tut-tut-tut, apparently a protest against the same kind of intru-sion."William Brewster (1902) writes:Nor do we often hear its voice save during a brief period at the height of thebreeding season when the male, concealed among the rank vegetation of hissecure retreats, utters a succession of low, cooing sounds varying somewhat innumber as well as in form with different birds or even with the same individualat different times. The commoner variations are as follows: Coo, hoo-hoo-hoo (thefirst and last syllables slightly and about evenly accented), coo-coo, coo-hoo-hoo(with distinct emphasis on the last syllable only), co-co-co-co, co-co-ho-ho or co-ho-ho (all without special emphasis on any particular syllable). These notes areuttered chiefly in the early morning and late afternoon, usually at rather infre-quent intervals but sometimes every four or five seconds for many minutes at atime. When heard at a distance they have a soft, cuckoolike quality; nearerthe bird's voice sounds harder and more like that of the domestic pigeon, whilevery close at hand it is almost disagreeably hoarse and raucous as well as hollowand somewhat vibrant in tone. Besides this cooing the least bittern occasion-ally emits, when startled a loud, cackling ca-ca-ca-ca.Enemies?Young least bitterns have many enemies, birds of preyand crows overhead, predatory animals prowling through the marshesand crawling reptiles in the mud and water. From these enemiesthe young birds are partially successful in escaping by their abilityin climbing and hiding among the reeds. Crows undoubtedly destroya great many eggs and even the diminutive long-billed marsh wrenpunctures the eggs, perhaps maliciously. Doctor Chapman (1900)
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 91found that some of the eggs, in two nests he was watching, had "beenpunctured, as if by an awl, " and afterward saw a long-billed marshwren puncture the remaining eggs; apparently the contents of theeggs were not eaten by the wren.DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?Central America, the United States and southernCanada. East to New Brunswick (St. John) ; Maine (Portland)
;
Massachusetts (Essex County); New York (Rockaway) ; New Jersey(Cape May) ; District of Columbia (Washington) ; North Carolina(Pea Island and Lake Ellis) ; South Carolina (Charleston and Frog-more) ; Florida (Titusville) ; and Porto Rico (San Juan) . South toPorto Rico (San Juan) ; Jamaica (Port Henderson) ; southwesternGuatemala (Duenas); and central Mexico (Toluca and Lake Patz-
?uaro). West to western Mexico (Mazatlan); Lower California(Pm'issima) ; California (Santa Monica and Stockton) ; and Oregon(TuleLake). North to Oregon (Tule Lake); North Dakato (Ken-mare) ; Minnesota (White Earth and Minneapolis) ; Michigan (GrandRapids and Detroit) ; southern Ontario (Mildmay, Coldwater, Toronto,and Ewart) ; and New Brunswick (St. John)
.
It has also been recorded in summer from Nova Scotia (Halifax)
;
Panama (Lion Hill Station) ; Southern Saskatchewan (Crane Lake)Manitoba (Lake Manitoba and Shoal Lake) and from Quebec.Winter range.?Florida, islands of the Caribbean Sea and Centraland South America south to Patagonia. East to Florida (Micanopy)the Bahama Islands (Nassau) ; Cuba (Isle of Pines) ; British Guiana(Georgetown) ; and Brazil (Iguape) . South to Paraguay (Asuncion)and Chile (Valdivia) . West to Peru (Lima) ; central Mexico (Valleyof Mexico and Lake Patzcuaro) ; to the west coast (Tepic). Northto central Arizona (Fort Verde, Yavapai County) ; Florida (Mican-opy) ; and Georgia (Athens)
.
Belated migrants or winter stragglers have been seen or taken atpoints much farther north: Rhode Island (Providence, March 1 andFebruary 28, 1881); Nova Scotia (Halifax, March 16, 1896); Michi-gan (Detroit, November 6, 1919); and Ontario (Point Pelee, Novem-ber 28, 1894).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: Georgia, Savannah,March 6; South Carolina, Frogmore, April 5; North Carolina, Man-teo, April 20; District of Columbia, Washington, April 27; Pennsyl-vania, Limerick, April 22; New Jersey, Long Beach, April 1, andCamden, April 22; New York, near New York City, April 10, Rhine-beck, May 13, and Rochester, May 6; and Massachusetts, EssexCounty, April 15. In the Mississippi Valley: Louisiana, Rigolets,March 11, and New Orleans, April 9; Missouri, Jonesburg, April 20,
92 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand Alexandria, April 19; Illinois, Peoria, April 17, and Chicago,April 24; Indiana, Waterloo, April 7; Ohio, PainesviUe, April 9,Cleveland, April 13, Oberlin, April 25,. and Sandusky, April 25;Michigan, Battle Creek, April 10, and Grand Rapids, April 17;Ontario, Point Pelee, May 13, and Guelph, May 17; Iowa, CedarRapids, April 28; Wisconsin, Berlin, April 1, and Sparta, April 11;Minnesota, Elk River, April 17, Wilder, May 2, and Heron Lake,May 9. In the Great Plains area: Texas, Corpus Christi, April 5,and Gainesville, April 25; Kansas, Elmsdale, April 26; Nebraska,Turlington, May 6; South Dakota, Sioux Falls, May 11.In the Rocky Mountain region the spring arrivals are generallylater: Colorado, South Park, May 14; Wyoming, Fossil, May 21;and Montana, Great Falls, May 16. The species arrives in southernCalifornia late in March and early in April (near Escondido, March28) ; but it is not until after the middle of May that southern Oregonis reached (Klamath Lake, May 21).Fall migration.-Late dates of fall departure on the Atlantic sea-board are : Quebec, Montreal, September 2 ; Massachusetts, East Tem-pleton, October 27, and Newburyport, September 12; Rhode Island,near Middletown, September 14, and Providence, September 30;Connecticut, New Haven, September 22; New York, Verona, Septem-ber 1, and Duchess County, September 11; Pennsylvania, Erie, Sep-tember 25; District of Columbia, Washington, September 25; andNorth Carolina, Raleigh, September 11. In the Mississippi Valleythe dates for departure are somewhat later: Ontario, Ottawa, Sep-tember 1 , and Point Pelee, September 2 ; Micliigan, Ann Arbor, Octo-ber 1, and Vicksburg, October 2; Ohio, Sandusky, October 3, andCedar Point, October 17; Indiana,Waterloo, October 1; Illinois, War-saw, October 10: Wisconsin, Madison, September 23, and North Free-dom, October 10; Iowa, Indianola, October 18; South Dakota, SiouxFalls, October 8; Nebraska, Lincoln, September 20, and Belvidere,October 5; Texas, Corpus Christi, September 29; and California,Dunlap, wSeptember 24.Casual records.?Stragglers north of the normal range have beenreported from Manitoba (Oak Point, Lake Manitoba, October 20,1907, Shoal Lake, June 1901, and York Factory, 1879).The color phase of the least bittern that has been known as Cory'sLeast Bittern, hohrychus neoxenus, has been found breeding in south-ern Florida (Lake Okeechobee, Lake Flirt, and Fort Thompson) andin Southern Ontario (Toronto). It has been taken or reported inspring from Massachusetts, Scituate, May 18, 1901; Ohio, Toledo,May 25, 1907; Michigan, St. Clair Flats, May 14, 1904; and Wiscon-sin, Lake Koshkonong, May 22, 1893. The only fall record outsideof the breeding area is from near Manchester, Michigan, August 8,1894.
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 93Egg dates.?Southern New England and New York: 30 recordsMay 20 to June 23; 15 records, May 29 to June 11. Michiganand Wisconsin: 32 records, May 27 to Julyl; 16 records, May 30to June 12. liUnois: 35 records, May 22 to July 10; 18 records. May30 to June 21. Florida: 22 records, March 25 to June 26; 11 records,April 26 to June 5. ARDEA OCCIDENTALIS AudubonGREAT WHITE HERONHABITSThe Bay of Florida, including Barnes Sound, which is really a partof it, is a practically triangular body of water, approximately 35 mileslong and 25 miles wide, bounded on the north by the southern coastof Florida, from Cape Sable on the west to the entrance to Black-water Bay on the east, bounded on the south by the outer line ofkeys, and open on the west toward the Gulf of Mexico. Through-out its whole area the water is exceedingly shallow, averaging notover 3 feet in depth: the bottom is covered with white, soapy, slimymud, which makes the water generally turbid and mostly opiique.At low tide many square miles of mud flats are exposed, leaving onlyan intricate maze of winding channels open to navigation in shallowdraft vessels, and even at high tide a thorough knowledge of the chan-nels is necessary to avoid running aground in a boat drawing over2 feet of water.The outer keys, forming the southern boundary, are mostly ofcoral formation and were probably the first to appear, inclosing anarea in which mud and sand has accumulated and made possible theformation of the mangrove keys with which the whole interior of thebay is thickl}'- studded. The inner keys are nearly all of the mangrovetype, though many of the larger and older ones have now accumu-lated sandy beaches and considerable solid, dry soil. Their origin,however, is directly traceable to the agency of the red mangrove andall stages of their development can be seen in process of formation.The red mangrove drops its seed into the water, where it floats awayuntil its long tail strikes root in some shallow place ; as the treegrows, its spreading branches are constantly reaching outward anddownward to take root again, until a dense thicket or "bush," as itis called, is formed; this increases steadily in size, soil is eventuallyaccumulated in its center, where the red mangroves finally die outand are replaced by black mangroves growing in muddy soil; as thesoil becomes drier by continued accumulation, the black mangrovesare again replaced by other tree and shrubs, glowing on dry land andoften forming dense thickets; on some of the largest and oldest keys,open grassy plains have been formed with only scattering trees orclumps of bushes around their borders.92642?2Gt 8
94 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThese mangrove keys or islands, particularly the larger ones, arefavorite resorts of the great white heron, and here we found them inabundance. The broad mud flats covered with shallow water formtheir feeding grounds. As we cruised along the main channels wecould see the great white birds standing in the water several milesaway, often at a long distance from any land, dignified and motion-less, until induced to move by the rise and fall of the tide or by ourapproach when they would leisurely depart for some more distantshoal. In such situations a near approach was impossible; 200 or 300yards was about as near as we could come. Sometimes as many as adozen or 15 birds were in sight at one time, generally scattered about,singly or in small groups, and often in company with brown pelicans,with which they seem to be on good terms.Fish of various kinds are sufficiently plentiful in these shallowwaters to support, in addition to the herons, large numbers of brownpeUcans, Florida cormorants, man-o-war birds and royal terns, someof which were almost constantly in sight. When not fishing, thegreat white herons could be seen perched in small groups on the redmangroves which form the outer boundaries of nearly all the keys,their pure white plumage standing out in marked contrast againstthe dark green foliage, making them clearly visible at a distance ofseveral miles, one of the most striking features of this mangrovearchipelago. But the keenness of their vision and their extremeshyness afforded them all the protection necessary, for every attemptto sail up to them proved a failure; a fleeting picture of great whitebirds was all we ever saw, as, with slowly measured wing strokes, withheads drawn over their shoulders and long legs stretched out straightbehind, they flew away to some far distant key.Our chances of securing any seemed hopeless until we discoveredtheir roosting place on one of the larger keys, to which we had tracedtheir line of flight. I had been wading along through the outerstrip of red mangroves in which I had seen them perched and hadtramped through the black mangrove forest back of them where thecrackling of sticks, as I picked my way through the tangled roots,had alarmed them, but not a bird had I seen through the dense fol-iage; the swish of their wings and their hoarse croaks of alarm wereall that told me they had gone. That effort proving fruitless, I strug-gled through the tangled thickets toward the center of the islandand came unexpectedly upon an open grassy plain surrounded bysmall trees and clumps of bushes. It was a beautiful sight that re-warded my efforts, for there were a dozen or more of the great whiteherons and a few Ward herons perched on the tops of the trees andlarger bushes. They were on the alert and all took wing instantly,but I concealed myself and awaited their return. I had not long towait before they began to circle back over me; two of them came
NOETH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 95dangerously near and I brought down one with each barrel, a finepair of adult birds. But that was my last chance?they were toowary to return that day.We found similar localities on other islands which proved equallyattractive as roosting or nesting places for these herons and to whichthey seemed equally attached; and it was only in such places thatwe succeeded in securing any specimens. They are certainly theshyest of all the herons and are in no danger of extermination.Nesting.?Scattering nests of great white or Ward herons were foundon many of the larger keys or islands; most of them were empty, how-ever, and so not identified. Only once, on April 29, 1903, did we findanything approaching a colony. This was on one of the Oyster Keys,a small mangrove key having a little dry land in the center on whicha few black mangroves were growing with a dense thicket of under-brush, vines and small trees; it was surrounded by a broad belt oflarge red mangroves stretching away out into the water which wasnearly waist deep under some of the trees.We had seen the great white herons fly away as we approached,but not one came near us while we were in the rookery, though aVfard heron, which had a nest with j^oung, frequently came withingunshot. Besides several empty nests scattered about the island,from which the young had probably flown, we found a Httle colonyof four occupied nests of the great white heron and one of the Wardheron, all of which were grouped about a little inlet in rather largered mangroves. A nest, containing two addled eggs and one youngbird recently hatched, was placed on the outer branches overhang-ing the center of the inlet; it was a large, flat, well-made structureof large sticks firmly interwoven, measuring 35 inches by 25 inchesexternally; the inner cavity measured about 15 inches in diameter andwas smoothly lined with small twigs and dry mangrove leaves; theyoung bird, which was scarcely able to hold up its head, was scantilycovered with white filamentous down. The young of this speciesare always pure white at all ages, by which they can be easily dis-tinguished from the gray young of the Ward heron. Another nest,15 feet from the ground in a red mangrove, contained two youngbirds about one-quarter grown and one egg; the young were coveredwith white down and hairlike feathers. Within a few yards of thefirst nest, across an open space in the inlet, were two more nests.One of these was about 12 feet above the water on the extremity ofa red mangrove branch and was similar in size and construction tothe first; it contained three very lively young birds, about half grownand well covered witli white down and feathers; they protested vig-orously at my intrusion, bristling up their plumage, squawking, snap-ping their bills and striking at anything within reach while theirthroats were vibrating as if panting from fear or excitement. Tlie
96 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
nest, the surrounding branches and the ground under it, were pro-fusely whitewashed with the excrement of the young, as is generallythe case with all of the herons.The other nest illustrated the last chapter in the development ofthe young, which were nearly ready to fly. It was 20 feet abovethe water on the outer end of a leaning red mangrove and the twolarge white birds in it could be plainly seen from the ground; whenI climbed the tree one of them stood up in the nest and posed grace-fully for his picture. They were practically fully grown and fullyfeathered, pure white all over and lacking only the crest plumes andthe plumelike feathers on the back of adult birds, which I believeare not acquired until the second nuptial season.On March 27, 1908, I found, on Clive Key, in this same region, anest of the great white heron placed within 3 feet of the ground ona low branch of a black mangrove near the center of the island; itcontained three small youngcovered with white down. I was informedby the resident plume hunters that the great white herons raise twobroods each season, one in January and one in April, but I am moreinclined to think that the breeding season is prolonged over a periodof fom* or five months and that only one brood is raised by eachpail'. We found a number of empty nests that showed signs of recentoccupancy and saw plenty of immature birds on the wing in March.Ernest G. Holt found young birds as large as adults and nearly readyto fly on December 28, 1923; these eggs must have been laid inOctober.Eggs.?The eggs of the great white heron are not readily distinguish-able from those of the Ward heron in size or color; they are of theusual heron's egg color, pale bluish green, or "pale olivine." Themeasurements of 40 eggs average 61.1 by 42.4 millimeters; the eggsshowing the four extremes measure 71 by 47, 66.5 by 48.8, 51.7 by35.5, and 52.7 by 34.2 millimeters.Plumages.?The young great white heron is clothed like the younggreat blue heron, except that its down and plumage is wholly whiteat all ages. The sequence of plumages and molts is also the samein both species. The plumage of the head, neck and body is acquiredin about that order; these parts are fully feathered by the time thebird is two-thirds grown and before the wings are fully developed.Young birds remain in the nest until full}^ grown and by this timethe wings are complete. The juvenal plumage, which is entirelydevoid of plumes on the head, breast, and back is worn for about ayear. During the second fall, when the young bird is over a yearold, a plumage is apparently assumed which is much like the adultsat that season; but the fully adult plumage is probably not acquireduntil the following spring or fall, at 2 years of age, or later. Adultshave a complete molt in summer and fall and a partial molt, which
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH MRDS 97does not include the wings cand tail, in winter and spring. The pre-nuptial molt produces a higher development of the long plumelikefeathei-s of the head, breast, and back in the spring than is seen infall birds, but these plumes are more or less present at all seasons inadults.Observations on this species would be incomplete without somereference to the hypothetical species which has been named Wiirde-mann's heron (Ardea wuerdemanni Baird) and has been the subjectof so much discussion and so many theories as to its status. Thisbirdvv^as first described by Baird in 1858 as a distinct species, butlater developments suggested its relationship to A. occidentalis Audu-bon, or to A. vmrdi Ridgway, or to both. Later Mr. Ridgway(1880) published the following note based on observations made byDr. J. W. Velie of the Chicago Academy of Sciences.In his rep-y to my letter he makes this very interesting and, in view of certaincurious facts which I have already brought to notice, very suggestive statement,that in two instances, once in 1872 and again in 1875, he found about half grownyoung, one each of A. occidentalis and A. tvuerdemanni, in the same nest. Thisevidence is all that was needed to settle the question of the identity of the twoforms in question, and there can now be no doubt that they represent two phasesof one species, bearing to one another exactly the same relation as that betweenArdea rufescens, Bodd., and A. pealei, Bonap,While collecting in the Florida Keys with Dr. Frank M. Chapmanand Louis A. Fuertes, we found on March 27, 1908, on Clivc Key, alarge heron's nest containing three young herons, two of which wereapparently Ward herons and one a great white heron. Doctor Chap-man photographed the nest and preserved all of the young, whichare now in the American Museum of Natm'al History in New York.Near this nest Doctor Chapman shot a fine speciman of Ardea louerd-emanni and I shot typical specimens of both A. occidentalis and A.herodias wardi, as it is now called, as well as specimens in immatureplumage which showed characters somewhat intermediate betweenthe last two forms. I do not consider the finding of these young her-ons or those found by Doctor Velie conclusive evidence of dichroma-tism, for it is possible, and even probable that these two speciesoccasionally lay in each others nests, or hybridize, as they are veryclosely related and on very friendly terms where their ranges overlapand where they nest in communites in close proximity to each other.Ernest G. Holt made h very thorough study of this group of heronsin the same region, during the winter of 1923-24, and has kindlyplaced his unpublished notes at my disposal. He summarizes thecontents of the nests examined as follows:A total of 40 nests were examined on Buchanan, Barnes, Bowlegs, Clive, andOyster Keys, and an unnamed key near the last, and found to contain 48 youngwhites, 38 young blues, and .31 eggs. Forty-seven of the white nestlings werefound on Buchanan, Barnes, and Bowlegs Key; one on east Oyster Key. Eighteen
98 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMblue nestlings lived on Buchanan and Barnes Keys; 20 on the Cape Sablegroup. Among the adult birds was shown the same tendency of the great whitesto predominate on the lower Keys, and of the big blues to be more numerous onthe upper. Of the 40 nests examined, 3 held mixed broods of white and bluebirds in the ratio of 2:1, 2:2, and 2:1. The first had a blue parent, the second awhite parent; the parent of the last was not seen. The mixed broods were foundon Buchanan and Barnes Keys, but all the adult blues, collected on any of thekeys, showed admixtures of white blood.It has been stated that the great white heron and the Ward heronare exactly alike in form, size and proportions, the only differencebeing in color. This generally accepted statement has strengthenedthe theory that they are merely color phases of one species. Mr.Holt has made a careful study and comparison of 24 great whiteherons, 24 Ward herons, and 10 Wiirdemann herons, all breedingadults, whicli throws considerable new light on this subject. He findsthat a "noticeable feature of the white birds is the great reduction,often total absence, of the occipital plumes. Only 9 of the 24 birdshave plumes over 100 millimeters in length, whereas more than halfhave no plumes at all. These plumes, when present; are wide at thebase and taper to a fine point?a form perhaps best described as longacuminate?lanceolate?and are quite different from the two long ligu-late occipital plumes of Ardea herodias wardi.^^ Referring to histables of measurements we find that the average length of theseplumes in 24 specimens of occidentalis is 97.3 millimeters, the longest inany individual being 192 millimeters; the average length in 24 spec-imens of wardi is 177.8 millimeters, the longest in any individualbeing 230 millimeters ; this leaves an average difference between thetwo species of 80.5 millimeters, or more than 3 inches.The scapular and jugular plumes of the great white also show a tendency toreduction, when compared with similar structures of Ward's heron.A small but distinct difference between occidentalis and wardi in absolute andproportionate size of bill is indicated by the measurements of the six fully adultoccidentalis in hand, when compared with similar measurements tabulated byOberholser (1912) for six entirely comparable Florida specimens of wardi. Theaverage lengths of wing, tail, and tarsus in this series are greater for wardi thanfor occidentalis, whereas the bill averages longer and thicker. When the lengthof culmen is divided by the length of tarsus, the quotient gives an index of pro-portion that is very constant, and which quite sharply separates the two species,the index for wardi falling always definitely below that of occidentalis.Referring to the specimens examined of the so-called wuerde-manni, he finds that the above characters are intermediate betweenthe two species and show a tendency to approach the characteristicsof the species to which the specimen seems to be the most closelyrelated.In the light of the above facts, there seems to be little, if any,evidence to support the color phase theory and much to support
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 99that of hybridism. Hybridism would seem to account satisfactorilyfor the various specimens of wuerdemanni which have been taken,especially if we assume, as seems reasonable, that hybrids betweensuch closely related species are fertile and might interbreed with pure-blooded birds of either species, producing a great variety of interme-diate specimens. A parallel case can be seen in the hybrids bet weenthe black duck and the mallard.I can not understand how anyone who is familiar with the greatwhite heron in life can have any doubt that it is a distinct species.It is a strictly maritime species, its habitat is decidedly restricted andits behavior is quite different from that of the Ward heron, with whichit mingles in the Florida Keys and doubtless interbreeds.Food.?The food of the great white heron seems to consist almostentirely of fish, which it obtains in the shallow waters of the broadbays and estuaries where it lives, always in salt water, I believe. Anumber of these stately birds are often in sight at one time scatteredabout singly, or in groups, over the shoals and mud flats, often a longdistance from the shore. I have never seen this heron walk aboutwhen feeding as the others all do; it stands in patient, quiet dignity,like a great white statue, waiting for its prey. When its appetite issatisfied, or when the tide drives it from the flats, it flies off to somefavorite roosting place on an island fringed with mangroves, where itrests among the dark green foliage until it is time to feed again.Probably other marine animal food is taken as well as fish. It hasa voracious appetite; Audubon (1840) mentions that two captiveyoung birds "swallowed a bucketful of mullets in a few minutes, eachdevouring a gallon of these fishes." They also killed and swallowedentire some young reddish egrets and Louisiana herons "althoughthey were abundantly fed on the flesh of green turtles." Again hesays: In the evening or early in the morning, they would frequentlyset, like pointer dogs, at moths which hovered over the flowers, andwith a well-directed stroke of their bill seize the fluttering insect andand instantly swallow it." They also killed and devoured youngchickens and ducks.Behavior.?The experiences which Audubon (1840) and others havehad with great white herons in captivity show them to be alwayswild, untamable, and vicious, quite different in disposition from greatblue herons which are gentle and easily tamed. The white birds hadto be separated from the blue ones or the former would have kiUedthe latter. Even then, one of the white herons thrust his bill betweenthe bars of the coop in which the blue herons were confined and killedone of them. "None of the sailors succeeded in making friendswith them." Again he says: "Once a cat which was asleep in thesmishine, on the wooden steps of the veranda, was pinned through the
100 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMbody to the boards and killed by one of them. At last they began topursue the younger children of my worthy friend, who thereforeordered them to be killed."Of the behavior of this species in a wild state, Audubun (1840)writes
:
These herons are sedate, quiet, and perhaps even less animated than the A.Herodias. They walk majestically, with firmness and great elegance. Unlike thespecies just named, they flock at their feeding grounds, sometimes a hundred ormore being seen together; and what is still more remarkable is, that they betakethemselves to the mud flats or sand bars at a distance from the keys on whichthey roost and breed. They seem, in so far as I could judge, to be diurnal, anopinion corroborated by the testimony of Mr. Egan, a person of great judgment,sagacity, and integrity. While on these banks, they stand motionless, rarelymoving toward their prey, but waiting until it comes near, when they strike itand swallow it alive, or when large, beat it on the water, or shake it violently,biting it severely all the while. They never leave their feeding grounds untildriven off by the tide, remaining until the water reaches their body. So waryare they, that although they may return to roost on the same keys, they rarelyalight on trees to which they have resorted before, and if repeatedly disturbedthey do not return, for many weeks at least. When roosting, they generallystand on one foot, the other being drawn up, and unlike the ibises, are neverseen lying flat on trees, where, however, they draw in their long neck, and placetheir head under their wing. I was often surprised to see that while a flock wasresting by day in the position just described, one or more stood with outstretchednecks keenly eyeing all around, now and then suddenly starting at the sight of aporpoise or shark in chase of some fish. The appearance of a man or a boat,seemed to distract them; yet I was told that nobody ever goes in pursuit of them.If surprised, they leave their perch with a rough croaking sound, and fly directlyto a great distance, but never inland.The flight of the great white heron is firm, regular, and greatly protracted.They propel themselves by regular slow flaps, the head being drawn in after theyhave proceeded a few yards, and their legs extended behind, as is the case withall other herons. They also now and then rise high in the air, where they sail inwide circles, and they never alight without performing this circling fiight, unlesswhen going to feeding grounds on which other individuals have already settled.It is truly surprising that a bird of so powerful a flight never visits Georgia orthe Carolinas, nor goes to the mainland. When you see them about the middleof the day on their feeding grounds they " loom" to about double their size, andpresent a singular appearance. It is difficult to kill them unless with buckshot,which we fo<ind ourselves obliged to use.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?A nonmigratory species of greatly restricted range. Breedsonly in the extreme southern portion of Florida and on some of theFlorida Keys. North to Man-of-War Bush (Florida Bay), CapeSable, and Cape Romano. East to Upper Mctacumbc Key and IndianKey. South and west to Torch Keys, Cudjoe Key, Johnstons Keys,and Marquesas Key.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 101The race described by Bangs and Zappey (1905) as Ardea h. repens( = Ardea o. repens) from Cuba (Isle of Pines) is probably the racethat occurs also in Porto Rico (Gundlach) ; Jamaica (Marsh) ; and atthe mouth of the Rio Lagartos, Yucatan (Brown).Egg dates.?Florida Keys: 29 records, December 30 to June 16; 15records, January 26 to April 4.ARDEA HERODIAS HERODIAS LinnaeusGREAT BLUE HERONHABITSThe great blue heron, or ''blue crane" as it is often called, is thelargest, the most widely distributed and the best known of the Amer-ican herons. Herons probably originated in the warmer climates,where they are certainly better represented in species and in numbers;but this species extends its range across the continent and well upinto the cooler climate of Canada. It is a stately bird, dignified inits bearing, graceful in its movements and an artistic feature in thelandscape.In its native solitudes, far from the haunts of man, it may be seenstanding motionless, in lonely dignity, on some far distant point thatbreaks the shore line of a wilderness lake, its artistic outline givingthe only touch of life to the broad expanse of water and its backgroundof somber forest. Or on some wide, flat coastal marsh its statelyfigure looms up in the distance, as with graceful, stealthy tread itwades along in search of its prey. Perhaps you have seen it fromafar and think you can gain a closer intimacy, but its eyes and earsare keener than yours ; and it is a wise and a wary bird. But even asit takes its departure, you will still stand and admire the slow anddignified strokes of its great, black-tipped wings, until this interestingfeature of the landscape fades away into the distance. A bird sogrand, so majestic, and so picturesque is surely a fitting subject forthe artist's brush.Courtship.?Throughout the northern portion of its range the greatblue heron is migratory, but it returns to its breeding range early inthe season. Its spectacular courtship is well described by Audubon(1840) as follows:The manners of this heron are exceedingly interesting at the approach of thebreeding season, when the males begain to look for partners. About sunrise yousee a number arrive and aUght either on the margin of a broad sand bar or on asavannah. They come from dilferent quarters, one after another, for severalhours; and when you see 40 or 50 before you, it is difficult for you to imaginethat half the number could have resided in the same district. Yet in the Flori-das I have seen hundreds thus collected in the course of a morning. They arenow in their full beauty, and no young birds seem to be among them. Themales walk about with an air of great dignity, bidding defiance to their rivals.
102 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand the females croak to invite the males to pay their addresses to them. Thefemales utter their coaxing notes all at once, and as each male evinces an equaldesire to please the object of his affection, he has to encounter the enmity ofmany an adversary, who, with little attention to politeness, opens his powerfulbill, throws out his wings, and rushes with fury on his foe. Each attack is care-fully guarded against, blows are exchanged for blows; one would think that asingle well-aimed thrust might suffice to inflict death, but the strokes are parriedwith as much art as an expert swordsman would employ; and, although I havewatched these birds for half an hour at a time as they fought on the ground, Inever saw one killed on such an occasion; but I have often seen one felled andtrampled upon, even after incubation had commenced. These combats over,the males and females leave the place in pairs. They are now mated for the sea-son, at least I am inclined to think so, as I never saw them assemble twice onthe same ground, and they become comparatively peaceable after pairing.Miss CatheriDe A. Mitchell has sent me the following attractivesketch of the "morning love dance," a more peaceful courtship per-formance, of this species
:
As I turned over in my sleeping bag, a glimpse of a rosy glow in the sky rousedme to better appreciation of the world already awake around me. An old pinetree hanging from the mountain of sand back of us, was outlined against a gor-geous reflection in the peaceful waters of Lake Michigan; and in the smoothsands of the shore surrounding us. There! The Japanese picture was completewith a great blue heron in the foreground. But see! A little way farther downthe beach are more great blue herons. A group of them together with outspreadwings flapping slowly up and down, circling round and round. Eleven birdsfirst, later 14, circling sometimes around each other and sometimes in the onelarge circle, somewhat as we used to do in dancing-school days. I watched thegraceful motions perhaps half an hour, spellbound by the weirdness of the scene.Nesting.?Many and varied are the nesting sites chosen by thisspecies in the different portions of its wide breeding range, but cer-tain characteristics are common to the species everywhere. It is, asmost of the herons are, a sociable species, prefering to nest in closelycongested communities, varying in size from a few pairs to severalscores or even hundreds. Where trees are available it prefers to nestin trees and usually selects the tallest trees available; but it oftennests in low trees, or bushes, or even on the ground. The locationof the nesting rookery probably depends more on an available foodsupply for the young than on the presence of suitable nesting trees.But, as the main object to be gained is security for the eggs andyoung, a remote and more or less inaccessible locality is alwayschosen.My first experience with the nesting habits of the great blue heronwas in the Penobscot Bay region on the coast of Maine, where I haveexamined breeding colonies on the spruce-covered islands near DeerIsle. Bradbury Island, lying northwest of Deer Isle in PenobscotBay, has long been known as a breeding place for great blue herons.It is a high island with open pasture land in the center, but heavilywooded at both ends with a dense forest of tall spruces and firs, with
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 103a few birches. I once counted nine ospreys' nests in the trees aroundits steep shores and found the bulky nest of a pair of northern ravensin the thickest part of the woods. When I first visited it, on June10, 1899, the breeding season was well advanced. Most of the nestscontained large young, but at least four nests examined held three,four, or five eggs, probably second layings of pairs that had beenrobbed previously. The nests were placed in or near the tops of thelargest spruces or firs, at heights varying from 30 to 40 feet. Theywere large flat platforms of large sticks and twigs, only slightly hol-lowed, and smoothly lined with fine twigs; one that I examined was30 inches in diameter and another was 40 inches. There were notover a dozen pairs of herons in this rookery at that time, but whenI visited it again on June 20, 1916, the colony had increased to 30 or40 pairs. Many of the nests were in dead trees, which probably haddied since the nests were built; the damage done by the birds oftenkills the trees. I had long known of another colony of 25 or 30 pairson White Island, east of Deer Isle, which I visited on June 25, 1916.Here the herons were nesting from 40 to 50 feet up in the tops ofthe tall spruces in a dense forest. The trees and the ground underthem was completely wliitewashed with the excrement of the youngbirds; but, by picking out and climbing to a nest under whichthe ground was clean, I succeeded in collecting a set of eggs for mycompanion.In Alexander Wilson's (1832) time these herons nested in the prim-eval cedar swamps of New Jersey, which have long since disappearedas virgin forests; referring to their nesting haunts, he says:These are generally in the gloomy solitudes of the tallest cedar swamps, where,if unmolested, they continue annually to breed for many years. These swampsare from half a mile to a mile in breadth, and sometimes five or six in length,and appear as if they occupied the former channel of some choked up river,stream, lake, or arm of the sea. The appearance they present to a stranger issingular. A front of tall and perfectly straight trunks, rising to the height of 50or 60 feet without a limb, and crowded in every direction, their tops so closelywoven together as to shut out the day, spreading the gloom of a perpetual twi-light below.More modern conditions in that region are thus described in somenotes sent to me by R. P. Shar])les:Down back of Delaware City, near the Delaware & Chesapeake Canal, is agreat swamp. It is many hundred acres in extent and is absolutely unfordableand impassable. In places are many trees growing out of the water and downbelow is a dense thicket shading the mud and ooze. It is such a place as snakesand frogs and slimy things inhabit. Crawfish in immense numbers make theirhomes in it. But above is a bird paradise, and the thickets and the grasses andthe trees are alive with them. In a small patch of maples a colony of great blueherons have built their nests. There were 89 of the nests in the bunch and 35 ofthem were apparently in use when examined one day, the last of March, 1912.The birds had just begun to lay their eggs and were very wild. Seventeen of
104 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe nests were seen in one big tree. These structures are made of small twigs,in a thin layer, so thin that the eggs can be seen from the ground at the foot ofthe tree. The nests are shallow platforms, and instead of being close to thetrunk arc generally out on the tops of the higher limbs, often being from 85 to100 feet from the ground. They are about 3 feet across and are very insecurenesting places.William B. Crispin wrote me that near Salem, New Jersey, these her-ons build their nests in the forks of limbs of the largest trees, from70 to 130 feet from the ground, in swampy, briery places. He saidthat the largest colony near Salem contained some 80 nests and that hehas found nests in pines, pin oaks, white oaks, chestnuts, tulip trees,and swamp maples.Richard C. Harlow mentions, in the notes he sent me, a colony ofabout 20 pairs, near Glassbow, New Jersey, nesting in tall pine treesfrom 70 to 90 feet high. The nests were all repaired from the re-mains of the preceding years, were made of oak sticks and were "linedwith bunches of green pine needles."Edwin F. Northrup (1885), in describing a large colony on the northshore of Oneida Lake, New York, says:The timber in the swamp is all black ash and grows very high, branching at thetop. The trees arc slender, varying from 1 to 3 feet in diameter, and are readilyclimbed with spurs, that is if one is an adept at using them. Several hundredsof these nests, built in crotches of the limbs, are grouped together at one placein the swamp and cover a space nearly or quite half a mile across. Nearly everytree which rises to the general height of the rest and which has favorable crotches,contains from one to four nests. Two, however, is the more usual number inone tree, four being seldom found. The nests are constructed of sticks about one-fourth to half an inch in diameter. A large bundle is laid on a crotch and linedwith finer twigs, making a flat nest from 25 to 40 inches in diameter.Dana G. Gillett (1896) says that in Tonawanda Swamp in west-ern New York:The great blue heron also nests in large elm trees, selecting one with a verylarge trunk, and nearly always building at the extremity of a limb, generally ahorizontal one, and many are not strong enough to bear the weight of a man,thereby making it exceedingl}' dangerous to try to approach the nest.I have seen as many as eight nests in the top of one large spreading elm, andthe old herons sitting on their nests, which would swing to and fro with everybreeze. The nests are very large, usually about 4 feet across, and sometimeslarger, being composed of sticks, some of them larger than a man's thumb, firm-ly stuck together, and lined with fine bark or moss, but sometimes composedonly of sticks.Perhaps the most interesting of all are the colonies in Michigan,where the herons build their nests in giant sycamores at lioightsvarying from 50 to 90 feet above the ground. Eugene Pericles (1895)gives a thrilling account of egg collecting in such a rookery in VanBuren County. The smallest sycamore was only 7 feet in circum-ference, but it was 40 feet to the first limb and there were 12 nestsin it, distributed over five large straggling limbs and either at or
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 105near their extremities. The largest sycamore in the heronry wasover 10 feet in girth and held 16 occupied nests, as well as severalold nests; the lowest nest was about 70 feet up and the highest wasover 80 feet. Climbing the smooth trunks of these big trees andgoing out on the slippery limbs must test the nerve and strength ofthe best climber.Walter E. Hastings has sent me some fine photographs and someinteresting notes, including a map showing the locations of 18Michigan rookeries of gi*eat blue herons. In the colonies that hehas visited, the nests were usually placed in high elm trees, from 40to 110 feet from the ground, near the tops of the trees or the endsof the branches; often the trees or branches are dead, making itdangerous to climb them. In building their nests the birds oftenbreak the twigs off the trees rather than pick them up off the ground.New nests of the year are often so frail that the eggs can be seenthrough them from below. The older nests, which have been addedto each year, are much larger, thicker, and firmer; the accumulatedfilth helps to cement the material together. Mr. Hastings once satin one of these nests, 110 feet from the ground, for a number ofhours while photographing the birds.On the plains and prairies of the interior the great blue heronshave to be contented with the largest trees they can find, cotton-woods, poplars, and box elders, in the timber belts along the streams.We found a colony of about 15 or 20 nests on Skull Creek, near CraneLake, Saskatchewan, on June 5, 1905. The nests were from 15 to 25feet up in the tops of the largest box elders. At that date most ofthe nests contained young of various ages, but two nests held sixeggs each and several others 4 or 5 each. We visited this colony thefollowing year and found that it had been shot out; the dead bodiesof the herons were lying on the ground under the trees and the nestswere deserted.A. D. Henderson writes me that there has been a small colonynear Belvedere, Alberta, since 1920. He saw "two of the nests onan island in tall poplar trees in the fall of 1920." In the fall of1922, he "saw six nests in a solitary spruce on another island abouta mile distant." On May 15, 1923, he "visited this island and foundfive occupied nests and took one set of five eggs and one of six. Thenests were all on the same spruce tree and those occupied had beennewly built, the old nests being easily distinguished by the liberalcoat of whitewash on them. The nests were large structures of deadsticks, fined with green alder twigs and weed stalks and a very Uttledry grass." This is the most northern colony of which I have anyrecord.Eggs.?Four eggs is probably the commonest number laid by thegreat blue heron, though full sets of three are not uncommon, sets of
106 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfive are common, sets of six are frequently found, and sets of sevenhave been reported. The shape varies from ovate, or (rarely) ovalto elliptical ovate, or (rarely) fusiform. The shell is smooth or slightlyrough. The color varies from " pale Nigara green " to " lichen green "'or "pale olivine." The measurements of 50 eggs average 64.5 by45.2 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 70.4by 47.6; 67.9 by 49.2; 56.9 by 42.7; and 59.2 by 42.2 millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation is about 28 days. Mr. Hastingssays that both sexes incubate. He once saw a bird with broken wingfeathers leave a nest and very shortly another, with perfect wings,took its place. Also he has seen a great commotion around a heronryearly in the morning, again about 10 a. m., and at about 2 p. m., andagain just before dark, which he believes is due to the birds changingon the nests.Young herons are far from attractive, either in appearance or be-havior, at any age; at first they are feeble and helpless, but later onthey are awkward, ungainly, and pugnacious. If undisturbed, theyremain in the nest until as large as their parents and fully fledged;but when nearly grown they are easily frightened and leave the nestto climb awkwardly over the surrounding branches and perhaps fallto the ground or water below, which often results in death, as theirparents do not seem to have sense enough to rescue or even feedthem.In the nest they are fed by both parents, at first on soft regurgitatedfood, later on whole fresh fish. With the youngest birds the soft soup-like food is passed from the bill of the parent into that of the youngbird; but later on the more solid food is deposited in the nest andpicked up by the young. The young birds usually lie quietly in thenest, crouched down out of sight, between feedings; but as soon as theparent is seen or heard returning (the senses of the young are verykeen) there is great excitement, as they stand up to clamor and wrestlefor their food. The old bird approaches with deliberate dignity andmay stand on the nest for a few minutes with her head high in theair. Then with crest and plumes erected and with a pumping motion,she lowers her head and one of the youngsters grabs her bill in his,crosswise; the wrestling match then follows until the food passes intothe young bird's mouth or onto the nest. The young are usually fedin rotation, but often the most aggressive youngster gets more thanhis share.The young instinctively try to void their excrement by squirtingit over the edge of the nest, but they are not eminently successfulat it and the nest, the tree, and the ground under it are usuallycompletely whitewashed with their profuse ordure before they arefully grown. This and the decaying fish which fall from the nests
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 107make a heronry far from pleasant and one has to expect an occasionalshower bath from one or both ends of a frightened young heron.Young herons are particularly noisy at feeding times and, as thisis an almost continuous performance in a hirge rookery, there isalways more or less chattering to be heard, which sounds like thebarking of small puppies or the squealing of young pigs.E. S. Cameron (1906) thus describes an interesting squabble causedby a young heron climbing into a nest where he did not belong:Several times it seemed likely to fall into the water but managed to regainits balance with violent flapping of wings. Later, when all was quiet again, thefour real owners of this nest stood erect indignantly protesting at this outrageon their rights, and one bolder than the rest endeavored to eject the intruder.The newcomer as valiantly resisted, and, being of the same size, a protractedand most extraordinary battle ensued which I witnessed through my binoculars.The birds would feint, and spar for a hold, until one was able to seize the other bythe neck when, exerting all its strength, it endeavored to drag its antagonist overthe side of the nest. Both in turn had the advantage and swayed backwardsand forwards, while the three noncombatants crouched down in characteristicfashion, so that the battle was waged partly on their bodies and partly on the edgeof the nest. The fight was continued until an old bird arrived with fish, when thefive nestlings again stood erect, and, in the general scramble for food, the parentfed all without discrimination. As it became too dark for binoculars I saw nomore that evening, but next morning the duel was renewed until the interloperbecame exhausted, and, being driven from the nest, scrambled down the branchto its rightful abode. As far as I could see, all the other young birds lived inperfect harmony.Plumages.?In the downy, young, great blue heron, the top andsides of the head are thickly covered with long whitish and grayishplumes, one inch or more long, " light olive gray " to " pale olive gray,"grayer, basally and whiter terminally; the back -is thickly covered withlong, soft down, " light mouse gray " basally to " pallid mouse gray " ter-minally; the flanks and belly are more scantily covered with soft,white down; and the throat is naked. The young bird begins toacquire its plumage at an early age; before it is one-third grown itshead, neck, and body is well feathered and its flight feathers are grow-ing, but the downy plumes persist on the crown, and the rump re-mains downy until the young bird is nearly fully grown.In this first, or juvenal, plumage the crown is "dark mouse gray";the cheeks, chin, and throat are white; the neck is variegated withgrays and browns, and spotted with black and pale russet ; the upperparts, back, and wing coverts are plain gray, ''deep mouse gray" to
"deep Quaker drab," without any signs of plumes anywhere; thefeathers of the greater, median and lesser wing coverts are broadlyedged with "^russet" or "pinkish cinnamon" and there is at first awhite spot on the tip of each greater covert feather; these spots andedgings gradually fade and wear off; the breast is streaked with dusky^
108 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand the thighs are " light pinkish cinnamon." All of the colors namedabove vary somewhat, as in the adults of the various subspecies.The above plumage is worn through the first fall and winter with-out much change before February, when the first spring plumagebegins to show advance toward maturity; at this season one or twooccipital plumes may appear, but the crown remains black; rudimen-tary plumes appear on the breast and back; the buff edgings haveworn away and some new feathers have replaced the old in the man-tle; and the under parts are more like the adult.At the first postnuptial molt, which is complete, the followingsummer and fall, further advance toward maturity is made; theforehead becomes partially white, some occipital plumes are acquired
;
the black shoulder tufts appear, somewhat mixed with white; manylong, narrow plume-like feathers appear in the back and breast; thethighs are purer cinnamon; and the neck and under parts are morelike those of the adult. This is the second winter plumage, which be-comes nearly adult at the next prenuptial molt, when the young bird isready to breed. After the next complete postnuptial molt, when theyoung bird is over two years old, the plumage becomes fully adult,though signs of immaturity are still to be seen, such as dusky markingsin the white crown and white markings in the black shoulder tufts;these may not wholly disappear for another year or two.Adults have a complete postnuptial molt in late summer and falland a partial prenuptial molt of the contour feathers in late winterand early spring. There is little seasonal change in adults exceptthat in spring the plumes of the head, breast, and back are morefully developed and perhaps the showy colors are a little more bril-liant. The adult is a handsome bird at all seasons.Food.?The principal food of the great blue heron is fishes of vari-ous kinds and it seems to be willing to accept whatever kind of fishis most easily available. Ora W. Knight (1908) says:Frogs, eels, horn-pouts, pickerel occasionally, suckers, shiners, chubs, blackbass, herrings, water puppies, salamanders, and tadpoles, are the items I havediscovered among their rations. They do not frequent as feeding grounds thespots where trout usually congregate, and I have very strong doubts that theyeat trout, except very rarely, let alone consuming them in the vast quantities cer-tain persons have affirmed.It fishes by night as well as by day and employs two very differentmethods, still hunting and stalking. The former is the best known andprobably the commonest method. Standing as still as a gravenimage in shallow water, where fish arc moving about, it waits patientlyuntil one comes within reach, when a swift and uneiTing stroke of itswell trained bill cither kills or secures the fish. Usually the fish isseized crosswise between the mandibles; if it is a small one, it istossed in the air and swallowed head first, so that it will slip down
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 109
easily; but if the fish is a large one, the heron may walk ashore withit and beat it on the ground to kill it or may kill it by striking it inthe water. I have never had the patience to watch a heron longenough to learn how long it would stand and wait for a fish to cometo it. I have found it more interesting to watch it stalking its prey,a more active operation. Slowly and carefully, with stately tread,it walks along in water knee deep, its long neck stretched upward andforward; its keen eyes are scanning the surface and an occasionalquick turn of the head indicates a glimpse of a fish; suddenly it stops,as if it had seen a fish, but it moves on again; at last comes its chance,as in a crouching attitude the long neck darts downward, quick as aflash; the stroke is not always successful, but sooner or later theheron secures a meal. Sometimes, in its eagerness, the heron maystep beyond its depth and lose its balance, but a few flaps of its wingsrestores its equilibrium and its dignity.Audubon (1840) says:The principal food of the great blue heron is nsh of all kinds; but it also devoursfrogs, lizards, snakes, and birds, as well as small quadrupeds, such as shrews,meadow mice, and young rats, all of which I have found in its stomach. Aquaticinsects are equally welcome to it, and it is an expert flja-atcher, striking at moths,butterflies, and libellulae, whether on the wing or when alighted. It destroysa great number of young marsh-hens, rails, and other birds; but I never saw onecatch a fiddler or a crab; and the only seeds that I have found in its stomachwere those of the great water lily of the Southern States. It always strikes itsprey through the body, and as near the head as possible. Now and then it strikesat a fish so large and strong as to endanger its own life; and I once saw one onthe Florida coast, that, after striking a fish, when standing in the water to thefull length of its legs, was dragged along for several yards, now on the surfaceand again beneath. When, after a severe struggle, the heron disengaged itself,it appeared quite overcome, and stood still near the sliore, his head turned fromthe sea, as if afraid to try another such experiment.Wilson (1832) includes in its food grasshoppers, dragon-flies andthe seeds of splatter docks. Mr. Hastings says that it eats greatquantities of insects and mice. When the grasshoppers have beenthick he has seen it feeding in the open meadow on these insects-entirely, often for two hours at a time; it does not chase them butstands very still, allowing the insects to come within reach of its quickbeak. Arthur H. Howell (1911) adds crustaceans to the list. Bart-lett E. Bassett wrote me that a bird he shot for me was carrying a largeblack snake in its bill. Altogether the food habits of this species aredecidedly beneficial. It may occasionally take a few trout, but itdoes not ordinarily frequent the streams where trout are found.Behavior.?When forced to make a hurried departure, as whenfrightened, this heron makes an awkward start, as it scrambles up intothe air with vigorous strokes of its big wings, with its long legs dang-Hng and its long neck outstretched. When undisturbed it starts moregracefully; leaning forward, with extended neck, it takes a few steps
110 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand with a few long wing strokes it mounts into the air. When well un-derway its flight is strong and majestic, sustained by long, slowstrokes of its great wings ; its neck is folded back between its shouldersand its long legs are extended backwards, to act as a rudder in placeof its tail, which is too short for this purpose. When about to alightthe neck and legs are extended, a few flaps of the wings check thebird's momentum and it drops lightly to its perch.The great blue heron is quite at home on dry land where it movesabout with dignified ease and grace. M. P. Skinner writes to methat in Yellowstone Park it often walks "across the meadows fromone pool to the next, with long, stately strides." It must spend con-siderable time on land in pursuit of such prey as field mice, shrews,grasshoppers, and other insects. It can also alight on the water orswim, if necessary. P. A. Taverner (1922) says that, while watchingsome of these herons flying across a lake, he "saw them drop to thelake level, hesitate a moment and then drop softly into the water.They remained perhaps half a minute there, and then, with an easyflap of wings, rose and continued their way." There was no shoalthere and " nothing but deep water anywhere in the vicinity." Dr.John B. May has twice noticed a similar occurrence, about which hewrites me, as followsOn the first occasion the bird was flying over the middle of Little Squam Lake,at Holderrvess, New Hampshire, where the lake is about 400 yards wide. It saileddown to the water, then flew to a raft of logs and was seen to swallow some ob-ject. Two years later, at the same spot, a similar event was witnessed morecarefully this time. The bird closed its wings for about eight seconds, openedthem slowly once and closeid them again, then raising them flew away with aslender eel-like object dangling from its bill. The water was at least 25 feetdeep at this place and the bird 150 to 200 yards from shore.Dr. Charles W. Townsend, Dr. Daniel S. Gage, and Mr. JosselynVan Tyne have told me of similar observations.Illustrating the wariness and the sagacity of this species WilfredA. Bretherton (1891) writes:A mill pond some three-quarters of a mile from my home is a favorite feedingplace for these birds. This pond, being just outside of the corporation in a verypleasant locality, is often visited, and hence the herons are often interrupted intheir fishing. Past experience has made them very sagacious. One or twosentinels are always posted upon tall trees, usually at the upper end of the pond
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if two, about 30 rods apart?and in such a manner that no one can approach thel)ond from any direction without being observed by one or the other sentinel,who will immediately give the alarm. The pond is so situated that the heronafishing can not be seen until the border is reached, and the sentinels, being highabove the water, can see a man long before he gets to where he can see the fishers,unless he approach through the woods on the south side.One day I thoroughly tested their sagacity, and found it greater than I hadsuspected. Stealthily moving through the woods south of the pond, I came nearthe steep bank of the pond, partly hidden from the pond, by dense shrubbery.However, the nearest sentinel, some 30 rods away, caught sight of my head above
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 111the bushes and uttered a harsh cry of alarm, which was repeated by the secondsentinel, who was posted so far up that I would not have seen him had he notrepeated the cry. ? Immediatelj' four or five herons flew from the water betweenme and the nearest sentinel, one of them having been but a few rods from me,but invisible except from the water's edge. As they flew to the woods north ofthe pond they uttered hoarse cries, and soon all had disappeared save the twosentinels.Moving back and eastward I crept up to a clump of bushes about 5 feet inheight growing upon the very top of the bank. Lying close to the ground I keptsilent for some time. The bushes entirely hid me from the watchful sentinelsand they evidently supposed I had gone. Soon the one nearest me began toutter low and peculiar cries which the upper sentinel quickly answered. Thisstyle of conversation was kept up for several moments. This was shortly followedby the return of all the fishers, one coming quite near my locality. As soon asfishing had again gotten well under way I rose upon my feet. The instant myhead appeared above the bushes the nearest sentinel uttered the harsh cry ofalarm, immediately followed by the tumultuous flight of the fishers, most of whichhad been invisible from my hiding place.The attitude of the great blue heron towards other species of heronswith which it is associated on its breeding grounds or its feedinggrounds is usually one of dignified indifference or haughty disdain.It never seems to molest the smaller herons, but apparently picks anoccasional quarrel with other species. Dr. Charles W. Townsend(1920) once saw "a fine adult great blue heron flying high in the airpursued by a screaming common tern who darted at it from behindand from above. The heron screamed hoarsely, stretched out andaround its long neck and partly dropped its legs. The feathers of itshead were erected. The tern attacked again and again and the scenewas repeated. It reminded one of an old hawking picture."Audubon (1840) says he has
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seen the blue heron giving chase to a fish hawk, whilst the latter was pursuing itsway through the air towards a place where it could feed on the fish which it borein its talons. The heron soon overtook the hawk, and at the very first loungemade l)y it, the latter dropped its quarry, when the heron sailed slowly towardsthe ground, where it no doubt found the fish. On one occasion of this kind, thehawk dropped the fish in the water, when the heron, as if vexed that it was lostto him, continued to harass the hawk, and forced it into the woods.Enemies.?There are very few birds or animals that dare to attacksuch a large and formidable antagonist as an adult great blue heron,for it is a courageous bird, armed with a powerful sharp bill that can in-flict serious wounds. Even men must approach it with caution, whenit is wounded and at bay. But great damage is done to the eggs, andprobably also to the very young birds, by crows, ravens, vultures, andprobably gulls. Once on Bradbury Island, referred to above, weflushed a heron from its nest and, on returning to it a few momentslater, we found three eggs on the ground under it, which had evidentlyjust been broken and sucked by a pair of ravens that were flyingaround and croaking. Crows and ravens often live in or near the
112 BULLETIN 135;, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
rookeries and, as soon as the herons are frightened away from theirnests, these black marauders pounce down on the nests and devourthe eggs.R. P. Sharpies, in his notes, relates the following incident:Once a red-shouldered hawk sailed over at great height. Presently he espiedthe unprotected heron eggs, and folding his wings he dropped down like a bulletright into the treetops amid the heron nests. Then the parent birds saw himand all came piling home in a hurry, no longer afraid of their human enemies.The hawk missed his dinner for the herons with their long daggerlike bills are wellable to defend their nests.In this connection it is interesting to note that both the red-shouldered hawk and the red-tailed hawk have been recorded asnesting in or near heron rookeries. In southern rookeries nests ofturkey or black vultures are often found. Mr. Hastings once founda pair of great horned owls raising a brood in an old nest in the middleof a colony.Fall.?Throughout the northern part of its range the great blueheron is migratory. Its fall migration is particularly well marked.Many individuals migrate singly, as solitary birds are often seen^but flocks of a dozen or 20 birds are not uncommon. I have severaltimes seen such flocks in the fall, but none in the spring. DoctorTownsend (1920) says that "at Ipswich, on October 28, 1917, at 5p. m. a flock of 20 of these great birds flew south high up over themarshes in a loose V or U formation." In some notes, sent to me byHarry S. Hathaway, from Miss Elizabeth Dickens, she writes thaton November 12, 1910, a flock of 12 appeared about 8.30 a. m. onBlock Island:After circling awhile like gulls playing in air they dropped down on the edgeof the bluff. I had never seen more than nine in a flock before. Of course, thegunners got after them and they had to depart, but that was only the beginning.All the forenoon they came from the west in flocks of from 2 to 60. I counted40 in one flock and 60 in another that were in sight at one time. The life saverssaid these were all one flock until their shooting divided them.I believe that there is a regular coastwise flight, over the water aswell as over land, for we often saw them when off shore "coot"shooting.Winter.?The great blue herons of the North mingle in winter withtheir near relatives of the southern Atlantic and Gulf States, addingmaterially to the heron populations of these congenial shores. Therethey live in peace and harmony with their neighbors, sharing withthem the bounteous supply of fish and other foods. Many linger as farnorth as the central portions of the United States and stragglers areoccasionally seen as far north as New England and Michigan.W. J. Erichsen (1921) says of their winter habits on the coast ofGeorgia
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NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 113The greater portion of its food is secured from the salt marshes and the banksand shallows of the numerous creeks that wind their way through them. It isoften seen in company of the smaller herons, particularly the little blue species.At such times it is the first to take wing at the approach of danger, and usually isfar away before the intruder has arrived within 100 yards of the spot where itstood. Upon stationing itself in a shallow creek to secure passing fish, if thelatter are scarce the bird will remain motionless in one spot for a long period oftime, apparenth' sluggish, and in an indifferent attitude; but when the fish areplentiful it becomes very active, spearing them right and left in rapid succession.At sundown, or a little before, numbers of these stately birds can be seenslowly winging their way toward the forested portions of the islands, there tospend the night. They become much attached to these roosting places and willnot desert them as long as their aspect remains unchanged and the birds are notgreatly persecuted. DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?Eastern United States and southern Canada.East to Nova Scotia (Halifax) ; New Jersey (New Providence and CapeMay) ; Virginia (formerly Cobbs Island, Smith's Island and CapeCharles) ; North Carolina (Fort Macon and Brunswick County)
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and South Carolina (Waverly Mills and near McClellanville) . Southto South Carolina (near Charleston) ; eastern Tennessee (Athens)
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Indiana (near Indianapolis) ; Illinois (Peoria and Bernadotte) ; north-ern Iowa (Grinnell and Jefferson) ; and northeastern Nebraska(Omaha). West to South Dakota; North Dakota; and soutlieast-ern, probably British Columbia. North to northern Alberta (Edmon-ton, Belvedere and probably Birch Lake) ; southern Saskatchewan(Osier and Crane Lake) ; central Manitoba (Duck Mountain andShoal Lake) ; northern Ontario (Moose Factory and Rat Portage)
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central Quebec (Lake Terr^iskaraing) ; northeastern Quebec (AnticostiIsland and Godbout) : and New Brunswick (Woodstock and Chat-ham).Winter range.?East to Massachusetts (Onset and Boston) ; RhodeIsland (Point Judith) ; New York (Springs); New Jersey (Pine Bar-rens) ; Virginia (Capo Charles) ; Bermuda (probably) ; North Caro-lina (Raleigh) ; South Carolina (Charleston) ; Georgia (St. Marys)and Florida (Orlando and Micco). South to Florida (Micco); Ala-bama (Castleberry) ; Louisiana, probably; Texas, probably; andnorth-eastern Mexico (Camargo, Tamaulipas). West to Tamauli-pas, Mexico (Camargo). North to eastern Pennsylvania (Philadel-phia) ; and Massachusetts (Onset).Spring migration.?Earl}^ dates of arrival arc Nova Scotia, YarnKuith,March 31; Halifax, April 17, and Pictou, April 13; New Brunswick,Grand Manan, April 3, St. John, April 10, and Scotch Lake, March30; Illinois, opposite St. Louis, February 13, and Chicago, February28; Wisconsin, Milwaukee, March 20, Elroy, April 1, Winneconne,
114 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMMarch 10, Waupaca, March 29, and State Line, April 12; Minnesota^Wilder, March 3 1 , and Hutchinson, March 2 1 ; Excelsior, March 15, ElkRiver, March 21, and St. Cloud, March 25; Manitoba, Reaburn,April 11? and Margaret, April 15; Saskatchewan, Indian Head, April20, and Qu'Appelle, April 2; and Alberta, Brownfield, May 7.Fall migration.?Late dates of departure are Nova Scotia, Pictou,October 11 and Yarmouth, October 12; New Brunswick, Scotch Lake,November 8 and St. John, October 30; Manitoba, Margaret, Sep-tember 15; Minnesota, St. Vincent, October 4, Hutchinson, October15, and Jackson, October 18; Wisconsin, Meridian, October 6, Shioc-ton, October 29, Westfield, October 2, and Milwaukee, October 26;Illinois, Lake Forest, November 22, Aledo, November 3, Canton,October 27, and Odin, October 14; Saskatchewan, Qu'Appelle, Octo-ber 27; Alberta, Flagstaff, September 23; west in migration at leastto British Columbia, Prospect Lake, September 18, 1896.Egg dates.?New England and New York: 47 records, April 30 toJune 25; 24 records. May 3 to 5. Michigan and Wisconsin: 22records, April 19 to May 9; 11 records. May 1 to 3. Delaware andVirginia : 12 records, April 6 to June 10; 6 records, April 18 to May 3.ARDEA HERODIAS FANNINI ChapmanNORTHWEST COAST HERONHABITSThis well-marked, dark race of the great blue heron inhabits thehumid coast belt from Washington to southern Alaska, the typelocality being on the Queen Charlotte Islands. Being more strictlyconfined to the heavily timbered coast region, it adapts itself to itsenvironment in nesting and feeding habits, and differs somewhat inthese respects from the other subspecies. It is, however, just aspicturesque a feature in the landscape as any other great blue heron.Maj. Allan Brooks tells me that "this heron is decidedly on theincrease in British Colmnbia, especially in the interior, where, how-ever, its numbers do not compare at any point to those seen on thecoast or west of the Cascades."Nesting.?J. Hooper Bowles has sent me some interesting notes ontwo breeding colonies of this heron in Pierce County, Washington,from which I quote, as follows:The Puget Sound colony was visited about the third week in May and I wastaken to it by a guide. It was a trip of a mile through virgin forest and under-growth, which left me thoroughly lost from start to finish. How my guide knewhis way has always been a mystery to me, well as I know wood hunting, but hetraveled fast and without hesitation. Presently he said, "It is just ahead of usnow," but I could not hear a sound and thought he must have missed his way, asI felt certain from the start he would. He was right, however, for soon theherons either saw or heard us and the silence was broken to a startling degree
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 115by their cries. At this late date the young had all hatched and many of themwere fairly well grown, and the nests, nesting trees below them, and the groundand shrubbery beneath looked as if there had been a h?avy fall of snow. Thiswas due to their regardless depositing of excrement. The warm weather haddried it and every move in the heavy brush dislodged a cloud of it, making ahandkerchief held over the nose and mouth a necessity. In spite of this, I haveseldom had a more interesting experience. It is hard to say just how large thecolony was, but from oiae spot I was able to count 39 nests. These were all builtin a clump of immense cedar trees, at heights from the ground varying from 75to 150 feet or more, sometimes five nests being built in one tree. Some yearslater I was told of the colony at Lake Tapps, which I determined to visit intime for eggs. The trip was made on April 20, 1905, but even that early dateproved almost too late, zoologically, as only one of the nests held anything butnewly hatched young. It was easy to tell this from the ground, as the birdshad simply dropped the empty eggshells over the edge of the nest, evidentlymaking no effort to carry them away. This colony had built in a clump of firson a hill surrounded by other clumps of firs, and the same complete silence wasnoticed, as in the first one, until the birds knew we had found them. The treeswere smaller here, being only about 100 feet tall, and the nests were almost in-variably about 80 feet from the ground. The nest examined contained four"pipped" eggs, which required care in order to save for the collection. In sizeand color they are similar to what may be found in the eggs of any other formof this genus. The nest was composed of rather small twigs and branches, andlined with very fine twigs. In external measurements its main bulk showed adiameter of 3 feet, with a depth of 1 foot. The inside cup measured 10 inchesin diameter by 3 inches in depth. This nest was so strong that my friend, whoclimbed to it, was able to stand in it and call down to me the conditions in thesurrounding nests. These were 24 in number, all containing newly hatchedyoung.Kenneth Racey (1921) describes a well-known colony in StanleyPark, Vancouver, British Columbia, as follows
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It was situated in a very heavily timbered corner and the main nesting sitewas in a large spruce tree, this tree being about 250 feet in height. We counted37 nests in this single tree, and about 15 young birds were in view, either sittingup in the nests, or perched on the branches of the tree. The young, which ap-peared to be half or three-quarters grown, kept up an incessant squawking, whichincreased fourfold whenever a parent bird appeard with food. The branches ofthis spruce tree, except for their tips, were devoid of fohage, and tree trunk,branches, and nests were of a greyish-white color from the birds' droppings. Muchof the vegetation close to the ground under the tree was dead and everywherethe ground was littered with pieces of eggsliells, filth, etc. I secured a numberof eggshells, some of which were in excellent condition. Two nests andfive young dead birds were found on the ground beneath the tree; two ofthese were about half grown, two about 3 weeks old, and the fifth about 1week or 10 days old. All five birds were more or less decomposed. These nestswith the young, had no doubt, been blown down by a recent heavy wind andrain storm. One nest was complete and unbroken, and proved to be a bulkyaffair and of solid construction, the outer part being constructed of coarsebranches about half an inch in diameter, while the inside was well made with finetwigs securely plastered together with refuse and excreta from the young birds.From the size, the nest must have been in use several years, each year havinghad a little added to it. It was between 3 and 4 feet in diameter outside, whilethe bowl measured 11 inches wide by 5 inches deep; the whole nest was of a
116 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMgreyish-white color as if it had been whitewashed. The Stanley Park heronryhas during the past few weeks become one of the points of interest in the park,and hundreds of residents of this city as well as visitors now stop to have a lookat the curious bird colony, none of the members of which appear to be in theleast disturbed, however many people gather about to watch them.J. A. Munro has sent me a photograph of this interesting tree.He vsrrites to me that there is another rookery at North Vancouverwhich is
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built in a giant, half-dead Sitka spruce, which is 6 feet in diameter at the baseand is situated half a mile from the inlet, on a logged-off hillside, and nearlyopposite the Stanley Park heronry. The nests, which numbered 18 on June 6,1923, are 80 feet or more from the ground and can be seen only from a distance,as thick deciduous second growth completely hides the crown of the trees fromone standing below.Major Brooks writes to me
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The nesting is alway in large colonies, usually in heavy stands of Douglas firor other conifers. Probably the largest heronry in the province is near Qualicumon the east coast of Vancouver Island, although the best known one is in StanleyPark, the playground of the city of Vancouver. Up to 1905 the only heronrythat I could hear of in the Lower Fraser Valley was near the mouth of the StaveRiver; at present there is at least one other, a large one of recent occupation atChilliwack some 30 miles further up the valley. This is notable also in beingin a grove of large cottonwood trees instead of the usual conifers.Eggs.?The eggs of this heron are not distinguishable in general ap-pearance from those of other great blue herons. The measurementsof 17 eggs average 57.4 by 38.3 millimeters; the eggs showing thefour extremes measure 68.8 by 45; 65.7 by 48; 50.7 by 35; and 57.9by 29 millimeters.Young.?Mr. Bowles's notes contain the following interestingobservations on the behavior of the young:I was surprised at first to see a number of dead young, in excellent conditionof health, on the ground under the nests, but the reason for this soon becameevident after we had seated ourselves out of sight. The young in each nest wereseen to vary greatly in size, the largest one taking complete possession of the nestwhile the smaller ones stood around on the branches that supported it. Occasion-ally a small one would evidently get tired and try to get back into the nest fora rest, but he was promptly driven out by terrific jabs of the spearlike beak ofhis big brother, or perhaps sister. It was then that I had one of the most inter-esting exhibitions that has ever been given me in the pursuit of ornithology.Occasionally the younger one was hit so hard that he would be knocked com-pletely off his balance, and would be hanging from the limb by one foot headdownward. There he would hang for a few seconds, and then reach his headand long skinny neck up over the limb, by which means he would pull himselfup until he could get a wing over. He would then draw himself back to hisoriginal position on the limb with a surprising degree of ease, making the ob-server think at once that they can not be so very far removed in relationshipfrom the mammals.Food.?Referring to the food of the northwest coast heron, Mr.Bowles says
:
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 117In regard to the food of these herons I believe that they will eat any livingthing that they can swallow. In my collection of stomach contents I have onethat contains the remains of a trout, a crawfish, and two dragon flies. Anotherbird found dead on the Nisqually Flats showed a large bulge about midwaydown its neck. Examination disclosed a saltwater bull head that was fully afoot long and so bulky that it ought to have seemed impossible for even a heronto try swallowing. Its side fins were set at right angles and their long, sharpspines had pierced clear through the neck of the bird on both sides. Thus itwas impossible for the bird to swallow the fish or dislodge it in any other way,so that the death of both was inevitable. The two examples above mentionedare from the Tacoma region. In California I have seen sun-baked fields farfrom water where many herons of this genus were standing motionless at a dis-tance from each other. This surprised me greatly, until I saw the head of onego down and come up with a small mammal speared on its beak. It seems prob-able that these birds,are decidedly beneficial in ridding us of mice, gophers,and other similar forms.D. E. Brown writes to me:I think that the northwest coast heron feeds on most anything it can get onthe tide flats and along the streams. I have never seen it feeding on dry landas J. H. Bowles has seen them. It eats fish, mice, shrews, and frogs mostly butI think that most anything that is alive is "fish when it comes to its net." Ihave seen this bird spear a flounder of surprisingly large size, much too large tobe lifted from the water; it was landed by being shoved along the bottom to theshore. This was done at quite a rapid rate as though the bird knew it couldnot keep its head under water for any length of time. I have examined severalof these fish after the heron had left it and was certainly surprised at the largesize of the flounder, the bird being unable to swallow it or to reduce it in size.Major Brooks says in his notes:This heron differs very little in habits from the eastern bird except that itseems to affect tidal waters and inlets of the sea to a greater extent. On manyportions of the British Columbian coast it is common, even abundant, its favor-ite fishing grounds are the shallow flats on which zostera grows plentifully;here it stands belly deep moving slowly, or not at all, its keen eye fixed on thesmall open spaces watching for the movement of any small fish that may bemoved by the ebb or flow of the tide.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Pacific coast regions of North America from northwesternWashington to the Alaskan Peninsula. Permanent resident exceptperhaps in the northern part of its range. East and south from Alaska(Cook Inlet, Cordova Bay, Admirality Island, Mitkof Island, andPrince of Wales Island) ; British Columbia (Queen Charlotte Islands,Vancouver Island, Sooke Lake, Sumas, and Okanagan Landing) ; andWashington (Blaine, Cape Flattery, Nisqually Flats, QuiniaultLake,Seattle, Puyallup, and Fort Steilacoom). North to the AlaskanPeninsula (Portage Bay and Cook Inlet).Egg dates.?British Columbia: 4 records, May 2 to 30.92642?26t 9
118 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMARDEA HERODIAS WARDI RidgwayWARD HERONHABITSThis larger, southern race of the great blue heron is much moreabundant and more evenly distributed on the Florida and Gulf coaststhan its northern relative is throughout its wide breeding range. Itis also much less wary and suspicious and is therefore more often inevidence near the haunts of man and more easily studied. When Imade my first trip down the east coast of Florida, especially wherethe train ran along for many miles close to the shore of the IndianRiver, I was greatly impressed with the abundance and the famiU-arity of this great heron. The shore seemed to be Uned with thesestately birds, standing sentinels at frequent intervals or flapping lazilyaway for a short distance; sometimes one would scale along close tothe water on motionless wings until it could drop its long legs downand alight on some favorite sand bar or mud flat; but often it wouldstand its ground, heedless of the rushing train. The most casualtraveler could hardly fail to notice such a conspicuous figure in thelajidscape.Again in Texas, as I cruised along down the coast, these big
"cranes," as they are called, were daily in evidence. The marshesand prairies of the coastal plains are dotted with little ''mottes" orclumps of small trees or bushes, on which we often saw the long necksof these herons, raised above the tree tops and scanning us from afar.They were visible at a long distance and we could always tell whichmottes or islands were inhabited by herons.Nesting.?The breeding season of the Ward heron is much pro-longed and one is apt to find either eggs or young in the nests at anytime during the winter or spring. Mr. R. D. Hoyt (1905) says:In its breeding habits Ward's heron is very erratic, and, with the exception ofthe bald eagle, is one of our earliest, or perhaps more properly speaking, the lat-est of our birds to l^egin nesting. It does not wait for the new year but a fewindividuals begin operations by the latter part of November and by Christmastime a few nests may be found with young. New nests are now more numerous,and by the middle of January many nests will contain fresh sets of eggs. Stillthe nest building goes on, but in diminishing numl)ers, until the latter part ofFebruary. I once took a set of two fresh eggs on April 4. This may have beena second set, but I am not aware that more than one brood is reared in a season.Here in Hillsborough County, Fla., the site selected for the colony is almostinvariably a floating island in the center of a marshy spot. The growth on theisland is usually bay, elder, and wax myrtle?low bushj' trees all tangled up withbamboo briar. Some islands contain buttonwood only, and some have onlywillows. These islands are all small, from 20 to 100 feet in diameter, and thesize of the colony is determined by the space it has; from half a dozen to 30pairs occupy the ground. The nests in some instances are huge structures, hav-ing been renewed from year to year, presumably by the same pair of birds. Theyare placed in any situation that forms a good foundation?the entire top of a
NOBTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 119
stout bush, or the horizontal Umb of a tree if sufficiently strong, and some arewithin 2 feet of the ground, others 8 to 12 feet. One nesting place visited lastseason was a buttonwood island. During its years of occupancy the birds hadbroken off every limb and twig that could be used for nest building until nownothing but stut)s remain. This island contained 11 nests, all of which weremade of cypress sticks that had been brought at least 3 miles, that being thenearest cypress. Nests are usually from 30 to 40 inches in diameter, and 10 to14 inches deep, of large sticks as a base, smaller ones toward the top, and a fewtwigs with green leaves, and some grass as a lining.In Florida we found Ward herons breeding in small willow ham-mocks on the prairies of Brevard County and in the larger willowsalong the St. Johns E.i^^er, where nests with newly-hatched youngwere found on April 21, 1902. The nests were bulky affairs, madeof large sticks and were placed in the largest willows, about 10 or 12feet from the ground. On the Florida Keys we found them breedingwith the great white herons in small numbers. Here their nests werebuilt in the red mangroves or on the tops of bushes, never more thanhalf a dozen or so in a group.In Texas, in 1923, we saw numerous small colonies scattered alongthe coast, in the live-oak mottes and in small clumps of bushes onthe coastal marshes or prairies. On a small island in the CedarLakes, on the intercoastal canal, we found a colony of 13 pairs onMay 7. It was a low island overgrown with grass, cow parsnip, sun-flowers, clumps of other yellow flowers, and coarse herbage; the nestswere all on the ground and were made of sticks, that must have beenbrought from a distance, and were lined with the rootlets of the islandvegetation. The nests measured from 30 to 34 inches in outsidediameter; in some nests the eggs or young were practically on theground; other nests were built up as high as 14 or 16 inches. Twonests contained eggs, but the others held young of various ages.There was also a black vulture's nest, with two eggs in it, among theherons' nests. I imagine that the vultures counted on finding aconvenient food supply.As we passed Dressing Point Island, near the upper end of Mata-gorda Bay, on May 8, we saw the heads of some large herons abovea clump of bushes in the center of the island, so landed to explore it.This is a large, flat, grassy island, mostly dry, covered with a rankgrowth of tall tufted grass and coarse herbage, with a few low bushesand prickly-pear cacti near the center. Mottled ducks and willetswere nesting in the grass and a large flock of black-crowned nightherons rose from their nests on the ground. A colony of about adozen pairs of Ward herons had their nests in the center, built on theground or on the low prickly pears. Some of the ground nests werelow and flat, not much more than a rim of sticks; others were built upto 32 or 36 inches in height and and were from 28 to 32 inches indiameter. They were made of large sticks and were lined with fine
120 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMtwigs, rootlets, and grass. I collected a set of three and a set of foureggs that were nearly fresh, but most of the nests contained youngof various ages, some of which were nearly as large as their parents.There was a black vulture's nest in this colony and another near it.We took the eggs from the first nest and killed the half grown youngin the other.At various other points along the coast we found small groups ofWard herons' nests in practically every heron rookery that we visitedon the islands and on the mainland. They were nesting in closeproximity to and in perfect harmony with American egrets, reddishegrets, snowy egrets, Louisiana herons, and black-crowned nightherons. Nests were placed on the ground, on prickly pears, in lowbushes, or in trees; but usually the commanding positions or the highspots. In the big white ibis rookery, described under that species,in Victoria County, the Ward herons' nests were in the tallest liveoaks and elms, 40 or 50 feet from the ground. In all of these rook-eries the Ward herons were not particularly shy; they frequentlyreturned to their nests near my blind and did not seem to mind it muchmore than the smaller species did. Many of the rookeries were in-fested with swarms of great-tailed grackles; the trees and busheswere full of their nests; and many of the larger herons' nests, par-ticularly those that had been used for several years and were builtup quite high, held one or two grackles' nests in their lower stories.I believe that the same nests are used year after year, new materialbeing added each year, until ultimately they become very large.Dr. A. H. Cordier has sent me the following notes on some Wardherons' nests found by him in Texas
:
Before visiting Big Bird Island in the Laguna de la Madre I had never seen agreat blue heron's nest on the ground. Here I found several. Thej- were hugeaffairs, built of coarse sticks and grasses carried from the main land a few milesaway. The nests showed evidence of having been occupied for several seasons.Like an eagle's old nest the base showed evidence of decay, while the super-structure was made up of recently added sound sticks. One of the nests Imeasured was 4 feet high and 33^ feet across its foundation and 3 feet at apex.The nest cavity was 12 inches deep and 18 inches across. Some of the nests weremere shallow affairs with a layer of grass and weeds on the ground, surroundedwith cacti, and in the midst of a colony of breeding brown pelicans. When oneof these graceful long legged birds returned to its ground nest, it landed usuallya few yards away. With majestic poise, dignified mien, it approached the nestwith measured strides. Its crested head and streaming breast plumes stampedthe bird as the aristocrat of Big Bird Island's bird population. To stand withina few feet of the threshold of one of these big birds as it strides leisurely towardits pleading, hungry young is an event ever to be pleasantly remembered.Eggs.?The eggs arc similar in appearance to those of the northernform. The measurements of 72 eggs average 65.4 by 46.4 millimeters
;
the eggs showing the four extremes measure 76.5 by 47. G7.7 by 61.6,59.7 by 45, and GO.o by 43.5 millimeters.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 121Young.?I have described the process of feeding the young, as Ihave seen it, under the great bhie heron, but Dr. Frank M. Chapman(1908) has given such a good account of it that I am tempted to quotehis observations on the Ward heron, as follows:The young herons were almost as easily alarmed as their parents, and, at thefirst sign of danger, squatted flat in the nest with close-pressed bills. It was notlong, however, before the alert attitude of the young indicated beyond questionthe proximity of one of the parents and, following the direction of their eager,expectant look, I discovered the splendid creature perched on the higher growthto the left, clean-cut and statuesque against the sky. She stood there calmly,showing no trace of the intense excitement which now possessed her offspring,and quietly surveyed her surroundings. Assured that all was well, with erectplumes and partly expanded wings, she slowly walked downward toward thenest, with a dignity of motion and majesty of pose I have never seen excelledby any other bird. The young now were frantic with excitement and, in chorus,uttered their cuk-cuk, cuk-cuk feeding call. As the parent stepped slowly intothe nest its bill was seized by one of the young. The young bird did not thrustits bill down the parental throat nor was the parent's bill introduced into thatof the young. The hold of the young bird was such as one would take with apair of shears, if one were to attempt to cut off the adult's bill at the base. Inthis manner the old bird's head was drawn down into the nest where more orless digested fish was disgorged, of which all the young at once partook. Onone occasion the adult disgorged a fish at least a foot in length, and on discover-ing that it was too large for the young the parent reswallowed the fish andreturned to a perch near the nest while awaiting for the processes of digestionto continue the preparation of the meal.Young Ward herons have a peculiar habit, which is common toall the herons when exposed to the direct rays of the hot sun, of open-ing their mouths and vibrating their throats rapidly; this may becaused by fear or nervousness, but it seems more Ukely that it indi-cates distress from overheating and that it serves as a means of cool-mg their bodies by evaporation; a dog pants and hangs out its tonguewhen overheated; and probably young herons and young cormorantspant in this way for the same reason.Young Ward herons are rather more precocial than their northernrelatives, for their nests are usually closer to or even on the ground,which makes it easier for them to wander. I have seen young birdsof all ages up to fully grown in the nests, and I believe that theyprefer to remain in the nests, if undisturbed. But if frightened, theywill readily leave the nests, particularly nests on or near the ground,when half grown or more. I have found it very diiiicult to photo-graph at close range any of the large young in ground nests. It issurprising to see with what speed the larger young can run, with thehelp of their wings which are then well grown.Food.?The food of this subspecies does not differ materially fromthat of other great blue herons; it consists mainly of lisli, but isvaried occasionally with mammals, birds, reptiles, crustaceans, andinsects. C. J. Maynard (ISOB) relates an interesting experience; ho
122 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
shot at a Ward heron carrying in its bill an unknown object, which
"proved to be a fine specimen of that singular a([uatic arviculinemammal, which had been recently described by Mr. True as Neqfiberalleni, from a single specimen, which up to this time remainedunique." A young bird which we frightened from its nest disgorgeda mullet 10 inches long and a water moccasin 18 inches long.Behavior.?There is very little difference in behavior between thisand other great blue herons, but my experience with it, both inFlorida and in Texas, has indicated that it is much less shy. Itseems to have a decitled antipathy toward the great white heron.Audubon (1S40) took a pair of young Ward herons to Charlestonwith him, of which he says:I had them placed iu a large coop containing four individuals of the Ardeaoccidenlalis, who immediately attacked the newcomers in the most violent man-ner, so that I was obliged to turn them loose on the deck. I had frequentlyobserved the great antipathy evinced by the majestic white species toward theblue in the wild state, but was surprised to find it equally strong in young birdswhich had never seen one, and were at that period smaller than the others. Allmy endeavers to remove their dislike were unavailing, for when placed in a largeyard, the white herons attacked the blue and kept them completely under.Mr. Maynard (1896) had a somewhat similar experience. Onethat he kept in confinement in Florida was "constantly trying to getat some beautiful white herons," which he allowed to go at large.This bird managed, after a time, to kill one out of three of the whiteherons.Enemies.?These large herons are well able to take care of them-selves and the adults have few enemies; even man does not oftenmolest them as they have no plumes of commercial value. But theeggs and small young are far from safe, if left unguarded by theirparents. In Florida the crows and fish crows, which often live in ornear the rookeries, pounce on the eggs of any of the herons at thefirst opportunity offered by the absence of the old herons, and manyeggs are destroyed by them every year. In Texas the black vultureis the greatest scourge. One or more pairs of these rascals havetheir nests in practically every rookery and they must levy heavytoll on both eggs and young. This habit is so well known that thewardens make an effort to kill every vulture that they can and tobreak up their nests. DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?Southeastern United States. East to southeast-ern South Carolina (Hiltonliead, Beaufort County) ; Georgia (Savan-nah and mouth of the Altamaha River); and Florida (St. JohnsRiver, Mosquito Inlet, Indian River, and Hillsboro River). Southto Florida Keys (Upper Matecumbe Key, Key West, and MarquesasKey); Alabama (Montgomery County and,Greensboro); Mississippi
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 123(probably Biloxi) ; Louisiana (Houma and Cameron Parish) ; and theGulf coast of Texas (Beaumont, Calhoun, Victoria, and RefugioCounties, Corpus Christi, and Brownsville) . West to central Texas(probably Gurley, Waco, and Gainesville) ; central Oklahoma andKansas. North to southeastern Iowa (Henry County) ; southeasternIllinois (Mount Carmel) ; southwestern Indiana (Knox County) ; andSouth Carolina (Hiltonhead).Winter range.?Florida and the GuLf States, south to central Mex-ico. East to Florida (St. Johns River, Mosquito Inlet, Orlando,Micco, and Miami). South to the Florida Keys (Upper MatecumbeKey and Dry Tortugas, probably) ; Mississippi (probably Biloxi)
;
Louisiana (Marsh Island and Vermilion Bay) ; Texas (Corpus Christiand Brownsville) ; and central Mexico (Ocotlan, Jalisco) . West tocentral Mexico (Ocotlan) and Texas (Brownsville) , North to Texas(Giddings) ; Arkansas (Fayettevilie and Corning) ; Mississippi (Wav-erly) and Alabama (Greensboro)
.
Egg dates.?Florida: 44 records, December S to April 21; 22records, February 7 to March 17. Texas: 35 records, March 8 toMay 27; 18 records, April 3 to May 7.ARDEA HERODIAS TREGANZAl CourtTREGANZA HERONHABITSThe great blue heron of the western plains and the semiarid regionsof the Southwest has been given the above name, as a pallid subspe-cies. In size it is but sUghtly larger than herodias, but the upper partsand neck are paler in color; it is like wardi in color but is decidedlysmaller throughout.Nesting.?Owing to the nature of the country it inhabits its nest-ing liabits are somewhat different from those of the other subspecies.Coues (1874) gives us a vivid picture [of its breeding resorts, asfollows
:
The breeding places of the great blue heron on the Colorado River offer nosuch scenes as those of the same bird do in Florida, for instance. There may,indeed, be places along this river overgrown with low, dense woods, simulatinga cypress swamp, where the birds may resort to breed, along with the woodibises; but for the most part, the herons that wend their way along the Coloradoare only screened by low, straggling mezquite, that scarcely hides them, orpatches of arrowwood {Tessaria borealis), that they can overlook. Where theriver flows deepest and swiftest, cutting its way through bold canons that risefrowning on either hand like the battlements of giant castles?where the fervidrays of the sun heat the rocks till they almost crack, and sand blisters the feet
?
there the herons fix their nests, overhanging the element whence they drawsubsistence. The face of the cliffs in many places is covered with singular nestsof the eave swallow, breeding by thousands; while on the flat projecting shelvesof rock we find, here and there, the bulky platforms of twigs and sticks, and
124 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMperhaps see the sedate bird herself, setting motionless on the nest, hopefullybiding her time, cheered during her long waiting by the joyous troops of theswallows that flutter incessantly around.Referring to the same general region, Dr. Joseph Grinnell (1914)writes
:
Nesting colonies were observed in trees at many points through the largevalleys, and one group of nests was noted on a pinnacle of rock in the narrowcanyon just below The Needles. Ordinarily nests were placed in the tips of thelargest cottonwoods in the neighborhood. Special predilection was evinced fordead trees standing close to the river. This would seem to be because of theclear fly way afforded to and from the nests and because of the more extensiveoutlook possible. But there were in this region drawbacks to these advantages.When Edward J. Court (1908) published his description of thissubspecies he named it in honor of A. O. Treganza and publishedsome of his notes on the breeding habits of this heron on certainislands in Great Salt Lake, Utah. The nesting habits here are sodifferent from those of other great blue herons elsewhere, that it seemsdesirable to quote from Mr. Treganza's notes, as follows:Hat Island, May 8, 1906.?Found a colony of 40 pairs. All stages of nidifi-cation existed, except nest building. There seems to be a decided difference inthe disposition of the young. Some show signs of fight as soon as you makeyour presence known, while others pay little or no attention to your doings.The nests here are placed some on the rocks and some on top of the large thornysage bushes which grow from 4 to 5 feet high. Some of the nests are very beau-tiful, being built out of sage branches that have been exposed to the elements untilthey have become a most subtle gray tone that fairly vibrates under sunlight.Some of the nests measure from 4 to 5 feet in diameter.The nearest feeding ground for these birds is the mouth of the Jordan River,some 35 miles, almost due east of the island. The flight to the feeding groundsbegins about 3 a. m., and by sunrise all the birds that are going for that dayhave left the island, except a few isolated cases which may be seen going andcoming all day long, the main body returning so that they reach the island bysundown. Some of these birds travel 50 or 60 miles from the island for food.A certain portion of the birds always remain on the island during the day. Evenwere it not for the incubation of the eggs and the care of the young, this wouldbe made necessary through the fact that as soon as a nest of eggs is left unpro-tected it is immediately pounced upon by the Larus californicus, who crack theeggs by pecking and feed on their contents. Here Ardea herodias is nesting incompany with Larus californicus and Pelecanus erythrorhynchos.Egg Island, May 11, 1906.?Here the Ardea herodias nests in company withLarus californicus and Phalacrocorax dilophus. This island contained about 50breeding pairs. All stages of nidification existed except nest building. Thenearest feeding ground for the birds on this island is about 15 miles. The nestson this island are all placed on the higher bowlders among the reef rocks, usuallybeside a large bowlder. The bowlder is used as a perch for the owner of the nestbeneath. Apparently the birds consider this bowlder as much a part of theirpossession as the nest, for should another attempt to alight on a perch that is nothis own, he is immediately and properly punished for his trespassing. Such anoccasion as this is the only time I have ever seen the adult birds show any signsof quarreling. Some of the nests on this island are very handsomely andwonderfully made, two or three nests measuring each about 5 feet in diameter.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 125Most of the sticks used in constructing the nest are of the sage bush. Apparentlythese nests are very old and have been used for many years, a little bit beingadded each year in the way of rebuilding and house cleaning. It seems quiteremarkable that the young do not injure themselves from the large coarse stickswhich form the inner nest, if the same could be called an inner nest. The de-pression of the nests is very slight. The depression starts from the outer edgeof the nest and very gradually sinks into the center.General Remarks.?On first observation the nests of the great blue heron appearvery flimsy, especially the edges, which seem to be very much frayed out andloose. One would think that the storms of a winter would entirely demolishthese nests, but on close observation it is found that they are most compactlymade, and it is quite evident that the same nests are used from year to yearwith but very little rebuilding in the spring. One can very easily tell wherenew sticks have been added, from the fact that they are not sun"! bleached, asare the old sticks in the nest. From seeing the size of the new nests that havebeen built this year and comparing them with the older nests, one would be verysafe in saying that these large old nests are the pioneer homes of these birds andmark their first advent to Great Salt Lake, the date of which we shall omit.Eggs.?The eggs are similar to those of the other great bUie herons,The measurements of 44 eggs average 60.1 by 41.9 milHmeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measm-e 68 by 47.2, 63 by 47.7, 51.9by 35.1, and 52.4 by 34.8 millimeters.Food.?Referring to the feeding habits of this heron in the lowerColorado Valley, Doctor Grinnell (1914) writes:Along the whole course of the river, save in the rock-walled box canyons, blueherons were almost continually in sight. Their chief foraging grounds were themud bars traversed by shallow diversions of the river. The habit of the riverof having frequent periods of falling water, even when, as in the spring, the aggre-gate tendency is to rise, results in the stranding of many fishes in the shallowoverflows as the water seeps away or evaporates. This frequently recurringsupply of fish appears to be the chief source of food of all the species of heronsoccuring in the region. The stomach of one blue heron contained a semiliquidmass of fish, identifiable from the large-sized scales as carp; another containeda large catfish. One stomach was empty save for a single grasshopper leg; thisgives a clue as to an emergency diet when the river is rising rapidly. It maybe remarked that the opacity of the moving water of the main stream is socomplete as effectually to prevent fishing here by piscivorous birds in the usualmanner.Behavior.?The tracts of curious, fluffy, buff-colored feathers foundon the breasts of herons have long been subjects of speculation asto their function, A popular theory has been that the greasy pow-der, with which these tracts are filled, produces a phosphorescentlight which serves to illuminate its surroundings when the heron isfishing at night. Several observers claim to have seen such phos-phorescent illumination in living birds, but it has never been defi-nitely proven that these feather tracts have any luminous qualities.Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1920) has made some interesting studiesof this subject in a young Treganza heron, which lead to an entirelydifferent conclusion. He writes:92642?26t 10
126 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMIn the young great blue heron powder-down tracts produced functionalfeathers soon after the contour and flight feathers had burst their sheaths andthe bird began to preen and care for its plumage. The heron in question hadbeen taken from the nest while still too young to know fear of man, and as Ireared it by hand it became devoted to me, though fierce and truculent towardall others. As its plumage developed I noted that the bird constantly rubbedthe bill in the powder downs, and on examination found that the heron wasutilizing the greasy, powdery substance given off by the tracts to dress and oilthe contour feathers. The bill was worked in among the powder downs until asmall amount of the exuviae had gathered at the tips of the mandibles and thencontour or wing feathers were pulled rapidly through the bill, anointing themwith this oily substance. At once return was made to the powder downs afterwhich other feathers were treated in turn until the whole of the body and wingplumage had been properly dressed. I had no difficulty in observing the processas, when permitted, the heron until practically grown delighted in standing uponmy knee as I sat in a chair. I was able to place my fingers in beside the tip of thebill, in the powder downs, to feel the mandibles gently nibbling at the downy feath-ers and then to see the bill withdrawn with its sides covered with the grayishpowder. Following this I observed as it was passed over other feathers. Thisprocess was repeated daily whenever I cared to see it. At the same time I dis-covered by examination that the uropygial gland, the usual source of oil forfeathers, seemed undeveloped and remained in a nonfunctional condition untilthe heron was pratically grown. The bird in early life paid no attention to thisgland, but worked in either pelvic or pectoral down patches. The actual devel-opment of the oil gland I did not observe as the heron at this stage became sovicious toward others that I was forced to discourage its tameness until finallyit left the laboratory.Parenthetically I may add that although on various occasions I examinedpowder-down tracts in living and in dead herons I was unable to observe thatthese tracts were luminous, in spite of numerous records on the part of othersto the contrary. DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?Western United States except the Pacific coastregion. East to Montana (Damson County and Fallon) ; Wyoming(Sheridan and Fort Laramie) ; central Colorado (Crow Creek, WeldCounty, Brighton, and Arkansas Valley, probably); New Mexico(Carlsbad); and Texas (Kerr County, probably). South to central-western Texas (Tornillo Creek near Boquillas) ; Sonora (Guaymas)
;
and northern Lower California (Salton River) . West to Lower Cali-fornia (Salton River) ; southeastern California (Pehcan Island, SaltonSea and the Colorado River near Riverside Mountain); Nevada(Truckee River and Pyramid Lake) ; and Oregon (Klamath Lake,probably). North to Washington (Yakima Valley, probably andCheney) ; and Montana (Great Falls, probably and Dawson County,probably)
.
Winter range.?Mexico, and southwestern United States. North(rarely) to Idaho and Wyoming (Yellowstone Park) . East to NewMexico (Dona Ana) ; and Texas (Fort Clark and Brownsville) . Southand west to the west coast of Mexico (Manzanillo). North to Ari-
NORTH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 127
zona (Fort Verde) ; Utah (St. George) ; and occasionally to northernIdaho (Meridian, Neeley, and St. Joseph River).Spring migration
.
?Early dates of arrival are: Colorado, El PasoCount}', April 2, Salida, March 19, Littleton, March 24, Denver,March 30, and Boulder, March 20; Wyoming, Cheyenne, April 3,Sheridan, April 13, and Yellowstone Park, May 3; Montana, Bill-ings, April 11, and Terry, May 2.Fall migration.?-Late dates of departure are: Montana, Terry,September 24, Missoula, September 28; Wyoming, Yellowstone Park,October 5; Colorado, Greeley, October 15, Boulder, October 16, Den-ver, October 3, Littleton, November 3, and Teller County, November27; west in migration to California, Sacramento Valley.Egg dates.?Utah, Nevada, California and Arizona: 24 records,March 30 to May 30; 12 records, April 17 to May 9.ARDEA HEKODIAS HYPERONCA OberholserCALIFORNIA HERONHABITSThe great blue heron of California and Oregon has been separatedas a distinct subspecies under the above name. It closely resemblesin color our bird of the Northeastern States, but it is said to bedecidedly larger. Its habits are similar.CourtsJdp.?Mr. J. B. Smith (1894) has published an interestingaccount of the courtship of this heron, which I quote, as follows:Just before mating time in the spring, the birds hie them to some secludedspot far from the madding crowd and there give themselves up to social ameni-ties, at which times the male birds "show off" before the lady birds with avanity almost human. On these occasions the birds form a circle, and wheneach has taken its position one of the older of the feathered frauds jumps intothe ring and proceeds with the showing off act. This consists of a series of skipswith wing-flapping accompaniment and curving of the neck. After any excep-tionally striking display of agility the performer pauses and looks around with amost ludicrous "How's that for high?" expression; and, just like girls say, " O,ain't he sweet? " the lady herons sweetly k-r-a-a-k approval in the tones of thebasso profundo bullfrog, while the envious male birds chip in dissonant remarksthat rasp the atmosphere like the output of the horse fiddle. The performerhaving exhausted his repertory retires to the ranks and is succeeded by another;and thus the circus goes on until every male bird has made full display of hiscallsthenic accomplishments and the seance closes. The birds then shake theVving for home.Nesting.?William L. Finley (1906) during the summer of 1904,made several visits to a large heronry in a swampy region not veryfar distant from San Francisco. He says:This heronry was in the center of a narrow wooded belt reaching out into theswamp for about a mile. When we approached this thicket we saw the treeswere well loaded with nests. We skirted the edge of the belt looking for anentrance, but to our surprise each place we tried to enter was barred with a
128 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMperfect mass of tangled bushes aud trees. I never saw such a tangled mass ofbrush. Fallen limbs and trees of alder, swamp maple and willow interlacedwith blackberry briers, poison oak, and the rankest growth of nettles. All thewhile we were assailed by an increasing mob of starving mosquitos that wentraving mad at the taste of blood. We pushed on, straining, sweating, crawlingand climbing for a hundred yards that seemed more like a mile. We forgot it allthe minute we stood under the largest sycamore. It was 7 feet thick at thebase and a difficult proposition to climb. But this was the center of businessactivity in the heron village. The monster was 120 feet high and had a spreadof limbs equal to its height. In this single tree we counted 41 blue heron nestsand 28 night heron nests; 69 nests in one tree. In another tree were 17 of the largernests and 28 of the smaller. We made the first trip to the heronry on April 21,and found most of the nests contained eggs. There were about 700 nests inthe whole colony, of which the larger number were black-crowned night herons.The great blues and the night herons occupied the same trees, nesting side byside. The larger nests were built almost entirely in the tops of the sycamores,while the night herons set their platform nests at the very upturned tips of thesycamore's limbs and in the lower surrounding willows and alders.When I first climbed in among the nests of a smaller tree with my camera, itsounded as if I were in the midst of a gigantic henhouse. Some of the birdswere clacking over their eggs that were soon to be hatched; others were wran-gling and squabbling, so that there was a continual clattering fuss, above whichone had to yell his loudest to be heard. I sat straddling a limb, with my note-book in hand. About me, seemingly almost within reach, I counted 36 sets ofblue eggs. I was high above the tops of the alders and willows. Set all aboutbelow, in the background of green, were the platforms each holding several eggsof blue. The trees were dotted with them in every direction. I counted over400 eggs in sight.Edward K. Taylor (1897) discovered an interesting colony ofthese herons in the southern marshes of San Francisco Bay, which hevisited on April 30, 1897. He describes it as follows:From the course of the creek it was evident that the herons have selected thehighest spot on the salt marsh for a nesting place. The rookery is about 2 milesfrom the mainland and three-quarters of a mile from the bay shore, and here,within an area less than an acre in extent, are located more than 50 nests. Icounted 36 from one point. The nests were constructed of smaller sticks than isusual in those found in trees, the birds securing twigs, none more than three-quarters of an inch in diameter, from bushes which grow to a height of about 3feet on the marshes. They wore from 6 to IS inches in height. Some lined withdry grass. Depression was from 3 inches in the older nests to 9 inches in themore modern ones, the average being 4 inches. Most of the nests were bleachedofifal white and had apparently been in use for many years. All were remarka-bly neat and clean. They were ranged along the edge of the winding creek, about8 feet apart, and another row of nests would be found on the opposite side. Threeor four eggs or the same luimber of young herons were found in most of the nestsbut the older families were composed of but two or three young. Several setswere secured, and fresh eggs were taken from a few nests.H. W. Carriger and J. R. Pcmberton (1908) published an accountof a colony which was forced to abandon its rookery in the tops ofsome eucalyptus trees, near Redwood City, California, and was laterfound established in a marsh with nests on the ground.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 129The colony consisted of 49 nests and covered an area of about 200 feet by 100feet. The nests were built always upon the very edge of the little sloughs of 3or 4 feet depth, and were sometimes within 5 feet of each other and as far as 20feet apart; but usually about 10 feet was spaced between nests. All nests wereconstructed of the dried branches of the common marsh grass, and were quiteserviceable structures. They varied in size from 2 feet in diameter flat on theground to 4 feet across and 14 inches in height. Nearly all nests were builtupon an old one, and probably in a few years quite high monuments will beerected. The contents of the nests varied from fresh empty nests to those con-taining young about big enough to find their way home again. Sets of eggs weretwo, three and four and both fresh and incubated eggs were plentiful.John G. Tyler (1913) found a colony of nino pairs occupying alarge lone cottonwood that stood on the bank of Fish Slough nearNew Hope in Fresno County. "All these nests were large, well-hollowed platforms strongly built of sticks and placed from 40 to 60feet above the ground." A. B. Howell (1917) says that the heronsthat breed on the Santa Barbara Islands "build their nests in theniches of the cliffs." J. Eugene Law writes to me that he "found acolony of some size nesting in the tops of the giant native oaks inthe vicinity of Visalia on the floor of the San Joaquin Valley ofCalifornia. Some trees had 15 or 20 nests."Eggs.?The eggs are similar to tliose of the eastern subspecies.The measurements of 40 eggs average 61.3 by 43.4 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 71.5 by 47.5, 69.5 by 50.5,and 51.3 by 34.8 millimeters.Food.?The food of the California heron is, in the main, similar tothat of the other subspecies. Mr. Tyler (1913) says:The farmers of this county should do all in their power to afford protectionto the blue heron, as it is one of the best gopher destroyers in existence. It isno uncommon sight to see a heron standing motionless for hours at a time inan alfalfa field waiting for a gopher to make its appearance. Small fish, frogs,and probably Uzards, if thej^ are obtainable, are eaten, and on many occasionsherons have been observed in pairs on the dry barren hillsides along the SanJoaquin River busily engaged in catching grasshoppers. AbiHty to adapt itselfto changing conditions and a varied diet has caused this bird to become widelydiffused throughout the valley, and has, no doubt, assisted materially inpreserving the species.Mr. W. Leon Dawson (1923) writes:We dwellers by the southern sea oftenest descry this bird as a lone watcher farout in the kelp beds, and we are moved to call him the kelp heron. The sametactics of tireless patience and lightning speed evidently avail here to secure forhim an abundant harvest of smelts and shrimps, for the bird will stand by thehour on a sinking raft of kelp fronds, though it leave him submerged to the belly.His sea legs are, therefore, considering their great length, rather best on earth,for their owner has to maintain his balance in the face of unceasing motion, andso nicely, that suspicious little fishes shall not be put to flight by a single falsemotion.
130 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMBehavior.?Dr. Alexander Wetmore's (1916a) experiments inascertaining the speed of flight of certain birds, included two observa-tions on this subspecies. The experiments were made in a movingautomobile, driven at the same speed as a bird flying paraUel withit, by keeping close watch of the bird and the speedometer. Thetwo herons were about 70 yards away; they were observed sepa-rately' ; and t]\ey both traveled at exactly the same speed, 28 milesan hour. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?"Pacific coast region of the United States, ranging east toSan Gabriel, western California and Baird, central northern CaUfornia;south to San Diego, southwestern California; west to Santa BarbaraIslands and north to western Oregon. iVpparently a permanent resi-dent throughout most or all of its range but stragglers in winter havebeen detected west to the Farallon Islands, California and east to St.John, Glenn County, California." (Oberholser 1912a)Egg dates.?California and Oregon: 91 records, February 18 toMay 27; 46 records, March 30 to April 23.ARDEA HERODIAS SANCTILUCAE Thayer and BangsESPIRITU SANTO HERONHABITSThe "very light colors" of the great blue heron of southern LowerCalifornia were first mentioned by Baird, Brewer, and Ridgway(1884); Brewster (1902a) enlarged upon this point and suggestedrecognition as a subspecies; but it was 10 years later when Thayerand Bangs (1912) actually named this local race. It is characterizedas "a very large great blue heron, with all the colors very pale."In size it is nearly as large as wardi of Florida; and in color it isalmost exactly like cognata of the Galapagos Islands.Very little has been published regarding its habits, which are prob-ably not essentially different from those of the other subspecies. ThecoUector of the type series, W. W. Brown, jr., found a large colonybreeding on Espiritu Santo Island, and another smaller colony in amangrove swamp on San Jose Island. "The nests, well-made plat-forms of sticks, about 4 feet in diameter, were placed in the trees atabout 40 feet from the ground." Six sets of eggs were collected herebetween February 15 and 18, 1909, of which the average measure-ments were 52 by 36.5 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasure 59.4 by 42.1, 55.5 by 43.8 and 47.5 by 34.2 miflimeters.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Known only from southern Lower California (EspirituSanto Island and San Jose del Cabo) wheye it is probably resident.
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 131Egg dates.?Southern Lower California: 12 records, February 15to June 19; 6 records, February 18.ARDEA CINEREA CINEREA LinnaeusEUROPEAN HERONHABITSContributed by Charles Wendell TownsendWhile this heron ranges through Europe, Asia, and Africa, its onlyclaim for recognition in North America is the fact that it is acciden-tal in Greenland. A young bird has been found dead there and Hag-erup (1891) says it is "an occasional visitor in south Greenland. InBenzon's collection there was a skin from Godthaab taken January14,1877."Resembling closely our great blue heron in plumage and habits,the European heron, known in England as the common heron orsimply as the heron?the Tiearnshaw of Shakespeare's day?differsfrom our bird in being somewhat smaller and paler, and in lackingthe rich brown of the legs and bend of wing.Nesting.?Where the birds are much persecuted and diminished innumbers, solitary nests are occasionally found, but the normal habitof this heron appears to be to nest in colonies of from 3 or 4 pairsup to 20 or 30 or even to 100 or more. As a rule the heron builds itsnest near the top of a tall tree, a pine or fir or oak, often in open sit-uations and on high ground, frequently at a distance from the wateryet in some cases close beside it. Nesting colonies are also found onprecipitous cliffs near the coast, the nest being placed on low bushesor amidst ivy. The nest is said on rare occasions to be placedamong reeds and rushes on the ground. The excrements of the birdshave a disastrous effect on the trees, as in all heronries, and, onthis account, the attempt is sometimes made to drive the birds out,although as a rule a heronry is considered an interesting and desir-able asset to an estate. Although heronries are not so large nor sonumerous in England as in the old days of falconry when they werezealously guarded, they still exist in considerable numbers.The nests are large flat structures made up of sticks and twigs,occasionally built up on old nests of cormorants, and lined with sheep'swool where this can be obtained on the moors, or with hair, drygrasses, moss, rushes or flags.Eggs.?[Author's note: The European heron usually lays four orfive eggs, but occasionally as many as six or even seven. They arepractically indistinguishable in general appearance from those of ourgreat blue heron. They are described in Witherby's (1290^24)Handbook as "dull light blue-green, frequently splashed with white-wash and sometimes stained with blood." The measurements there-in given, of 101 eggs, average 60.2 by 43 millimeters; the eggs
132 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMshowing the four extremes measure 68.4 by 43.7, 61.5 by 49.7, 55.4 by42.2 and 59.6 by 40 millimeters.]Young.?-According to Evans (1891), incubation is 25 or 26 daysin length. Both parents feed the young which, helpless at first, laterclimb actively among the branches of the nesting tree and comportthemselves in all respects like their near relatives in this country.A heronry resounds with the grunts, squeals, harsh screams, chatter-ing, quackings, and barkings of the young birds eager to be fed.Plumages.?[xluthor's note: The sequence of molts and plumages,from the downy young to the adult, which is fully described inWitherby's (1920-24) Handbook, seems to correspond with thesequence in our great blue heron. The juvenal plumage is worn forabout a year. The second winter plumage is much like the adult,but the fully adult plumage is not complete until the young bird is2 years old. Adults have a complete molt between July and Novem-ber and a limited spring molt, especially of the crest feathers, betweenFebruary and April.]Food.?Fish of all sorts are the chief food of the European heron,but worms, water insects, newts, frogs, mice, water voles, and youngbirds are all welcomed.Behavior.?The European heron like our great blue heron is shyand wary and well able to take care of itself, rarely allowing a humanbeing to approach within gunshot. It is a striking figure as it standsmotionless on its long legs in the marsh with its neck doubled up.Its keen eyes are on the watch for game, and, if a fish swims withinstriking distance, the heron's bill and long neck dart out with lightningspeed and the prey is transfixed. Again it walks stealthily towardits prey, lifting and putting down its great feet with slow deliberationand holding its body horizontal. It rarely misses its aim and is amost successful fisherman. A. H. Patterson (1905) says: "I haveseen a heron so replete with fish that it could swallow no more, yetcontinue to capture eels and let them go again, probably with regret,or possibly for the fun of the exercise."When disturbed, the heron jumps into the air with quick, nervouswing flaps and with outstretched neck, the picture of awkward clumsi-ness, but it soon folds up its neck, extends its legs behind, and, withslow measured beats of its huge wings, it flies away in majestic graceand beauty. The cry of the adult, according to Hudson (1902), "ispowerful and harsh, and not unlike the harsh alarm cry of the pea-cock."Game.?The heron was formerly considered the most desirablequarry in falconry and on this account herons were protected by actof Parliament. It was royal game and the heronries were sacred.John Shaw (1635) gives the following quaint description of the sport:"The heron or hernshaw is a large fowlc that livcth about waters * * *
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 133and hath a marvelous hatred to the hawk, which hatred is dulyreturned. When they fight above in the air, they labour both espe-cially for this one thing?that one may ascend and be above the other.Now, if the hawk gettoth the upper place, he overthroweth and van-quisheth the heron with a marvellous earnest flight." After one ortwo strikes, if the hawk is successful, the heron is borne to the groundwhere the attack is renewed, and the sharp, daggerlike bill of theheron and his great strength and quickness in striking make him aformidable antagonist. In later years it became a point of honorfor the falconers to ride hard to the finish to make sure that the heronwas uninjured. A copper ring was fixed to his leg with the date ofcapture engraved on it and the place of its liberation.The heron was formerly considered a delicacy for the table. Inthe reign of Edward IV no less than 400 herons were served at theenthronement of the Archbishop of York, and there is the record of"6 hearnshaws" being served at the Hall of the Stationers' Companyas late as 1812. Its fat, especially from the marrow of the thighbones was believed to be especially attractive to fish and was muchsought after as an ingredient in the pastes used as bait.[Author's note.?Since the above was written, Julian S. Huxley(1924) has published some observations on the ceremonies of courtshipnest relief, stick presentation, and other expressions of emotion, asseen in the common European heron. The author would refer thereader to this interesting paper, which is well worth reading.]distributionRange.?Great Britain and most of continental Europe and Asia,south of 60? north latitude, and parts of tropical India and Africa,south to Cape Colony; replaced by a closely allied form in easternSiberia, China, and Japan. Accidental in Iceland and Greenland(Godthaab, Jan. 14, 1877). Casual in the Faroes, Madeira, andAscension.Egg dates.?Great Britain: 10 records, February 28 to May 20;o records, March 26 to May 12.CASMERODIUS EGRETTA (Gmelin)AMERICAN EGRETHABITSThe "long white," as it is called by the plume hunters of Florida,is well named. Its long, smooth, slender neck, so expressive in itsvaried poses, its long, graceful, flowing plumes, reaching far beyond itstail like a bridal train, and the exquisite purity of its snowy-whiteplumage make a picture of striking beauty when sharply outlinedagainst a background of dark green foliage or when clearly mirrored
134 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMon the surface of a quiet pool. Again, as it springs into flight withneck and legs extended, and as it flaps majestically away on its broadwhite wings, it seems to be the longest, the slenderest, and the mostethereal of the herons.The beauty of its long, flowing plumes, which adorn its back onlyduring the breeding season, has well-nigh proved its undoing; relent-lessly pursued by avaricious plume hunters for many years, it hasbeen driven from many of its former haunts and has been danger-ously nearextermination. But through adequate protection in certainplaces and by virtue of its own natural shyness, it has survived andis now increasing in many of its former haunts. It was never asnumerous as its smaller relative, the snowy egret, and its numberswere proportionately less reduced. And now there is every reasonto believe that it will continue to increase in favorable localities.Courtship.?Audubon (1840) gives the only account I have seenof this interesting performance as follows
:
As early as December I have observed vast numbers congregated, as if for thepurpose of making choice of partners, when the addresses of the males were paidin a very curious and to me interesting manner. Near the plantation of JohnBulow, Esq., in east Florida, I had the pleasure of witnessing this sort of tourna-ment or dress ball from a place of conceahnent not more than 100 yards distant.The males, in strutting round the females, swelled their throats, as cormorantsdo at times, emitted gurgling sounds, raising their long plumes almost erect,paced majestically before the fair ones of their choice. Although these snowybeaux were a good deal irritated by jealousy, and conflicts now and then tookplace, the whole time I remained much less fighting was exhibited than I hadexpected from what I had already seen in the case of the great blue heron, ArdeaHerodias. These meetings took place about 10 o'clock in the morning, or afterthey had all enjoyed a good breakfast, and continued until nearly 3 in the after-noon, when, separating into flocks of 8 or 10 individuals, they flew off to searchfor food. These maneuvers were continued nearly a week, and I could withease, from a considerable distance, mark the spot, which was a clear sand bar, bythe descent of the separate small flocks previous to their alighting there.Nesting.?When I fii-st visited Florida, in 1902, the egrets wereprobably at their lowest ebb, though they were still to be found insmall numbers in all the localities we visited. In Brevard Countywe visited two localities, small cypress swamps, where the year beforelarge breeding rookeries of egrets existed, but not an occupied nestwas to be seen. On the upper St. Johns we saw a few egrets, but found nonests. In Monroe County in 1903, among perhaps 4,000 birds in thebig Cuthbert rookery, we counted only 18 American egrets and found7 nests. In the latter locality they increased decidedly during thefollowing five years; when we visited the Cuthbert rookery in 1908,we estimated that it contained between 300 and 400 Americanegrets. Their nests were scattered all over the rookery and weremostly on the tops of the mangroves, where the birds could obtain agood outlook.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 135The largest rookery of American egrets that I have ever seeu isnow safely guarded in a United States bird reservation, locally knownas Bird Key, in Boca Coiga Bay, Pinellas County, Florida. It is wellnamed, for it is a bird paradise, densely populated dming the breed-ing season with many thousands of water birds, Florida cormorants,brown pelicans, white ibises, American and snowy egrets, Ward,Lousiana, and yellow-crowned night herons. I made a number ofvisits to this most interesting rookery during the spring of 1925, andbecame quite familiar with its varied bird population. At the timeof my first visit, on March 11, the American egrets were already wellalong with their nesting and apparently all had eggs. They weregrouped in a densely populated, but quite extensive area in the mostheavily wooded portion of the island, where the trees were tallest andthickest, red and black mangroves, buttonwoods, bays and willows.They were intimately associated with Ward herons and Florida cor-morants and apparently on good terms with them. The Ward heronshad young in their nests, at that time, in the tops of the tallest trees.But the cormorants, the most numerous species on the island, werethen busy with their courtships and were building their nests in thetops of all of the larger trees; these filthy, black creatures seemedout of place among the beautiful white egrets. The egret's nests wereplaced at various heights in the smaller and medium-sized trees, from12 to 30 feet up; a few were in the larger trees, but usually not nearthe tops. The nests were frail and poorly made, as is usually thecase with this species. The birds were very tame and it was an easymatter to watch them, even without a blind, at short range; but thefoliage was so dense, with practically no open spaces, that it wasalmost impossible to get clear views for photographs. It was inter-esting though to watch the home life of these beautiful birds and seethem standing or sitting on their nests all around us. Even whennot alarmed they seemed none too anxiously to incubate, but spentmuch time standing on or near their nests in various attitudes ofindolence or indifference; eventually they would settle down on theirnests. Occasionally we saw the ceremony of nest relief, a spectacularperformance ; with much loud croaking, to which his mate replies,the male alights in the top of the nest-tree or one near it; with muchdisplay of plumage, raised wings and elevated plumes, he walksalong or down the branches to the nest, where he greets and caresseshis mate ; she responds by lifting her head and raising the plumesabove her back; in graceful attitudes they admire each others charms,a beautiful picture of conjugal happiness and a great display of pur-est loveliness; aftcT a few moments she departs and he assumes chargeof the nest. Settling down to incubate is a deliberate process; afterstanding over the eggs for awhile, the bird slowly crouches and finallysettles down with the back plumes elevated and spread; gradually
136 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthese are lowered, the head is drawn down between the shoulders andthe long plumes extend beyond the nest like graceful white streamers.The nests of the American egret are much like those of other her-ons, but are usualy not as well made; they are flat platforms of sticksrather loosely put together and not much larger than the bettortypes of night herons' nests. Often there is little or no attempt atnest lining, but sometimes the nests are considerably hollowed and welllined with fine twigs, vines, or weed stems.American egrets were not common on the coast of Texas in 1923,but we found three small colonies. On one of a chain of islands be-tween Mesquite and San Antonio Bays we found a colony of five orsix pairs nesting in a clump of small willows in the midst of a largebreeding colony of reddish egrets, Louisiana herons, and snowy egrets;the island was low and rather swampy, overgrown with low bushesand herbage, in which the smaller herons were nesting; in the smallclump of willows, the only trees of any size on the island, a few pairsof Ward herons were nesting with the American egrets. The egrets'nests were from 4 to 8 feet up in the small trees and all containedyoung of various ages on May 16.In Victoria County, Texas, we found two colonies. One, in abutton-willow swamp on Weed Prairie, had once been well populated;the nests were 8 or 10 feet above the water, which was 2 or 3 feetdeep, in the willows; most of the nests had been abandoned when wevisited it on May 21. The other, a colony of 25 or 30 pairs, was ina clump of willows in an open space among tall timber in a big rook-ery of white ibises, roseate spoonbills, Ward, and little blue herons.The nests wore from 10 to 20 feet up in the willows and containedyoung of various ages on May 30.W. J. Erichsen has sent me the following notes on a Georgia colony:On May 11, 1915, a long-planned visit to the heron rookery on Ossabaw Island,20 miles southwest of Savannah, became a reality. We began working our waythrough the rank vegetation toward the little colony of egrets which we deter-mined upon as our first objective. Before we had penetrated the marginal growthmany yards, egrets began to vacate their nests, most of the birds withdrawingentirely from the pond, alighting singly or in little groups on the branches of thetall pines at the far end of the pond where they stood out against the dark greenfoliage in statuesque beautj". As our stay in close proximity to their nestslengthened, some individuals were seen cautiously leaving their outposts andsoaring overhead at considerable heights, their anxiety to return to their nestspartly overcoming their warj^ nature. With snakelike necks drawn close in andlegs extended straight behind they soared and circled lightly above our heads,mingling with the myriads of Louisiana and little blue herons whose homes werealso in the willows here below.Passing through the rank vegetation growing about the margin we find our-selves in more open water. Little islands of tall green saw-grass and cat-tailflags spring up here and there, between which are open spaces of water of varioussize. In some of these islands willows have taken root in the soft ooze, sometimesin clusters of two or three but more often singly. In the stoutest of these trees
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 137
egrets had built their uests usually at a point where several stout limbs con-verged. Two or three pairs generally occupied a tree, but no nests of otherspecies of herons were seen among the little colony, which occupied only a verysmall area. They seem to prefer living apart, at least they appear not to cravesuch close association with other herons as do the little blue and Louisiana.Although we made no very careful or accurate count of the number of pairs nestinghere we estimated it not to exceed 15.The nest is a very bulky platform of stout twigs substantially interlaced,nevertheless the structures can be pulled apart with suprisingly little effort.Any limb or crotch capable of supporting a nest was utilized, most of them being8 or 10 feet above the surface of the water. We examined about 10 nests, allcontaining three eggs apparently only a few days incubated.One of the most interesting rookeries of American egrets is stillflourishing and probably increasing under the protection of a sports-man's club in South Carolina. This has been visited and attract-ively described by Herbert K. Job (1905) and Dr. Frank M. Chapman( 1 908a) . The latter writes
:
For 2 miles we paddled thus in a bewildering maze of sunlit, buttressed cypresstrunks with shiny, round-headed "knees" protruding from the water, and withevery branch heavily moss drapped. The dark waters showed no track, thebrown trunks no blaze. We seemed to be voyaging into the unknown.Finally, the environs were passed and we now approached the most denselypopulated part of the rookery. Thousands of Louisiana and little blue heronsleft their nests in the lower branches and bushes, their croaking chorus of alarmpunctuated by the louder more raucous squawks of hundreds of egrets, as theyflew from their nests in the upper branches. It was a confusing and fascinatingscene, an admirable climax to the passage through the weird forest. The littleblue and Louisiana herons nested at an average height of 6 to 8 feet. One bushheld no less than 32 nests, all of which contained eggs, few young of either specieshaving yet been hatched. The egrets nested at an average height of 40 feet.Eggs were in some nests, while in others there were nearly fledged young. Whilefar less shy than I had before found them, the birds were still abundantly wary,and obviously could be observed to advantage only from concealment.Dr. T. Gilbert Pearson (1919) discovered a colony of "probably20 pairs" of American egrets in Brunswick County, North Carolina,in 1898. This is probably the only colony in that State and Mr.Pearson says:Wo have visited the birds during the nesting period seven different times withinthe past 12 years, and have found them just about holding their own in numbers.Their nests were high up in tall cypress trees. The lowest one discovered wasat least 40 feet and the others were fully 80 feet above the water.George Willett (1919) describes an entirely different manner ofnesting found in the marshes of Malheur Lake, Oregon. He writes
:
On June 28, while rowing along the outer edge of the tules at the southernend of the lake, I finally located the colony in two small tule patches about 3miles east of the mouth of the Blitzen River. Twenty pairs of the birds werenesting at this date, three nests containing eggs, apparently heavily incubated,and the other nests containing young of various ages, from newly hatched tohalf grown ones that were able to walk around among the tules. The nests were
138 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMbuilt on bent-down tule stalks much in the same fashion as nests of the ibis.Some were within 1 foot of the water and others nearly 4 feet up. They werelarge and rather well made of tule stalks and in two instances contained branchesof greasewood that must have been carried at least a mile. The nest comple-ment was from three to five in number, usually four.A similar method of nesting was noted by George B. Sennett(1878) near Brownsville, Texas. The nests are described as "bulky,composed of the dead and broken down rushes, about 2 feet in dia-meter, and situated from 1 to 3 feet above the water."Eggs.?The American egret lays from three to four eggs; I havenever seen or heard of any larger sets. In shape they are usuallyoval with variations to elliptical oval. The shell is smooth with littleor no gloss. The color is pale bluish green, varying from "pale Ni-agara green " to "pale oUvine." The measurements of 53 eggs aver-age 56.5 by 40.5 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasure 68.5 by 41, 60 by 43, 52.5 by 39.5, and 53.5 by 38 millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation is probably about 23 or 24 days.In nests that are situated at considerable heights the young areinclined to remain until they can fly, but in the lower nests they aremuch more prccocial and inclined to wander over the immediate sur-roundings of the nest. I have found them much more timid thanother young herons and more inclined to leave the nest, to climbwith surprising agility over the surrounding branches. I have expe-rienced considerable difficulty in getting near enough to the halfgrown young to photograph them; they are lively travelers and gen-erally succeed in keeping out of range.It is interesting to watch the feeding of the young, as I have seenit from a blind at short range. The young have been crouchingquietly in the nest, perhaps asleep or dozing; suddenly their keeneyes, or ears, detect the returning mother bird and they are all alert;excitedly they stretch their long necks and cry for food. At firstshe stands on or near the nest in a disinterested attitude until she isready to regurgitate the semidigested food; they become impatientat the delay and peck at her plumage, or rise up and seize her billshaking it vigorously and worrying her into action; at length sheraises her beautiful plumes above her back, a token of her affection,lowers her head and delivers the coveted food. For the youngerbirds a more or less souplike food, fish chowder, is delivered into themouth of the young bird ; for older birds a fish only partially digestedis deposited on the nest, where it is picked up and swallowed. I haveseen two or three small young fed at one feeding.Doctor Chapman (1908rt) has described the feeding process veryweU, as follows
:
Doubtless, the young birds were not a little puzzled by the unusual reluctanceof their parents to administer to their wants. In vain they uttered their froglikekek-kek-kek, and stretched their necks hopefully. The old birds were not assured.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 139So the young resorted to their customary occupations of leg or wing stretching, oryawning or preening a brother's or sister's feathers, picking at imaginary objectshere and there, all good exercises for growing birds. The larger ones made littlejourneys to the limbs near the nests, the neck taking a different curve with everymovement, and expressing every emotion from extreme dejection to alert andeager expectancy. Finally, as the old birds were convinced that the blind washarmless, their reward came. With harsh, rattling notes and raised crest one ofthe parents alit near the nest. Its superbly threatening attitude was clearly notalarming to the young birds, who welcomed it by voice and upstretched, extendedneck. Gravely the parent stood regarding its young, while its crest dropped andits pose relaxed. Then, as it stepped to the edge of the nest, it lowered its head,when its bill was immediately seized by one of the youngsters. The young birddid not thrust its bill down the parental throat, nor was the parent's bill introducedinto that of its offspring. The hold of the young bird was such as one wouldtake with a pair of shears, if one were to attempt to cut off the adult's bill at thebase. In this manner the old bird's head was drawn down into the nest, wherethe more or less digested fish was disgorged, and at once devoured by theyoung.Plumages.?The downy young egret is partially covered with long,pure white down, through which much light green naked skin showson the neck and under parts; the bill and feet are hght green and yel-lowish. On the forehead, crown and sides of the head the down is longand hairlike, an inch and a quarter long on the top of the head; theentire back is covered with somewhat shorter, softer down; the un-der parts are more scantily covered with coarser down ; and the throatis naked.By the time that the young bird is half grov/n it is practically fullyfledged; the juvenal plumage appears first on the back, then on thewings, breast and crown; later the tail appears; and the last of thedown is replaced on the neck and belly. This plumage is all purewhite, without any trace of plumes. Young birds begin to acquiretheir first dorsal plumes, aigrettes, during their first prenuptial molt,which begins sometimes early in January, but sometimes not till Feb-ruary or later. The growth of plumes during the first year is alwayslimited and sometimes omitted. At the fii'st postnuptial molt youngbirds become practically adult.The European egret is said to have two complete molts each year^but I can not find any trace of molting primaries in American birdsduring the prenuptial molt. The postnuptial molt is complete, theprimaries being molted in August. The long, flowing train of decom-posed feathers, known as plumes or aigrettes, is a nuptial adornmentof breeding adults; it is acquired at the prenuptial molt in Januaryand February and is shed soon after the breeding season is over, inJune and July. I have counted as many as 54 long dorsal plumes inan extra fine specimen, but usually there are much fewer. The adultwinter plumage, acquired by a complete postnuptial molt in July andAugust, is not always wholly devoid of plumes; but the plumes, if
140 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES' NATIONAL MUSEUMpresent, are fewer in number and much shorter than in spring. Theplumage is, of course, all pure white at all ages and seasons.Food.?Egrets obtain their food in the marshes and rice fields andaround the marshy shores of lakes and ponds where their tall, grace-ful figures tower above the low vegetation or are reflected in thesmooth waters as beautiful silhouettes in white. Their movementsare stately and the strokes of their rapierlike bills are quick and sure.Their food consists only partially of small fishes and it includes frogs,Uzards, small snakes, mice, moles, fiddlers, snails, grasshoppers, andother insects, as well as some vegetable matter. Oscar E. Baynard(1912) says:Food of 50 young egrets that was disgorged by them at the nests immediatelyafter being fed, running over a period of four weeks. The total of the 50 mealsfollows: 297 small frogs, 49 small snakes, mostly the water moccasin, 61 youngfish, suckers, not edible, 176 crayfish.Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1916) says of a bird taken in Porto Rico:The single stomach available for examination contained 4 per cent of vegetablerubbish taken as extraneous matter with the animal food. Remains of one molecricket {Scapteriscus didactylus) and seven entire grasshoppers, with fragments ofmany more, were found, as well as a moth and three large dragon flies. A smallgoby and seven entire frogs (Leptodactylus albilabris) with fragments of others,made up 69 per cent of the contents. Orthoptera amouted to 15 per cent, a sur-prising fact and one that should be given due weight in considering the statusof this species.Behavior.?The pose of the American egret in flight is not unhkethat of the other herons; when well under way it carries its neckfolded backward, with its head between its shoulders, and its longlegs extended behind it as a rudder. But it seems to me that it iseasily recognized at even a great distance by its more slender form andby its proportionately longer and broader wings; it is markedly differ-ent in these respects from the smaller white herons, and it is a muchUghter bird with a more buoyant flight than the heavier great whiteheron.It is much at home in the tree tops where it is very light, gracefuland agile. A striking instance of its agility is related by C. J. May-nard (1896) who had made a pet of a young egret; he writes:This bird was accustomed to sit on the prow of a canoe, which was towed asternof the yacht, and when hungry, the heron would walk deliberately along the rope,by which the smaller vessel was fastened to the larger, and which was some 10feet long, and thus come on board. One day when it was making this trip, asudden flaw struck the sail, causing the rope to sway, and the bird was throwninto the water. We were moving at the rate of 10 or 12 miles an hour, and thebow of the little boat swept past the heron in an instant, but it appeared to knowjust what to do, for, without making any usless struggles, it merely reached outand caught the edge of the rapidly passing stern with its bill, gave a flap or two,and in a moment regained its perch on the prow.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 141The only note I have heard uttered by the American egret is aloud, hoarse croak on a low key. Doctor Chapman (1908a) refers toit as a "rapid cvk^ cuk, cuk with the regularity and persistence of ametronome."Unlike some other herons, the American egrets do not feed at night,but resort regularly to certain favorite roosting places where largenumbers often congregate. They gather at the roosting places justbefore dark, spend the night in the trees, and scatter out over the sur-rounding country early in the morning. I once saw such a roostingplace in Texas. We had been hunting all day for a white ibis rook-ery and had driven down, just before dark, to look at a button-willowswamp where we thought it might be. We were delighted to seethat the trees, which were standing in about 2 feet of water and weresurrounded by open water, were covered with birds, American egrets,snowy egrets, and little blue herons. It was a wonderful sight whenthey all flew up, at our appoach. It was too dark to investigate itfurther that night, but we had visions of some great chances for photo-graphs the next day. We were disappointed, however, on our returnthe next morning, to find it practically deserted ; only a few scatter-ing birds remained, which promptly flew away. It was a night roost-ing place in an old rookery.Audubon (1840), Maynard (1896), and Chapman (1892) all referto this roosting habit. Audubon (1840) %vrites:The American egrets are much attached to their roosting places, to which theyremove from their feeding grounds regularly about an hour before the last ghmpseof day; and I can not help expressing my disbelief in the vulgar notion of birdsof this family usually feeding by night, as I have never observed them so doingeven in countries where thej' were most abundant. Before sunset the egrets andother herons (excepting perh.apa the bitterns and night herons) leave their feed-ing grounds in small flocks, often composed of only a single family, and proceedon wing in the most direct course, at a moderate height, to some secure retreatmore or less distant, according to the danger they may have to guard against.Flock after flock may be seen repairing from all quarters to these places of repose,which one may readily discover by observing their course. Approach and watchthem. Some hundreds have reached the well-known rendezvous. After a fewgratulations you see them lower their bodies on the stems of the trees or busheson which they have alighted, fold their necks, place their heads beneath thescapular feathers, and adjust themselves for repose. Daylight returns and theyare all in motion. The arrangement of their attire is not more neglected by themthan by the most fashionable fops, but they spend less time at the toilet. Theirrough notes are uttered more loudly than in the evening, and after a very shortlapse of time they spread their snowy pinions and move, in different directions,to search for fiddlers, fish, insects of all sorts, small quadrupeds or birds, snails,and reptiles, all of which form the food of this species.Doctor Chapman (1892) refers to a roosting tree in Cuba as follows:There was a flock of about 20 of these birds at San Pablo which came eachnight to roost in a tree at the border of the river. They appeared in a body with
142 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMmuch regularity just after sunset, and after circling about the tree once or twicealighted on its branches. One now heard a low croaking chorus as the birdsselected perches and settled themselves for the night. This rookery was but 200yards from the houses and mill of the estate, and not more than 60 feet from awell-traveled road. The confidence thus displayed by the birds in their choiceof a roost was in striking contrast with the habits of the shy, much-hunted egretof Florida,Enemies.?Great damage is done in the breeding rookeries of thisand all the smaller herons by crows and vultures, which devour allthe eggs and young that they can find unguarded. The bird pho-tographer, who drives these shy birds from their nests and keepsthem off for some time, is likely to find most of the nests in his vicinityrilled of their contents.Man has always been the arch enemy of the egrets. The destruc-tion wrought by the plume hunters has been most cruel and waste-ful; as the plumes are at the best during the breeding season, thebirds were shot in their nesting rookeries, leaving the eggs to rot orthe young to starve in the nests. No thought was had for the futureand whole rookeries were systematically annihilated.The slaughter began in Aubudon's (1840) time. He speaks of "aperson who, on offering a double-barreled gun to a gentleman nearCharleston for 100 white herons fresh killed, received that numberand more the next day." His friend Bachman brought home 46from a single day's shooting and said that ''many more might havebeen killed, but we became tired of shooting them." And the slaugh-ter continued with unabated fury in all parts of the world whereegrets were to be found. Herbert K. Job (1905), writing at a timewhen the egrets were at about their lowest ebb, published some inter-esting figures to account for their disappearance. He writes:When we know about the millinery plume trade, we understand the reason.In 1903 the price for plumes offered to hunters was $32 per ounce, which makesthe plumes worth about twice their weight in gold. There will always be menwho would break any law for such profit. No rookery of these herons can longexist, unless it be guarded by force of arms day and night. Here are some offi-cial figures of the trade from one source alone, of auctions at the London Com-mercial Sales Rooms during 1902. There were sold 1,608 packages of "ospreys,"that is, herons' plumes. A package is said to average in weight 30 ounces. Thismakes a total of 48.240 ounces. As it requires about four birds to make anounce of plumes, these sales meant 192,960 herons killed at their nests, and fromtwo to three times that number of young or eggs destroyed. Is it, then, anywonder that these species are on the verge of extinction?The absurd story was circulated by the millinery trade, as anargument in their defense, that the aigrettes were shed by the birdsand picked up from the ground under the nests in protectedrookeries; and many people believed the story. I have exploredmany rookeries, looking for shed plumes, but can count on the fingersof one hand all I have ever found; and these were soiled and worn.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSil BIRDS 143A few such plumes are picked up and sold, but they are known as
''dead plumes" and bring in the market about one-fifth of the priceof "live plumes." T. Gilbert Pearson (1912) published a longlist of affidavits emphasizing the falsity of such propaganda, amongwhich the following, from an old plume hunter, is most striking:My work led me into every part of Venezuela and Colombia where these birdsare to be found, and I have never yet found or heard tell of any garceros thatwere guarded for the purpose of simply gathering the feathers from the ground.No such a condition exists in Venezuela. The story is absolutely without foun-dation, in my opinion, and has simply been put forward for commercial purposes.The natives of the country, who do virtually all of the hunting for feathers, are notprovident in their nature, and their practices are of a most cruel and brutal nature.I have seen them frequently pull the plumes from wounded birds, leaving thecrippled birds to die of starvation, unable to respond to the cries of their youngin the nests above, which were calling for food. I have known these people totie and prop up wounded egrets on the marsh where they would attract the atten-tion of other birds flying by. These decoys they keep in this position until theydie of their wounds or from the attacks of insects. I have seen the terrible red antsof that country actually eating out the eyes of these wounded, helpless birds thatwere tied up by the plume hunters. I could write you many pages of the horrorspracticed in gathering aigrette feathers in Venezuela by the natives for the mil-linery trade of Paris and New York.Fortunately for this and the following species these conditions havenow largely changed and plume hunting has become a thing of thepast in most of the regions where it was formerly practiced. Thevigorous educational and legislative campaign of the National Asso-ciation of Audubon Societies, and other organizations and individualsinterested in bird protection, have created a world-wide sentimentagainst it and have resulted in adequate laws to prevent it. Manycolonies have been successfully protected. Charles J. Pennock wroteme in 1917 that egrets were more numerous in Florida than they hadbeen for many years, since the days of plume hunting. In Texas in1923 I traveled around with an old plume hunter who told me thatno plume hunting had deeu done in Texas for many years and thatthe egrets were increasing. Two beautiful species have been saved.Fall.?This and several other species of herons are much given tonorthward wanderings in summer and fall; it is usually, if not always,the young birds that indulge in these erratic journeys after the nest-ing season is over. We do not know whore they come from or howfar they travel; perhaps systematic banding of young birds maythrow some light on the subject. But they appear at frequentintervals, and sometimes in considerable numbers, as far east as NewYork, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. I have seen thebird on Cape Cod as early as July 4 and it has been seen as late asSeptember. Throughout the southern portion of its range, fromFlorida and the Gulf States, it is permanently resident; but it retiresin the fall from the more northern portions of its breeding range.
144 BULLETIN 135;, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMWinter.?Thanks to the protection afforded it by the AudubonSociety and by local sentiment, we found this beautiful egret to bea very common bird in Pinellas County, Florida, particularly in theviciijity of Boca Ceiga Bay, during the winter of 1924 and 1925.One day in November I counted 41 in sight at one time on a mudflat near Pass-a-Grille; they were in company with three white peli-cans, four wood ibises, a number of little blue herons, and a fewLousiana herons. They were seen almost daily on the mud flats inthe bay at low tide, and at high tide they resorted to the shallowlagoons or to fresh-water ponds. They could be easily recognizedat a great distarnce by the long neck and slender body and at a con-siderable distance by the large yellow bill. A favorite resort oftheirs was a small pond hole close to a much-traveled road on LongKey, where I lived; they were almost always there at high tideduring November and December, sometimes as many as 15 or 20 ofthem; they paid no attention to passing automobiles, which wereconstantly buzzing by within a few feet, but, if one stopped foran instant, they were off immediately; any attempt to approach thepond on foot was utterly useless. Their confidence was well placed,for no one ever harmed them; but: they showed wise discriminationin other places, for it was impossible to approach them anywhereelse.Before they began to resort to their breeding grounds on BirdKey, referred to above, they roosted at night on a small mangrovekey in a secluded section of the bay, far from any human habitations.The black mangroves in the center were whitewashed with theirdroppings and the ground under them was littered with whitefeathers and a few plumes. I never saw any egrets there in thedaytime. DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?South America, Central America, and southernand western United States. North to Oregon (Silver Lake and Mal-heiu* Lake) ; Nevada (Truckee Valley) ; Utah (Bear River marshesand Salt Lake Valley) ; Wisconsin (Two Rivers) ; northern Indiana(Knouts, Wolf Lake, and Steuben County) ; Virginia, one record(Arlington); and southern New Jersey (Cape May). East to NewJersey (Cape May) ; Virginia (Arlington) ; South Carolina (McClellan-villc and Mount Pleasant); Georgia (Savannah and CumberlandIsland); Florida (Orange Lake, Lake Josup, Lake Harvey, xHligatorLake, Lake Gentry, Sebastian, Lake Okeechobee, Cuthbert Lake, andCape Sable); Cuba (Manzanillo) ; Haiti; Porto Rico (Boqueron,Mameyes, and Pinoro Island); Trinidad; Dutch Guiana (MaroniRiver) ; Brazil (San Paulo, Iguape, and Taguara) ; and Argentina(Bueaos Aires and Cape San Antonio). South to Argentina (Cape
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 145San Antonio, Carhiic, and Chubut River) ; and Chile (Port Otwayand Calbuco). West to Chile (Calbuco, Lake Aculco, Santiago,Coquimbo, Tarapaca, and Sacaya) ; Peru (Lima, Santa Cruz, andJunin) ; Ecuador (Babahoyo and Manto) ; Colombia (Meta River andLake of Patm'io) ; Costa Rica (San Jose, Miravalles, and La Palma)
;
Nicaragua (Escondido River and Lake Nicaragua) ; Honduras (TigreIsland) ; Guatemala (Lake of Duenas and Chiapam) ; Guerrero,Mexico (Acapulco) ; Sinaloa, Mexico (Mazatlan) ; Lower California(San Jose del Cabo and Santa Margarita Island) ; California (BuenaVista Lake, Tulare Lake, Riverdale, formerly Stockton, and Sacra-mento) ; and Oregon (Silver Lake).The account above given refers to the distribution of the egretbefore the plume hunters decimated their ranks. At the presenttime their breeding range in North America is restricted almost en-tirely to the States of the Gulf coast; Florida (Monroe County,Indian Key Reservation, Myakka River, Orange Lake, and Talla-hassee) ; Louisiana (Delta of the Mississippi River and CameronParish) ; Texas (Karankawa Bay in Calhoun County, Mesquite Bay,Aransas County, and Guadalupe Valley, Victoria County) ; the Statesof the South Atlantic coast, Georgia (Okefinokee Swamp and BirdPond, Chatham county) ; South Carolina (Mount Pleasant andWashoe Reserve near McClellanville) ; and North Carolina (OrtonLake, between Wilmington and the mouth of the Cape Fear River).Small colonies are also known in the Mississippi Valley; Arkansas(Walker Lake) ; and Tennessee (Reelfoot Lake); and also in Califor-nia (Tulare Lake and Clear Lake) ; and in Oregon (Silver Lake andMalheur Lake).Winter range.?South America, Central America, some of the is-lands of the Caribbean Sea and the southern and western UnitedStates. In North America the winter range of the egret extendsnorth to California (Santa Cruz, formerly San Francisco, and Stock-ton) ; Oregon (formerly Fort Klamath) ; Texas (Giddings and Gal-reston) ; Louisiana (Marsh Island and Vermillion Bay) ; Florida(Gainsville) ; and South Carolina (Frogmore).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: Oregon, Silver Lake,April 14, 1913, and Malheur Lake, March 12, 1916; Arizona, Phoenix,March 30; Colorado, Denver, April 26, 1907; Louisiana, New Orleans,March 16, 1895; Mississippi, Rodney, March 19; Illinois, Canton,April 11, Peoria, March 20, and Grandridge, April 19; Iowa, Keokuk,April 17, 1894, and Wall Lake, March 22, 1912; Nebraska, Nehawka,May 2, 1905; Indiana, Bicknell, March 11, and Waterloo, April 22;Ohio, Sandusky, April 29; South Carolina, Charleston, February 23,1913; District of Columbia, Washington, May 30, 1891 (only springrecord); and Pennsylvania, Osceola Mills, April 22, 1893.
146 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMFall migration.?Late dates of departure are: Oregon, KlamathFalls, October 31, 1912; California, Clear Lake, September 22, 1911,and Mona Lake, September 21, 1901; Louisiana, New Orleans,December 19, 1893 (possibly wintering) ; New Jersey, Audubon,September 4, 1912; District of Columbia, Washington, September22, 1914; Maryland, Ocean City, September 23, 1894; and SouthCarolina, Charleston, November 6, 1913.Casual records.?In common with many other species of herons,the egret frequently migrates in summer long distances north of itsnormal breeding range. Specimens have been collected at this sea-son north to Manitoba (Lake Winnipegosis, summer of 1888) ; Minne-sota (Lanesboro, July 21, 1884, and Wilder, June 16, 1894) ; Ontario(Rockliffe, spring of 1883, and Dundas County, August 3, 1916);Quebec (Montreal and Godbout) ; New Brunswick (Grand Manan,August, 1879); and Nova Scotia (Halifax, summer of 1867). In ad-dition to these northernmost records there are numerous occurrencesfor Colorado, Kansas, Michigan, Ohio, New York, Massachusetts,Rhode Island, and the other New England States, including Maine.Egg dates.?Flordia: 36 records, December 8 to June 14; 18 records,March 29 to May 1 . Texas : 15 records, April 4 to May 20 ; 8 records,April 14 to May 1(). Oregon: 8 records, April 16 to June 28.EGRETTA CANDIDISSIMA CANDIDISSIMA (Gmelin)SNOWY EGRETHABITSThis beautiful little heron, one of nature's daintiest and mostexquisite creatures, is the most charming of all our marsh birds. Thespotless purity of its snowy plumage, adorned with airy, wavingplumes, and its gentle, graceful manners, make it the center ofattraction wherever it is seen. While darting about in the shallowwater in pursuit of its lively prey, its light curving plumes flutteringin the breeze, it is a pretty picture of lovely animation. The fulldisplay of all its glory is seen as it approaches its nest to greet itsmate or its young with all of the glorious plumes of its head, breast,and back erected and spread, like a filmy fan. It seems consciousof its beauty and likes to show off its charms for the benefit ofits loved ones. No wonder that lovely woman appreciates the beautyof the plumes and longs to appropriate them to add to her owncharms.Courtship.?The display of plumes, referred to above, is a part ofthe courtship performance, where it is seen at its best, but it is alsoused all through the breeding season as a greeting to its mate or itsyoung. In the full display the body is bent forward and downward,the neck is held in a graceful curve, the feathers of the head areraised in a vertical crest, the breast plumes are spread forward and
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 147downward, the wings are partially open and raised, and the plumesof the back are elevated and spread, with their curving tips wavingin the air. Such a picture must be seen to be appreciated; nowritten words or printed photograph can do it justice.During the mating season the males are quite quarrelsome andmany little combats are seen, involving two or three birds. Stand-ing erect with wings spread and crest raised, they spar with half openbeaks or strike heavy blows with their wings, until one has enoughand retires. Audubon (1840) describes the courtship, as follows:At the approach of the breeding season, many spend a great part of the dayat their roosting places, perched on the low trees principally growing in the waterwhen every now and then they utter a rough guttural sort of sigh, raising at thesame moment their beautiful crest and loose recurved plumes, curving the neck,and rising on their legs to their full height, as if about to strut on the branches.They act in the same manner while on the ground mating. Then the male, withgreat ardor, and the most graceful motions, passes and repasses for several min-utes at a time before and around the female, whose actions are similiar, althoughshe displays less ardor. When disturbed on such occasions, they rise high inthe air, sail about and over the spot in perfect silence, awaiting the departure ofthe intruder, then sweep along, exhibiting the most singular movements, now andthen tumbling over and over like the tumbler pigeon, and at length alight on atree. On the contrary, when you intrude upon them while breeding, they risesilently on wing, alight on the trees near, and remain there until you depart.Nesting.?During the first decade of this century, when my earhervisits to Florida were made, the numbers of this pretty little egretwere about at their lowest ebb. We did not see any snowy egretsanjT'where except in the breeding rookeries with other species andeven there they were very shy. There were still a few left in the bigrookeries on the upper St. Johns. Here we spent all of one day, April20, 1902, and part of another in the largest of the rookeries at Brad-dock Lake, where hundreds of Louisiana herons and many little blueherons wore breeding, among which were a few snowy egrets. Wewere unable to determine how man}^ of this species were nesting thereand I succeeded in positively identifying only two nests of the snowyegret. This rookery was on a small muddy island, in the middle ofthe great marsh, covered with a thick growth of small willows from12 to 15 feet high. Although all three species of herons were verytame, alighting on the trees all about us, they were very careful notto settle down on any of the nests within sight of us; it was onlyby lying for hours carefully hidden under some thick clumps of largeferns that I was able to satisfactorily identify a few nests. The firstnest of snowy egret, containing four eggs, was placed 8 feet up in aslender willow and was merely a flimsy platform of small sticks. Thesecond nest held five eggs and was located only 5 feet up in a leaningwillow; it was made of larger sticks and lined with line twigs. Neitherthe nests nor the eggs of the snowy egret are in any way distinguish-able, so far as I could determine, from those of either the Louisiana
148 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
or the little blue herons. It is necessary to see the bird actually sittingon the nest to make identification sure; even then young little blueherons in the white phase are liable to lead to confusion and it isnecessary to see the black legs and yellow feet or the graceful plumesof the snowy egret.On both of my visits to the big rookery in Cuthbert Lake, in 1903and 1908, there were a few pairs of snowy egrets among the hosts ofother small herons; they were probably breeding there, but no nestswere positively identified.During the next two years conditions began to improve, as a resultof protection and cessation of the plume trade. So that when Ivisited the coast of Texas, in 1923, I found snowy egrets quite com-mon in many of the rookeries on the coastal islands. The best col-ony was found on Vingt-une Island in East Galveston Bay on May5. We had seen many small white herons flying toward this islandand were not surprised to find on it a flourishing colony, which weestimated to contain about 800 Louisiana herons, 400 snowy egrets,and 150 black-crowned night herons. It was a small marshy island,partly surrounded by shell beaches; on the boggy portions marshgrass was growing and extensive growths of tall canes separated themarshes from the drier portions; on the dry land were scatteringclumps of low huisache trees and prickly pear cactus, together withthick tangles of vines, shrubbery, sunflowers, nettles, and other rankherbage. The snowy egrets' nests were mainly in the open placeson the prickly pears or in the low huisache trees. They were mostlygrouped in clusters by themselves; some were very close to the groundin the low cacti or underbrush and others were 5 or 6 feet up in thehuisaches. They were rather flimsy structures made of sticks andpieces of dead canes and were lined with finer pieces of the samematerials and rootlets; it seemed to us that the egrets used coarsermaterial in their nests than the Louisiana herons. The nests allcontained eggs, four or five in each, well advanced in incubation. I setup my blind in the center of this rookery and spent two or threeinteresting honrs watching the home life of these beautiful birds.The nuptial display was often shown when a bird returned to greetits mate at the nest. I was greatly impressed with the tameness ofthese lovely birds.Alexander Wilson (1832) gives us an idea of what conditions werein his day, when snowy egrets nested abundantly as far north asNew Jersey; he writes:On the 19th of May, I visited an extensive Vireeding place of the snowy heron,among the red cedars of Summers' Beach, on the coast of Cape May. Thesituation was verj- sequestered, bounded on the land side by a fresh water marshor pond, and sheltered from the Atlantic by ranges of sand hills. The cedars,though not high, were so closely crowded together as to render it difficult topenetrate through among them. Some trees contained three, others four nests,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 149built wholly of sticks. The birds rose in vast numbers, but without clamor,alighting on the tops of the trees around, and watching the result in silent anxiety.Among them were numbers of the night herons, and two or three purple-headedherons. Great quantities of egg shells lay scattered under the trees, occasionedby the depredations of the crows, who were continually hovering about the place.On one of the nests I found the dead body of the bird itself, half devoured bythe hawks, crows, or gulls. She had probably perished in defence of her eggs.An entirely different type of nesting was discovered by GeorgeB. Sennett (1878), in a marsh colony in Texas which no longerexists; he writes:On May 15, 1 was delighted to meet with this, to me, the prettiest of all the heronsin the salt marshes where it was breeding in innumerable numbers in companywith others of the family. I otained numbers of birds, eggs, and young. Itbuilds a flat nest of rushes, about 8 or 10 inches in diameter, with a depressionof about 3 inches, and it is supported by broken-down, living reeds at a heightabove the water of from 6 inches to 3 feet. The young fresh from the egg arecovered well with white down, and when a few days old are very pretty, comparedwith young herons. When I found them, the young were just hatching, and butfew full families were out.Similar nesting conditions in the tule marshes around Great SaltLake have existed for many years; their history has been recordedby the Treganzas (1914) ; I quote from their notes of May 2, 1914,as follows:This date found us in the marsh country destined for the rookeries. Withinhalf a mile we noted a number of snowy herons rise at our right, whereupon weimmediately secured a boat and set out to make investigation. We nosed intothe dense tule growth to moor our boat, and had just started to break our way.With the first crackle of the reeds, head after head was seen to rise, long crane-like necks stretched up for inquiry, pure white birds, and in close proximity aniridescent black one; the ibis with their curved bills looking for all the world likequaint old Jews, lacking but spectacles and a skull cap. Another breaking ofreeds and the whole colony rose en masse, a worrying confusion of wings andsquawks and dangling legs; and for once we were actually convinced that whitewas black and black was white, so confounded were heron and ibis. This colonycovered an area 20 yards wide by 100 yards long, and contained no less than150 pairs of snowy herons, and about 100 pairs of white-faced glossy ibis. Allof the ibis nests and many of the herons' were under construction, while some ofthe latter contained four to five fresh eggs. Having traversed this portion ofthe marsh at least once annually, we were surprised to find this new and largercolony, for previous years it contained only ducks and a very small colony ofblack-crowned night heron. All the nests were constructed of the growing reedsand rushes. Though quite dense, there was little matted down growth of yearsprevious, thus much resembling the site of Black Sloughs, Salt Lake County.Mr. Treganza writes to me that a colony which once numberedfrom 80 to 100 pairs, is now reduced to 50. He mentions also acolony of 50 or 60 pairs in the black sloughs and one of possibly 20or 25 pairs at the mouth of the Jordan River. The other two colo-nies, at the mouth of Bear River and on Bear River Bay, numbered92642?26t 11
150 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM75 to 100 pairs each, when last visited in 1913. He says that thenests are in every way similiar to those of the white-faced glossyibis, reeds, and rushes being used to form the platform which isattached to the growing tules ; in some instances the nests have beenbuilt of small twigs and branches of the sage ; and in other cases nonests have been made, the eggs simply being deposited in a well-defined depression in the broken and matted down tules of the pre-vious year.Eggs.?The snowy egret lays ordinarily four or five eggs, sometimesonly three and rarely as many as six. These are ovate or oval inshape, generally near the latter. The shell is smooth with little orno gloss. The color is pale bluish green, varying from " pale Niagaragreen " to " pale glaucous green." The measurements of 46 eggs aver-age 43 by 32.4 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes meas-ure 48.4 by 33.3, 41.2 by 33.6, 40 by 31, and 42.5 by 30.5 milli-meters.Young.?Edward A. Mcllhenny (1912) says that the period of incu-bation is 18 days. Both sexes apparently share in the incubation andthe care of the young. Wilham L. Dawson (1915) discovered a breed-ing colon}^ of snowy egrets in Merced County, in California, in whichhe says that he estabhshed the fact that this speciesdeposits its eggs every other day, and the complementary fact that incubationbegins with the deposition of the first egg. Indeed it could not well be other-wise, for a single day's exposure to that blazing interior sun would addle an egghowever hardy. The youngsters showed, as the days passed, an exaggerateddisparity in size and strength, yet even when a week old appeared amazinglysmall and helpless. Neither did they appear at all pugnatious as do baby squawks,but drew away timidly at the approach of the hand, and for the rest divided theirtime between panting lustily and scrambling about in search of shade.Mr. Mcllhenny (1912) says that the parent birds, at first duringthe warmer hours of the day shield the young birds from the sununder their drooping wings, as shown in one of his photographs. When10 days old they show a marvellous appetite and are always clamor-ing for food. Either the father or mother bird watches the young-sters constantly, and when the absent mate returns they caress andcoo, being a most loving pair, as if they had not seen each other fora week. In from 20 to 25 days the youngsters leave the nest andspend the day perched on the twigs of the home branch, going backto the nest at night. The young are fed on regurgitated food in thesame manner as described under the previous species, in which thedisplay of plumes is a pretty feature. How can any one who haswitnessed such a picture of beautiful home life have the heart tobreak it up ?Plumagcf!?The downy young snowy egret is much like that ofthe American egret, but smaller of course. The forehead, crown, occi-put, and sides of the head are covered with l^ng, hairlike plumes, long-
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 151
est on the crown, three-quarters of an inch; the back is covered morescantily than the American egret, with long, soft, hairlike, white down;the lower parts are very scantily covered with white down and thethroat is naked. The naked skin is Ught green, the bill and feet arepale yellow, shaded with green on the upper surfaces.The Juvenal plumage, which is everywhere pure white w^ith notrace of plumes anywhere, is worn without much change through thefirst fall and winter. Late in the winter or early in the spring, inFebruary or March, a partial molt produces rudimentary plumes onthe head, breast, and back. Young birds may breed in this firstnuptial plumage. The first postnuptial molt begins in June, is com-plete and produces a plumage indistinguishable from that of thewinter adult, when the young bird is less than a 5^ear and a half old.Adults have a complete molt in summer, from June to September,at which the beautiful nuptial plumes and aigrettes are shed andreplaced by the much shorter and straighter plumes of the winterplumage. Beginning in January or February the partial prenuptialmolt produces the full perfection of the nuptial plumage, with itsbeautiful, long, curving aigrettes.Food.?Audubon (1840) has described the feeding habits of thesnowy egret so well that I can not do better than to quote his words,as follows
:
The snowy heron, while in the Carolinas, in the month of April, resorts to theborders of the salt-water marshes and feeds principally on shrimps. Many indi-viduals which I opened there contained nothing else in their stomachs. On theMississippi, at the time when the shrimps are ascending the stream, these birdsare frequently seen standing on floating logs, busily engaged in picking them up;and on such occasions their pure white color renders them comspicuous andhighly pleasing to the eye. At a later period, they feed on small fry, fiddlers,snails, aquatic insects, occasionally small lizards, and young frogs. Theirmotions are generally quick and elegant, and, while pursuing small fishes, theyrun swiftly through] the shallows, throwing up their wings. Twenty or 30 seenat once along the margins of a marsh or a river, while engaged in procuringtheir food, form a most agreeable sight. In autumn and early spring they arefond of resorting to the ditches of the rice fields, not unfrequently in companywith the blue herons.Wilson (1832) adds: "It also feeds on the seeds of some species ofnymphae, and of several other aquatic plants." Oscar E. Baynard(1912) found that 50 meals of young snowy egrets consisted of 120small suckers, 762 grasshoppers, 91 cut-worms, 2 small lizards, 29small crayfish, and 7 small mocassins, a most interesting collection,which proves that this species is decidely beneficial. Dr. AlexanderWetmore (1916) says of its feeding habits in Porto ilico:Frequently the snowy egret feeds in lowland cane fields, especially when theseare wet or partly flooded. Often in flocks of three or four they feed in the dryujjland pastures. Two stomachs were available for examination, both of birdswhich had been feeding in mangrove swamps. The main content of these is
152 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
animal matter, vegetable remains occuring only as rubbish secured with otherfood and amounting to but 1 per cent. One bird taken near Rio Piedras hadeaten two dragon-fly nymphs, a small crab, a lizard, and a small frog. Thestomach of the other, secured, near Mameyes, was nearly filled with bones ofsmall gobies, the remainder of the animal food consisting of fragments of flies ofthe family Dolichopodidae and bits of a grasshopper. In their excursions todrier fields the birds must secure other insects. They feed to a large extent uponfish, but the fishes taken are of no great importance and the birds are notabundant enough to become noxious.Behavior.?Perhaps enough has been said above about its attrac-tive behavior in its various lines of activity. In all of its movementsit is light, airy, and active. It is very different in appearance andmanner of flight from the American egret, besides being very muchsmaller. It is relatively much shorter and less slender, hence theplume hunter's name, "short white"; its wings are relatively smallerand its wing strokes are much quicker. From the white young ofthe little blue heron it is not so easily distinguished, unless one isnear enough to see the plumes or the black legs and yellow feet ofthe snowy egret; in the little blue the legs and feet appear whollydark. Audubon (1840) says:While migrating, they fly both by night and by day in loose flocks of from 20to 100 individuals, sometimes arranging themselves in a broad front, then forminglines, and again proceeding in a straggling manner. They keep perfectly silentand move at a height seldom exceeding a hundred yards. Their flight is light,undetermined as it were, yet well sustained and performed by regular flappings,as in other birds of the tribe. When they have arrived at their destination, theyoften go to considerable distances to feed during the day, regularly returning atthe approach of night to their roosts on the low trees and bushes bordering themarshes, swamps, and ponds. They are very gentle at this season, and at allperiods keep in flocks when not disturbed.Dr. T. Gilbert Pearson (1922) writes:At Orange Lake, Fla., they often approach the breeding island, flying at aheight of only 4 or 5 feet above the water. When the colonies are in little pondsclosely surrounded by high forests the birds must necessarily fly in over the tree-tops and then drop down to their nests. A situation somewhat similar to thisexists at Avery Island, La., where Edward A. Mcllhenny, by exercising ingenuity,based on a knowledge of the habits of the birds, has built up a colony of perhaps2,000 nesting snowy egrets almost in his dooryard. Late in the afternoon theseand other herons of the colony begin to arrive in numbers. Standing with Mr.Mcllhenny on his lawn I have seen the birds arriving at a height of from 100 to200 feet, until nearly over their nests, then with wings partly closed they vol-planed almost to the bushes. A few vigorous wing beats and they would settleamong the assembled hosts. Flocks of these snowy creatures dropping from thesky make a stimulating and most charming spectacle.Enemies.?Much that I have already written about the ruthlessdestruction of the American egret applies with equal or greater forceto this smaller species. The Uttle snowy egret was slaughtered inmuch greater numbers than its larger relative, because it was origin-ally much more numerous and more widely distributed, because it
NOBTH AMERICAN MAESH BIRDS 153was much less shy and so more easily killed and because its short anddelicate plumes were more in demand than the larger, stiffer plumesof the American egret. For these three reasons it suffered far moreat the hands of the plume hunters and came much nearer being ex-terminated. But the same timely efforts stopped the slaughterbefore it was too late and saved the species, which is now increasingin protected localities.The National Association of Audubon Societies in its campaign ofeducation, circulated a great mass of literature on the subject. In itsspecial leaflet No. 21 is a most striking picture of the horrors of theplume trade; it is a quotation from a paper by Mr. A. H. E. Mat-tingley, of Melbourne, Australia, published in The Emu; it reads asfollows
:
Notwithstanding the extreme heat and the myriads of mosquitos, I determinedto revisit the locality during my Christmas holidays, in order to obtain one pic-ture only?namely, that of a white crane, or egret, feeding its young. When nearthe place, I could see some large patches of white, either floating in the wateror reclining on the fallen trees in the vicinity of the egret's rookery. This setme speculating as to the cause of this unusual sight. As I drew nearer, what aspectacle met my gaze?a sight that made my blood fairly boil with indigna-tion. There, strewn on the floating water weed, and also on adjacent logs, wereat least 50 carcasses of large white and smaller plumed egrets?nearly one-thirdof the rookery, perhaps more?the birds having been shot off their nests contain-ing young. What a holocaust! Plundered for their plumes. What a monu-ment of human callousness! There were 50 birds ruthlessly destroyed, besidestheir young (about 200) left to die of starvation! This last fact was betokenedby at least 70 carcasses of the nestlings, which had become so weak that theirlegs had refused to support them and they had fallen from the nests into thewater below, and had been miserably drowned; -while, in the trees above theremainder of the parentless young ones could be seen staggering in the nests,some of them falling with a splash into the water, as their waning strengthleft them too exhausted to hold up any longer, while others simply stretchedthemselves out on the nest and so expired. Others, again, were seen trying invain to attract the attention of passing egrets, which wei'e flying with food intheir bills to feed their own young, and it was a pitiful sight indeed to see thesestarvlings with outstretched necks and gaping bills imploring the passing birdsto feed them. What a sickening sight! How my heart ached for them! Howcould anyone but a cold-blooded, callous monster destroy in this wholesale man-ner such beautiful birds?the embodiment of all that is pure, graceful, and good?The same scenes were enacted many, many times in this country. Picturethe cost of a plume! The mother bird lies dead on the ground, the plumes rudelytorn from her bleeding back, her reward for her maternal devotion. The father-less and motherless young stand in the nest; there is no one to feed them andthey are growing weaker day by day. At length, too weak to stand or cry forfood, they sink down in the nest, awaiting the end; death will be a blessedrelief.But, happily, all this is now passed and we can look forward tobetter things. Plume hunting has been largely stamped out, theegrets are protected in many places and they are increasing. One ofthe most striking examples of their coming back is shown in the work
154 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMaccomplished by Mr. Mcllhenny (1912) at Avery Island, La., asexplained in his pamphlet. Near his home ''was a wet spot of acouple of acres between the hills," known as a Willow Pond, which"was partly covered with willow, buttonwood, and other water-lovingtrees, marsh grasses, and ferns. In the trees and grass about thispond each spring a few green herons and least bitterns nested."With the idea of inducing other water birds to nest here and in thehope of saving a few of the remaining snowy egrets, he had a smalldam built which raised the water level a couple of feet. In thespring of 1895 he hunted up two nests of snowy egrets and took theeight young birds from them, just before they were large enough tofly, and put them in a large wire cage on the edge of his pond. Theybecame very tame, but, when liberated in November, they finallymigrated south. Six of these birds returned the following March,two pairs mated and they raised four young to each pair. Thirteenhealthy birds went south that fall and all returned the next spring.Five pairs nested that year, raising 20 young. And so they kept onincreasing year after year and other species joined the flourishingcolony, until now its inhabitants number many thousands. "Thenesting water and marsh birds now include snowy heron, Louisianaheron, American egret, little blue heron, green heron, yellow crownednight heron, purple gallinule, Florida gallinule, American bittern,least bittern. King rail, anhinga, wood duck, blue wing teal, gadwall,and mallard." This has proven to be one of the most remarkableand most successful experiments in conservation of which we haveany record in this country. It demonstrates what can be done underintelligent supervision and illustrates the great recuperative powersof wild life under favorable circumstances.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?From southern South America, north through CentralAmerica, the West Indies, and the United States to southern Canada.Breeding range.?South America, Central America, and southernand western United States. North to California (Dos Palos) ; Utah(mouth of Bear River) ; Nebraska (Lincoln) ; Illinois (25 miles abovePeoria) ; Indiana (Mount Carmel and Swan Pond) ; Long Island, NewYork (Sayville); and New Jersey (7-mile Beach and Cape May).East to New Jersey (7-mile Beach and Cape May) ; Virginia (Cobb'sIsland, Mochorn Island, and probably Back Bay); North Carolina(Pea Island and Orton); South Carolina (Washoe Reserve on theSantee River, Mount Pleasant, Buzzard's Island, and Frogmore);Georgia (Savannah, Darien, and St. Mary's); Florida (BraddockLake, Ocklawaha River, Mosquito Inlet, Pehcan Island, BrevardCounty, Hillsboro River, and Cape Sable) ; Cuba (Isle of Pines and
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 155Manzanillo) ; Porto Rico (Pinero Island, Vieques Island, and Salinas)
;
Venezuela (Margarita Island and the mouth of the Orinoco River)British Guiana (Georgetown); French Guiana (Cayenne); Brazil(Counani, Parahyba, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro, and Taquara) ; andArgentina (Buenos Aires, Cape San Antonio, and Carhue), Southto Argentina (Cape San Antonio and Carhue); and Chile (Valdivia).West to Chile (Valdivia, Santiago, and Tarapaca) ; Bolivia (Reyes)Peru (Santa Cruz, Ucayali River, and Tumbez) ; Ecuador (Mantaand Balzar Mountains) ; Colombia (marshes of Cauca River, AtratoRiver, and Cartagena) ; Panama (Lion Hill) ; Costa Rica (Rio Frioand Guanacaste) ; Nicaragua (San Juan del Sur) ; Colima, Mexico(Rio Coahuayana) ; Tepic, Mexico (Acapoueta River) ; Sinaloa Mex-ico (Mazatlan); and California (Dos Palos).Winter range.?Resident throughout most of its range in Southand Central America, and in the southern and western United States.North to California (mouth of the Santa Clara River and Stockton)Texas (Point Isabel and Galveston) ; and South Carolina (formerlyCharleston). East to South Carolina (formerly Charleston and St.Mary's) ; Florida (mouth of the St. Johns River, Pelican Island, Or-lando, and Lake Okeechobee) ; Cuba (Isle of Pines) ; and Argentina(Buenos Aires) . South to Argentina (Buenos Aires). West to Sina-loa, Mexico (Mazatlan) ; and California (San Diego, San Pedro, andthe mouth of the Santa Clara River)
.
Casual records.?Like its larger relative (Casmerodius e. egretta) thesnowy egret migrates north of its normal breeding range althoughnot for such great distances nor in such large numbers. There aremany records for the State of New York (Brooklyn, August 15,1915;Great South Bay, August 4, 1881; Sayville, Long Island, May 30,18S5; Fire Island, July 1, 1883, and others). In this general regionthe species has been observed or secured in Connecticut (Groton LongPoint, early October; and Lyme, July 28, 1853, and August 16, 1853)Massachusetts (near Boston, 1862; Northampton and PlummockPond, Nantucket, March, 1881); Vermont (2 secured at St. Alban'sBay, in October, 1890); Nova Scotia (Windsor, 1872, and near HaU-fax, 1868) ; Ohio (Cleveland, August 25, 1889, also reported fromLorain Lake and Ashtabula Counties) ; Michigan (Ann Arbor, April9, 1872, August 17, 1874, April 20, 1895, and June, 1895, and Kala-mazoo County, August 6, 1877); Ontario (Dunnville, May 18, 1884,Mexican Point, Lake Ontario, July, 1888, and Combermere, August,1892) ; Wisconsin (Lake Mills, fall of 1889, Lake Koshkonong, June,1860, and August, 1886); Colorado (several records, the most north-ern being Fort Collins, and White River Post Office, 1905); andWyoming (Laramie, May 1, 1902, and May 23, 1913).
156 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThe specimen reported to have been taken at Burrard Inlet, Brit-ish Columbia, May, 1879, has been reexamined and found to be theplumed egret, Mesophoyx intermedia.^Egg dates.?Florida: 37 records, January 7 to July 15; 19 records,April 5 to May 6. Texas: 15 records, April 29 to June 12; 8 records.May 5 to 16. Utah: 21 records, April 22 to May 28; 11 records,May 2 to 25.EGBETTA CANDIDISSIMA BREWSTERI Thayer and BangsBREWSTER EGRETHABITSThis large subspecies of the snowy egret is known to inhabit thesouthern portion of Lower CaUfornia, but its range is not well knownand itmay be considerably extended. It was recognized and describedby Thayer and Bangs (1909). The following quotations from theirpaper tell us about all we know about it:One of the important discoveries made by W. W. Brown, jr., while collectingbirds in Lower California, for the Thayer Museum, was finding a large colonyof snowy herons nesting at San Jose Island in the Gulf of CaUfornia, about 60miles north of La Paz. From this colony Mr. Brown took several sets of eggs;he also made a dozen skins of the birds, then in full breeding plumage. Whenunpacking these birds we were at once struck by their large size?especially bytheir long bills and huge legs?and upon comparison with an extensive seriesfrom the southwestern United States we found the differences to be so great thatwe propose to call the Lower California bird in honor of William Brewster, as aslight acknowledgment of the excellence of his " Birds of the Cape Region ofLower California." Egretta candidissima (Gmel.) was named from CartagenaColombia, and specimens from eastern South America are said to be even smallerthan those from the southeastern United States; unfortunately we have seen noskins from near the type locality, and compare our new Lower California giantwith birds from Florida, Georgia, etc. The enormously heavy legs of the newform are enough to distinguish it; but in addition to this it is a much larger bird,the measurements of wing, tail, and bill only partially indicating the great dif-ference in actual bulk between it and the form found in the southeastern UnitedStates. In both forms females are rather smaller than males. As to the rangeof the new form, we can say but little, though it is probable that it extends, ordid extend, north to southern California and across the Gulf to western MexicoIn their tables of measurements it appears that the measurementsof the smallest birds from Lower California and those of the largestbirds from other places overlap; but the average difference is consid-erable.Nesting.?W. W, Brown, jr., collected for Col. John E. Thayer, aseries of eggs of this egret in San Jose Island, a small island near LaPaz, Lower California, in June, 1908. He supposed that they werethe common snowy egret, as this new form had not been recognizedat that time, so only a few notes were made. Colonel Thayer teUs
1 See Kennode, F., The Canadian Field Naturalist, Febraary, 1923.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 157me that there was a small breeding colony in a mangrove swamp onthe island. The nests were described as "platforms of sticks, placed8 to 10 feet from the ground, on the branches of the mangroves, over-hanging the water." Evidently the nesting habits of this form donot differ materially from those of the other representatives of thespecies elsewhere.Eggs.?There are eight sets of eggs in the Thayer collection, takenby Mr. Brown, on San Jose Island, from June 19 to 26, 1908, and byManuel Cota, at the same place, between June 19 and July 5, 1909.There are six sets of three eggs and two sets of two eggs. The eggsare similar to those of the snowy egret. The measurements of the22 eggs average 35.4 by 23.7 millimeters; the eggs showing the fourextremes measure 43.5 by 28.4, 42.3 by 28.5, 29.7 by 21.2 and 38.7by 17.7 millimeters.Very little seems to be known about the habits of this bird, but itprobably does not differ materially in behavior from the snowy egretin similar surroundings. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Known only from Lower California, the adjoining main-land in western Mexico, and southern CaUfornia. This egret hasbeen found breeding only in Lower California (San Jose del Cabo),but is also reported from Guaymas, Sonora, and at Riverside, Cali-fornia.Although this race may now be extinct there, it is possible that someof the records mentioned under Egretta c. candidissima, for LowerCalifornia and western Mexico might have been this bird had thespecimens been available for critical examination.Egg dates.?Southern Lower California: 8 records, June 19 to July 5.DICHROMANASSA RUFESCENS (Gmelin)REDDISH EGRETHABITSAlthough once abundant on the coast and islands of southwesternFlorida, this interesting species had practically gone from that regionbefore the time of my first visit in 1903, for we saw only a few scat-tering individuals in the Florida Keys and near Cape Sable. W. E.D. Scott (1887) has given us some idea of the former abundance ofthis species in Florida. Speaking of a locality in Old Tampa Bayhe says:Formerly I had seen birds breeding here in great numbers, and reddish egretshad been the most conspicuous feature of these breeding grounds in those days.But now how different! Not a single pair of birds of any kind did I find nesting,and only at rare intervals were any kind of herons to be observed. Not a red-dish egret and only a few frightened and wary Louisiana herons were seen, andthese were not breeding.92642?26t 12
158 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMIt was the same story with many other locaHties; and to-day 1doubt if the reddish egret breeds anywhere in Florida.To see the reddish egret at its best we must visit the coast ofTexas, where it is really abundant from Matagorda Bay to CameronCounty, reaching its maximum abundance on Green Island in LagunaMadre. The coast of Texas with its long string of bays and shallowinland waters, dotted with many low marshy islands, is well suitedto the habits of this maritime species, which seldom strays far awayfrom salt water. Here the reddish egret nests abundantly in the lowvegetation on many of the islands and feeds in the shallow muddywaters in which small fishes are abundant.Courtshi'p.?The reddish egret in its nuptial display, in which itfrequently indulges all through the breeding season to express itsemotions, fairly bristles with plumes. The brownish pink plumes ofthe head, neck, and breast and the bluish gray plumes of the backstand out like the quills of a porcupine giving the bird quite a for-midable appearance, terrifying to its enemies, perhaps, but probablypleasing to its mate. The males vie with each other in this spectacu-lar display, the particolored bills pointed upward and the necks heldin graceful curves, as they strut and bow before the .lady of theirchoice.Audubon (1840) describes the com-tship as follows:About the beginning of April, these herons begin to pair. The males chaseeach other on the ground, as well as in the air, and on returning to their chosenfemales erect their crest and plumes, swell out their necks, pass and repass beforethem, and emit hollow rough sounds, which it is impossible for me to describe.It is curious to see a party of 20 or 30 on a sand bar, presenting as they do amixture of colors from pure white to the full hues of the old birds of either sex;and still more curious perhaps it is to see a purple male paying his addresses toa white female, while at hand a white male is caressing a purple female, and notfar ofif are a pair of white, and another of purple birds.He also refers to a display in flight:The flight of this heron is more elevated and regular than that of the smallerspecies. During the love season, it is peculiarly graceful and elegant, especiallywhen one unmated male is pursuing another, a female being in sight. Theypass through the air with celerity, turn and cut about in curious curves and zig-zags, the stronger bird frequently erecting its beautiful crest, and uttering itsnote, at the moment when it expects to give its rival a thrust. When theseaerial combats take place between old and immature birds, their different colorsform a striking contrast, extremely pleasing to the beholder.Nesting.?On our trip down the coast of Texas in 1923 we founda few reddish egrets nesting in the mixed rookeries around Karan-kawa and La Vaca Bays near the lower end of Matagorda Bay.Near the entrance to Karankawa Bay we found, on May 9, a smallbut densely populated colony on a little motte of small trees andthorny bushes on a marsh; this contained perhaps 50 nests of Ward
KORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 159herons, reddish egrets, and Louisiana herons; the nests were on thetops of the thickly matted bushes and in the small trees; the busheswere also full of nests great-tailed grackles, some of which were alsoplaced in the bases of the Ward herons' nests. The next day weran up to the head of the bay to visit the great Wolf Point rookery,where we found a few reddish egrets breeding with thousands ofLouisiana herons and lesser numbers of snowy egrets, Ward andblack-crowned night herons. A very few reddish egrets were alsoseen in a large mixed rookery of the same species on Rose's Point, inLa Vaca Bay, on May 12; this was in a dense and extensive forestof mesquite and huisache and the nests were mostly 10 or 15 feetfrom the ground. Both of these rookeries were also overrun withgreat-tailed grackles, which must destroy large numbers of eggs.But when we reached the chain of islands between Mesquite andSan Antonio Bays, on May 16, wo really began to see reddish egretsin abundance. At least three of these islands were densely popula-ted with large breeding colonies of herons; reddish egrets and Louis-ian herons were the most abundant; Ward herons were common ; therewere a few black-crowned night herons ; and on one island there wasa little group of half a dozen nests of American egrets and numeroussnowy egrets were scattered among the other species. As if to addcolor to the scene, a large flock of roseate spoonbills, with a few cor-morants as companions, frequented the islands, flying from one islandto another and refusing to leave the chain. These islands were allsmall, low, shell reefs, inclosing flat marshy areas and surrounded byshallow muddy water; the drier portions supported a growth of lowwillows, huisache and other thorny bushes, sunflowers, prickly pearcactus, and a few Spanish daggers ; the marshy portions, which werepartially covered ^vith water, were thickly overgrown with low bushes,grasses and rank herbage. Most of the reddish egrets nests were inthe low bushes or on the thick growth of rank herbage, many of themin the wet places, with water under them; many nests were on theground in the grass or herbage and some were in the clumps of sun-flowers. They were usually between 2 and 3 feet above the groundor water and were often so close together that it was difficult to findroom to set up a blind among them. The nests were well made ofsticks and twigs, and were smoothly lined with finer twigs, rootlets,straws, and grasses. Nearly all of the nests contained the usual thrbeeggs, but in a few nests we found newly hatched young.Big Bird Island in Laguna Madre, with its wonderful colonies ofskimmers, terns, gulls, pelicans, and herons, has been well written upand illustrated, for it contains one of the most interesting collectionsof breeding birds in North America. The pelican colony, mostlybrown pelicans but sometimes a few of the big white pelicans, is
160 BULLETIN 135j, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMlocated in the central and highest part of the island where the groundis hard and dry. In and around the pelican colony is an extensivegrowth of prickly pear cactus in more or less dense thickets, mixedwith a few stunted mesquites and sunflowers. Here we found quitea large colony of reddish egrets and a few Ward herons with nestsin the prickly pears, on the ground or 2 or 3 feet above it. At thetime of our visit. May 29, most of the egrets' nests still containedeggs, but some held small young.The largest colony of reddish egrets in Texas, probably the largestin North America, is on Green Island which lies 30 miles north ofPoint Isabel in Laguna Madre. I could not spare the time to visitthis Island but Capt. R. D. Camp told me considerable about it andit has been well wi'itten up by others. Perhaps the best descriptionof the island and its inhabitants is by Alvin R. Cahn (1923) whowrites:On the morning in question our investigations were confined to the outskirtsof the vegetation, with excursions along the two paths which Mr. Camp had cutthrough the brush. It was this time that I learned the exact nature of the islandtOjWhich I had come. I had been warned that the vegetation was thick, that therewere cacti and "other things" with prickers; that I ought to wear leather trousers,leather gloves, and a leather coat?which would have been utterly impossiblebecause of the heat. I was prepared, therefore, to find a tangled growth on theisland, but down in the bottom of my heart I had doubted whether the brushcould be as bad as reported. I had not been on the island five minutes, however,before I realized that the great problem in photographing the birds would be to getnear them, for this mass of brush in which the birds nest is nothing but a huge pin-cushion armed with a million needle points, projecting in every direction, at everyangle, and at every height. The bushes, some 8 or 10 feet high, are mostly a viciousspecies of Condalia, exceedingly branched and covered with short, very stiff, verysharp thorns that tear the skin painfully and cling to the clothing in a most annoy-ing fashion. Amomg the Condalia, are scattered luxurant examples of the famousYucca, or Spanish dagger, which grows about breast high, appearing as a greatsheath of long, firm daggerlike leaves tipped with a thorny substance sharperthan a Victrola needle. It was one of these villainous thorns that gently piercedmj'^ knee cap and made me a very stiff, sick, and unhappy mortal for three days.Beneath the Yucca, lies a substratum of Opuntia, the prickly-pear cactus, runningvinelike over the ground, bristling like an angry porcupine, and, porcupinelike,ready to shed hundreds of needles into anything that comes in contact with it.Under the cactus I believe was the ground, though I do not recall ever havingseen it.As far as the eye could reach the bush tops were alive with graceful forms.Reddish egrets and Louisiana herons were everywhere, the marvelous grace oftheir ever-changing postures exciting constant wonderment. In a far corner afew pair of black-crowned night herons had their nests hidden in a particularlydense thicket, and appeared for a moment only as they hurriedly escaped at ourleast approach. Ward herons sprang from their nests with a great squawk as weadvanced, and disappeared on heavy wings over our limited horizon. Here andthere in the heart of the tangle we could get a glimpse of a secretive form of won-drous white as some snowj' egret or reddish egret in the immaculate plumage ofthe white phase slipped silently from a hidden nest. Through the underbrush we
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 161
could see also the black sleek forms of the grackles as they slipped silently fromnest to nest, making the most of the absence of incubating egrets and herons toply their nefarious trade of egg eating. Frequently, too, one of these large black-birds would come to the top of some conspicuous perch and there, with muchado, inflate and deflate himself, producing thereby not only a grotesque appear-ance but also a most peculiar song. From a nearby shrub a gray-tailed card-inal burst into a song of great richness, as if to ridicule the pathetic attempt ofthe grackle at vocal gymnastics. Everywhere there was life, and everywherethere was beauty and grace and a symphony of sound and color.J. R. Pemberton (1922), who visited the island with Captain Camp,estimated that the heron popuhition of the island consisted of about4,000 reddish egrets, 2,000 Louisiana herons, 100 black-crowned nightherons and 50 Ward herons. Captain Camp told me that in 1923the total population had increased at least 20 per cent over the pre-vious year. Mr. Pemberton (1922) said that "every individual bushappeared to have nests on it or in it," but that " nearly all the nests"of the reddish egrets "were on the top of the bisbirinda or the Span-ish dagger. The mesquites had very few, although some of thestunted and more robust carried nests." In watching the egretsbuilding their nests, he noticed that "the greater part of the mate-rial consisted of dry salt grass stems, which was placed as lining inold nests, but once in a while a bird carried a dead thorny twig foundbeneath a mesquite." Captain Camp told me that during the seasonof 1923 there had been a great increase in the number of nests builton the ground, where a more elaborate type of nest is built of drygrass, with a deeper cavity than in the tree nests. Perhaps the islandis becoming overcrowded and building material is harder to find.Evidently the colony is flourishing under the able guardianship ofCaptain Camp and his assistant who lives on the island.There are four sets of eggs of this species in the California Acad-emy of Sciences collected on May 2, 1921, on islands in the Gulf ofCalifornia. Three of the nests were on the ground under Salicorniabushes and one was on the lower branches of one of these bushes 16inches above the ground. The nests were quite bulky and were wellmade of dry sticks and twigs of this plant; they measured from 20to 26 inches in diameter outside, from 10 to 12 inches inside, from 8to 10 inches in height and were hollowed to a depth of 3 or 4 inches.Eggs.?The reddish egret usually lays from three to four eggs, occa-sionally five and very rarely six or even seven. The shape variesfrom ovate or oval to elliptical ovate or elliptical oval. The shell issmooth and not glossy. The color is pale bluish green, varjdng from"deep lichen green" to "pale Niagara green" or "pale olivine."The measurements of 42 eggs average 51 by 37.6 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 65.6 by 38.2, 53.5 by 41.7,46.5 by 36 millimeters.
162 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMYoung.?Both sexes incubate. The period of incubation does notseem to be known, but it is probably between three and four weeks.Audubon (1840) says of the young:Being abundantly and carefully fed, at first by regurgitation, they grow fast,and soon become noisy. When about a month old, they are fed less frequently,and the fish is merely dropped before them, or into their open throats; soon afterthey sit upright on the nest, with their legs extended foward, or crawl about onthe branches, as all other herons are wont to do. They are now sensible ofdanger, ;and when a boat is heard coming toward them they hide among thebranches, making toward the interior cf the keys, where it is extremely diflB-cult to follow them. On one occasion, when I was desirous of procuring some ofthem alive, to take to Charleston, it took more than an hour to catch eight ornine of them, for they moved so fast and stealthily through the mangroves, al-ways making for the closest and most tangled parts, that a man was obliged tokeep his eyes constantly on a single individual, which it was very difficult to do,on account of the number of birds crossing each other in every direction. Theydo not fly until they are 6 or 7 weeks old, and even then do not venture beyondthe island on which they have been reared.Mr. Cahn (1923) writes:The life of the young birds is anything but exciting. Day after day they lieon their shallow platform of sticks under the sweltering raya of a June sun, andthe monotony of their lives is broken only by the coming and going of the old birdsand, as the nestlings grow older, by innocent sparring matches among themselves.Long before they are able to fly, they leave the nest at the approach of dangerand, using beak and wings and legs, climb unsteadily about in the brush, return-ing to the nest when the excitement is over. Before they are able to climb outof the nest, the babies make a valiant defense againstan intruder by hissing andjabbing vigorously with their bills. They are so unsteady, however, that theyvery seldom hit what they are aiming at. They are a comical sight sitting ontheir heels, their great feet sprawling before them as they vainly endeavor to keeptheir balance during the violent exercise of defense. Once they become used toclimbing about in bushes, they are safe, as then it is nearly impossible to capturethem; they can go through the tangle much faster than you can.The chief source of mortality among the young egrets and herons seems to befalling out of the nest, and a young bird is permitted to die of starvation or tobe consumed by the red ants or a stray coyote that may reach the island duringlow water, right under the nest, without the old birds showing any sign or com-prehending what is going on.Plumages.?The downy young reddish egret has two distinct colorphases, pure white and colored. In the colored phase, which is farcommoner, the forehead, crown, and occiput are covered with long,hairliko plumes, an inch long, "light cinnamon drab " in color; the sidesof the head and neck are scantily, and the back is more thickly, clothedwith long, soft down of a "light mouse gray" or "drab-gray" color,the under parts are covered more scantily with down of the samecolor; and the throat is naked. The bill, feet, and naked skin aredark olive, darkest on the legs and feet.The Juvenal plumage appears first on the back, flanks, neck, andhead, in about that order; then the flight feathers burst their sheaths.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 163when the bu^d is from one-third to one-half grown; downy filamentsstill persist on the crown and the last of the down does not entirelydisappear from the hind neck and rump until the bird is nearlygrown. The fresh juvenal plumage, when it first appears, is brightlycolored, "chestnut" or ''auburn" on the head and neck, paler "au-burn" on the under parts and gra5dsh brown above; the brownsfade out to paler colors later on. The fir^t winter plumage, which ismainly a continuation of the juvenal, is chiefly gray, from "Quakerdrab" to "light mouse gray" or paler, darkest on the wings and tailand lightest on the under parts; but it is everywhere more or lesssuffused with rufous shades, "fawn color," " vinaceous cinnamon" or
"vinaceous tawny," brightest and almost solid "vinaceous tawny"on the throat and lesser wing coverts; the feathers of the crown,neck, and under parts are broadly tipped or streaked with dull"wood brown"; the back is largely dull "wood brown"; all thewing coverts have rufous edgings; and the bill is all black.The above plumage is worn throughout the winter without muchchange, except that the rufous tints largely disappear by wear andfading. A first prenuptial molt takes place from March to May,,involving mainly the head and neck and some of the body plumage,but not the wings and tail. The head and breast plumes are par-tially acquired at tliis molt, the new feathers being "vinaceous russet",
"pecan brown," and "cameo brown." The juvenal wing coverts areall retained and are more or less edged with dull buff.At the next molt, the first postnuptial, a complete change of plum-age produces, some time in the fall, a second winter plumage whichis much like the adult; all light edgings disappear; the crown andmantle become plain "Quaker drab" and the under parts plain "lightmouse gray"; but the plumes of the head, back and breast are onlypartially developed. The following spring the young bird, whennearly 2 years old, becomes indistinguishable from the adult.Adults have a complete postnuptial molt in late summer or falland a partial prenuptial molt, involving mainly the display plumage,during the late winter. The winter plumage is much like the well-known nuptial plumage, except that the plumes are not so long andthe plumage is darker and more richly colored, deep rich, chocolatebrown on the head and neck, suffused with a purplish gloss.It now seems to be generally conceded that the so-called Peale'segret is a white phase of the reddish egret, although the status ofthese white birds was a puzzling problem to some of the earlier writers.Peale's egret was included as a hypothetical species in the first andsecond editions of our check list, but was dropped in the third edition.Audubon (1840) supposed that Peale's egret was the immature plum-age of the reddish egret.
164 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMMaynard (1896) still maintaiQed, even in the latest edition of hisbook, that pealei was a good species; his theory was based on thefact that the two color phases seemed to be differently distributed;he found the white birds exceedingly common on the east coast ofFlorida, where he found only a single reddish specimen in two seasons;while on the west coast he found the reddish egret very abundantbelow Tampa Bay, but did not see a single white bird. In the FloridaKeys and in the Bahamas he found both phases, as well as many birdsof mixed plumage.W. E. D. Scott (1881, 1887, and 1888) was always a firm believerin the color phase theory; he found both phases on the west coast ofFlorida, though somewhat differently distributed, where they wereabundant in the early eighties; he also found a number of birds inmixed plumages. His assistant Mr. Devereux, "found young in bothplumages in the same nest where the parents were both blue birds."We found the white birds exceedingly scarce on the coast of Texasexcept on Green Island in the southern part of Laguna Madre. HereCapt. R. D. Camp has made a special study of the white phaseproblem for three years and he summarizes his findings, as follows:I watched with a great deal of interest a pair of birds composed of a normalmale and a white female, at least the white bird was the one which spent mostof the time incubating. The three eggs laid in the nest were normal in everyrespect and produced three normal colored young. Out of the hundreds ofpairs of reddish egrets breeding on the island, I have yet to find two white birdsmated. Of about 15 nests which I have observed containing some white-phaseyoung, never has there been a case where more than 75 per cent of the sameclutch were white. In only one case where one of the parent birds was whitehave I seen a white young, and in this case three of the four were normal. Inone instance a pair of normal birds produced three white and one normal young.In the majority of cases where there were white young in the nests, the numberof white did not exceed one.Although the irregular distribution of the white phase suggeststhe idea that it may be a distinct species; and although the mixedplumages suggest hybridism; the raising of white young, where bothparents are reddish egrets, seems to clinch the color phase theory.Although material for study is scarce in collections, white phasebirds apparently pass through the same sequence of molts and plum-ages as the colored birds. They are pure white at all ages, but thefull development of plumes and the parti-colored bill are not ac-quired until the second prenuptial molt, when the young bird isnearly 2 years old.Food.?Being a bird of the seacoast the reddish egret probablyobtains most, if not all, of its food in salt water. Large numbers ofthese birds may be seen at times standing in the shallow waters aroundtheir breeding grounds, or way off on the the mud banks or sand
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 165
shoals in the lagoons, where they stand motionless watching for theirprey or walk about slowly in search of it, until the rising tide forcesthem to leave. Mr. Calm (1923), however, writes:Just where the old birds went for food is a question. On a quiet eveninghundreds of them would be seen standing in the shallow water that surroundstheir island, but the birds remained almost motionless in the red glow of the set-ting sun, and there was little evidence that they caught their food so near home.On the contrary, with the approach of evening and the lessening of the intensityof the sun, the birds usually took wing and disappeared in small groups to thesouthwest, in which direction undoubtedly lay their feeding ground. The foodconsists of a small fish and frogs, tadpoles, and an occasional crustacean, whichare probably caught in the marshes of the mainland coast. Before dark thebirds were all back and at the nest, and there was relatively little night activity.With the daylight the birds would fly away once more to the feeding grounds,returning again before the heat of the sun was sufficiently intense to endangertheir precious eggs or babies. Then followed another period of inactivity dur-ing which the birds remained close to the nest, preening their wonderful feathersor playing at repelling intruders.Behavior.?In flight the reddish egret is very light, graceful andeasy, as well as strong and rather swift. In the white phase, withits long plumes, it somewhat resembles the American egret, but itappears shorter and stouter and its wing strokes are not so long andslow. Its particolored bill is a good field mark, as it is conspicuousat quite a distance. On the ground it walks with deliberate graceand elegance. It is an adept on balancing itself on the insecureperches it finds on the slender tops of the bushes, where it nests. Itis interesting to watch it swaying in the strong breeze, which gen-erally prevails on the Texas coast, maintaining its balance by slightadjustments of its supple frame; only occasionally are its broad wingsbrought into play.A curious habit is referred to by Mr. Cahn (1923) as follows:They will stand at the very edge of the nest sometimes by the hour, simplyfor the purpose of warding off the supposed attacks of neighboring egrets that arelikewise amusing themselves by repelling imagined intrusions. Bristling, with everyfeather erect, they jab viciously at the object of their attack, or simply endeavor, bya full display of plumage, to overawe the innocent offender. Thus they pass thetime defending their nests against entirely theoretical attacks of their neighbors,whose one idea often is simply to slip back to their eggs as unobtrusively aspossible.I have never heard any notes from this species but the usual gut-tural croaks, but T. Gilbert Pearson (1922) refers to another, ofwhich he says:One very characteristic note of the reddish egret, which I noticed, both at therookeries and on the feeding grounds, is a bugle like cry decidedly more musicalin its nature than the ordinary heron squawk.Enemies.?^Evidently the reddish egrets of the Florida coast wereexterminated by plume hunters. Their nuptial plumes are long and
166 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMshowy and those of the white phase must have been in good demand.The following statement by W. E. D. Scott (1887) is of interest inthis connection;We reached our destination?the island which Mr, Wilkerson had told me wasthe breeding place of reddish egrets?at about 4 o'clock, and at once came toanchor. A few herons were to be seen from time to time flying to the island,and presently I took the small boat and went ashore to reconnoiter. This hadevidently been only a short time before a large rookery. The trees were full ofnests, some of which still contained eggs, and hundreds of broken eggs strewedthe ground everywhere. Fish crows and both kinds of buzzards were presentin great numbers and were rapidly destroying the remaining eggs. I found ahuge pile of dead, half decayed birds, lying on the ground which had apparentlybeen killed for a day or two. All of them had the "plumes" taken off with apatch of the skin from the back, and some had the wings cut off; otherwise theywere uninjured. I counted over 200 birds treated in this way. The most com-mon species was the reddish egret, though there were about as many Louisianaherons; the other species were the snowy heron, great white egret, and the Uttleblue heron in both phases of plumage.In the Texas rookeries considerable damage is done by black vul-tures, which devour large numbers of eggs and young birds. Wefound one or more pairs of these black rascals living in or nearalmost every rookery that we visited. The wardens are well awareof the damage that these birds do and they kill them or break uptheir nests whenever they can. Prowling coyotes and wild cats killa great many young birds that fall to the ground, but many of thesewould die anyway, as their parents do not seem to know how to carefor them under such circumstances.But the worst enemy of all the small herons in Texas is the omni-present great-tailed grackle. These birds hve in multitudes in nearlyall of the rookeries and work great havoc among the unguarded eggs.Most of the eggs destroyed are in the incomplete sets, before incuba-tion has begun, as they are less closely guarded at that time. Mr.Cahn (1923) says that "this destruction of the nest causes very littleworry to the old birds; indeed I once watched a grackle break up anegret nest while the parent bird stood not 15 feet away, intentlywatching the performance and preening its feathers."Captain Camp has lately been conducting a systematic campaignagainst the grackles on Green Island which has greatly reduced theirnumbers and lessened the destruction of eggs.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Florida and the Gulf coast of the United States; also theWest Indies and Mexico.Breeding range.?North to Lower California (San Jose Island);Sinaloa (Mazatlan); Texas (Cameron, Nueces, Calhoun, and RefugioCounties) ; Louisiana (Timbalier Island) ; formerly Florida (Suwan-
NORTH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 167nee River, Orange Lake and Pelican Island) ; and formerly Georgia(Chatham County). East formerly to Florida (Pelican Island andDade County) ; the Bahama Islands (Great Bahama, Abaco, Nassau,Great Inagua, and probably the Caicos Islands) ; probably SantoDomingo; Cuba (Manzanillo); and probably Haiti. South probablyto Haiti; Cuba (Manzanillo); Yucatan (probaby Cozumel Island)
;
and Tepic (San Bias). West to Tepic (San Bias); Sinaloa (Mazat-lan); and Lower California (San Jose Island).The principal colonies now known are located on the islands offthe coast of Texas.Winter range.?The reddish egret is largely nonmigratory, exceptin the central northern part of its range. It has been found at thisseason north to Lower California (La Paz and San Jose del Cabo)Sinaloa (Mazatlan); and Florida (Fort Myers, Pinellas County, andCape Florida).Migration.?Early dates of arrival are: Corpus Christi, Texas,March 29, 1903; Orange Hammock, Florida, February 25, 1895; andMicanopy, Florida, March 20, 1909.Returns from birds banded on the coast of Texas indicate a some-what extensive southward migration from that region. A youngbird (number 233333, Biological Survey), marked at Green Island,Cameron County on May 15, 1923, was killed about October 20,1923, at Cuicatlan, Oaxaca, Mexico, about 600 miles south of thepoint of banding or at the southern extremity of the known range.Casual records.?Few cases of wandering are known, as this speciesdoes not appear to indulge in the extensive postnuptial movementsthat characterize Casmerodius and Egretta. The collection of C. E.Aiken, at Colorado College, Colorado Springs, Colorado, is said tocontain an immature specimen shot near that city about August,1875; and during the period from August 17 to 31, 1875, it wasreported as not rare in the vicinity of Cairo, lUinois.Further evidence of late summer movements is afforded by therecord of another bird (number 233347, Biological Survey), bandedas a nestling in Cameron County, Texas, on May 15, 1923, and founddead near Galveston, Texas, on August 10, 1923.Egg dates.?Texas: 45 records, April 6 to June 14; 23 records.May 16 to 27. Florida: 16 records, December 8 to May 16; 8 rec-ords, April 5 to May 9.HYDRANASSA TRICOLOU RUFICOLLIS (Gosse)LOUISIANA HERONHABITSMy first morning in Florida gave me many delightful surprises andsome charming new acquaintances. I had been wandering througha fascinating old hammock admiring the picturesque live oaks, with
168 BULLETIN 135; UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMtheir festoons of Spanish moss, the stately cabbage palmettos, so sug-gestive of the Tropics, and here and there a Spanish bayonet in fullbloom, shedding its fragrance from a pyramid of white blossoms; thethickets of saw palmettos, the various orchids and air plants on theold trees were all new and interesting to me. Finally I came to alittle, muddy pool in an open glade and sat down behind some sawpalmettos to watch a little flock of yellowlegs feeding in the pool.A passing shadow caused me to look up and there on silent wings alarger bird was sailing down to alight in the pool, my first glimpse ofa Louisiana heron at short range. It was totally unaware of my pres-ence and within a few feet of me. Soon another came and then an-other, until there were five of them. What beautiful, dainty creaturesthey were, their slender forms clothed in bluish gray, blended drabs,purples, and white, with their little white plumes as a nuptial headdress. How agile and graceful they were as they darted about in pur-suit of their prey. With what elegance and yet with what precisionevery movement was made. For harmony in colors and for grace inmotion this little heron has few rivals. I could have watched andadmired them for hours, but the rattle of a dry leaf, as I moved, endedmy reverie, for they were gone. But I shall never forget my first im-pression of this elegant "lady of the waters."Courtship.?In its com'tship this dainty little heron is most attrac-tive; though it lacks the wealth of glorious white plumes displayedby the American and snowy egrets, and though it can not throw outthe bristling array of plumage shown by the reddish egret, still it has agi'ace of action and beauty of plumage peculiar to itself. Perched onthe topmost bough of some low tree or bush, the male bows to hismate, his long slender form swaying in the breeze, bending in longgraceful curves and yielding to the pressure of the wind, as if ho werea part of the tree itself. Like a "reed shaken by the wind " he bends,but does not break; and he never loses his balance. And now hedances along from branch to branch toward his mate, bowing andcourtesying, with wings half spread. Many are the pretty attitudesthat he assumes, with many graceful curves of his long slender neck.The plumes on his back are raised and lowered, like a filmy veil of ecrudrab, and the pure white head plumes are raised and spread like afan, in striking contrast to the blue and drab. It is a picture of irre-sistible beauty; his mate finally yields and the conjugal pact is sealedright there on the tree tops, without loss of poise.Behavior, similar to that seen in courtship, is indulged in by theLouisiana heron, and by other herons, aU through the nesting period,as a form of greeting between mates, in the ceremony of nest reUef,and when approaching the young to feed them. Prof. Julian S. Hux-ley, who has made a special study of such sexual behavior, has sentme a number of photographs illustrating it and some very full notes
NORTH AMEEICAN MAESH BIRDS 169on it, based on his observations made at Edward A. Mcllhenny'spreserve at Aveiy Island, Louisiana. I quote from his notes, sub-stantially in his own words, as follows:Migration is spread over a long period; some birds arrive at Avery Island earlyin March, the bulk come in mid-April and others not until May. On first arrivaland for some time after, the birds are in flocks; mating then takes place (out onthe feeding grounds, according to reports). The mated pairs no longer join theflock at its roosting place; but they jointly select a nest site. They may changetheir minds once or twice, but eventually, before building, they spend severaldays in a regular honeymoon. During most of this time they sit side by side,with one resting its head against the other's flanks. Now and again a specialceremony, which I have not seen at other times, is indulged in; with loud criesthe birds face each other and lean their necks forward, partly or wholly inter-twining them, each feverishly nibbling at the other's aigrettes.One or the other appears to be on the nest site continuously. When one hasbeen away feeding and returns to the other, a second type of ceremony occurs;this may be called the greeting ceremony and is the commonest seen in the species.In both birds (typically) the crest, neck feathers, and aigrettes are raised, thehead is somewhat thrown up, revealing the patch of buff on the chin, the wingsare spread and a special cry is uttered as the returning bird alights and walksthrough the branches to its mate. This, like most other ceremonies of thespecies, is a mutual one.Nest building soon starts. It is my experience that the male usually, perhapsalways, finds the sticks for the nest, and brings and gives them to the female,who then does the actual building. The giving of each stick is accompanied bya greeting ceremony.After incubation has started, both birds take turns at sitting. The times ofrelief are somewhat irregular, though it appears that there are usually aboutfour changes in the 24 hours, and that the female usually sits at night. Eachtime a nest relief occurs, there is normally a greeting ceremony, the attitudebeing kept up all the time the birds are changing places. This, however, doesnot close the performance. Almost invariably the bird which has been relievedgoes and fetches one or (almost always) several sticks, which it presents to thesitting bird. The presentation is made in the greeting attitude. The sittingbird then builds the stick into the nest. I have seen as many as 11 sticks pre-sented after one nest relief. The last one or two presentations are often charac-terized by a lower degree of emotional tension, as revealed in the degree of featherraising. Nest relief and stick bringing continue after the young are hatchedand presumably until they leave the nest.Another ceremony, which is much less commonly seen, appears to be perform-ed by the male alone. In this the bird droops its wings, erects its neck verti-cally and its head almost so and gives vent to a groaning sound.While brooding the bird often digs the angle of the wing into the contourfeathers of the body, so that it is covered by a regular flap of these. If thebird is now slightly alarmed, it may stand up without opening its wings. Thismust push the flaps forward, for they then stand out at right angles to the bodylike epaulettes. So far as I could see, these epaulettes were never used in anydisplay, although they were striking and gave the bird a bizarre appearance.Nesting.?1 have seen many breeding rookeries of Louisiana heronsand have spent many pleasant hours studying them, for they are byfar the most abundant of all the southern herons. My first experiencewith them was in the extensive marshes of the upper St. Johns River
170 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMin Florida. Here we found, on April 18, 19, and 20, 1902, some largecolonics breeding on the willov/ islands in this great morass, which wecould reach only by pohng a skiff through many acres of dense,aquatic vegetation. These little islands were thickly covered withsmall willows, averaging about 12 or 15 feet high. In some casesthe Louisiana herons nested in colonies by themselves, but in othercases they were associated with a few water turkeys, snowy egrets,many Uttle blue herons, and a pair or two of yellow-crowned nightherons. The Louisiana herons far outnumbered all the other speciesand occupied the central portions of the rookeries. Their nestswere built in the willows in every available spot and at every heightfrom 2 to 12 /eet above the ground, often several nests in the sametree ; they were neatly and well made of small sticks and smoothlylined with fine twigs. Most of the nests contained four or five eggsand one held six. There were no young at that date.In Monroe County we found the Louisiana herons everywnereabundant, breeding in all the inland rookeries, as well as on manyof the mangrove keys. At the Cuthbert rookery they formed atleast half of the colony, where we estimated that there were about2,000 of them. Their nests were found everywhere, aU through therookery, but they were especially abundant in the interior, often 4or 5 and sometimes 10 nests in a tree; most of them were from 6 to12 feet from the ground in the black and red mangroves, a few being inthe buttonwoods. At the time of our visit, on May 1, 1903, fullythree-quarters of the nests held young birds of various ages. Thenests were small, irregular in shape, and loosely built of small sticks,but well lined with twigs.On many of the islands off the coast of Louisiana we found breed-ing colonies of these herons. Most of the young had hatched andmany had flown away when I was there late in June, 1910; butCaptain Sprinkle told me that, earlier in the season, he had estimatedthat the largest colonies contained from 500 to 1,000 birds. Onesmall colony, of about 50 pairs, stiU had eggs on Battledore Island.They were nesting in a row of low, black mangrove bushes which grewaround the borders of a small marsh. The nests were from 2 to 5feet above the ground. The mangroves were covered with whiteblossoms, among which the herons made a pretty picture. And allaround them were populous colonies of laughing gulls, black skim-mers, Caspian, royal, Forster, and common terns; it was a greatcollection of noisy neighbors.Along the coast of Texas, in 1923, we visited a number of coloniesin which Louisiana herons were breeding and in which this speciesusually predominated, but in all cases two or more other specieswere breeding with them. On Vingt-une Island, in East GalvestonBay, described under the snowy egret, we found a colony which, we
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 171
estimated, contained about 800 Louisiana herons, 400 snowy egrets,and 150 black-crowned night herons. The Louisiana herons' nestswere mainly in the tall canes which bordered the marsh, thoughmany of them were in the small huisache trees and bushes, as wellas in the prickly pear cacti. Some of the nests were on or close tothe ground and others were at varying heights up to 6 feet. Besidesthe usual nests of sticks, there were many nests made wholly or inpart of the dead and dry stems of the canes; fine strips or bits ofcane were generally in use as nest linings.One of the largest two rookeries seen was at Wolf Point, in Karan-kaua Bay, at the lower end of Matagorda Bay, which we visited onMay 10, 1923. This was a densely populated rookery, on dry land,in a thick growth of willows, husiache, and other small trees, withdense thickets of thorny underbrush. The bulk of the populationconsisted of Louisiana herons, which arose in a great cloud as I entered
;
there were certainly several thousand of them. Among them wereseveral hundred snowy egrets, a few pairs of reddish egrets and 15 or 20pairs each of Ward and black-crowned night herons. Two or threepairs of black vultures were living in the rookery and the place wasfairly alive with countless thousands of great-tailed grackles.The other big rookery, visited two days later, was on Roses Pointin La Vaca Bay. It was also on high dry land and was so well hid-den in an extensive forest of mesquite and huisache that it tookus sometime to find it. It was fully as large and perhaps muchlarger, as it was difficult to outline its limits. Besides several thou-sand, perhaps many thousand, Louisania herons, there were manysnowy egi'ets, Ward, and black-crowned night herons, and some fewreddish egrets. And, last but not least, I have never seen great-tailed grackles so thick as they were here; they fairly swarmedeverywhere and the trees were full of their nests, sometimes scores ofnests in a single tree. The herons' nests were mostly well up towardthe tops of the trees, from 10 to 15 feet from the ground.In the rookeries on the chain of islands, between San Antonioand Mesquite Bays, Louisiana herons were nesting abundantly amongthe reddish egrets and snowy egrets, in low bushes, 1 or 2 feet high,in the rank herbage and almost on the ground. On Big Bird Island,in Laguna Madre, they nested in a small colony by themselves in atract of tall weeds. Hero they had well made nests of dry weedstalks, straws, and grasses.C. J. Pennock, under the name of John Williams (1918), describesan interesting colony, which ho found near St. Marks, Florida, asfollows
:
In preparing to leave the island in a row boat, a landing was made across asmall cove from the line of bushes that had formerly been used as nesting sites
172 BULLETIN 135_, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMby these birds. On stepping ashore I was startled at seeing hundreds of Louisi-ana herons spring up from the open, treeless marsh and immediately settle downagain as I sank to cover. A few steps into the thick matted rushes and againthe birds arose on liurried wing beats almost directly upwards and drifted withmuch croaking farther down the island. A few steps more and I was in the midstof a nesting colony of these birds; every few yards a nest directly on the depressedrushes where a high tide had beaten down the tops of the tall rank growth.A hurried estimate of the number of these birds made approximately 500 individ-uals, but whether both sexes were in the marsh I could not determine, and no ac-curate count of the nests was attempted, as'they extended to a considerable distancein at least two directions?just how far was not discovered?and an enumerationunder the condition would have required more time than could be spared then,but enough was seen to convince me there were more than 150 nests, while theremight have been two or three times that number. The nests contained fromone to five eggs, but for the most part four, as far as examined all were freshly laid.The nests were but little more than the scratching aside of the tangled rushesand a few broken pieces of the same laid crossing one another to aid in retain-ing the eggs from working down.Eggs.?The Louisiana heron usually lays four or five eggs, some-times only three, occasionally six or very rarely seven. In shape theyvary from ovate or oval to elliptical ovate or elliptical oval. The shellis smooth, not glossy. The color is pale bluish green, varying from
"pale Niagara green" to "lichen green."The measurements of 41 eggs average 44.1 by 32.3 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 60 by 33, 48 by 34, 40.8 by32, 44 by 30.5 milUmeters.Young.?Audubon (1840) gives the incubation period as 21 days.Both sexes incubate the eggs and guard the young; from the timethat the nesting site is chosen until the young leave the nest one ofthe parents is always on duty. As one walks through a rookery itis easy to locate the nests containing young by their plaintive peep-ing notes. The young remain in the nests until they are half or two-thirds grown, probably longer if not disturbed; at this age or olderthey are easily frightened and readily leave the nest, climbing withgreat agility over the surrounding branches. They are quite expertat climbing, though apparently awkward, and can cling quite tena-ciously with bill, wings, or feet. They sometimes fall, however; ifthey fall into the water they can swim quite well and may be able toreach their nests again; but occasionally they become entangled inthe branches, or in the sticks of the nests, which usually proves fatal,as their parents do not seem able to help them in such situations; wesaw a number of their dead bodies hanging where they were caught.The young are fed by regurgitation, after the manner of other herons,as long as they remain in or about the nests, and probably longer,until they learn to shift for themselves.Plumages.?The downy young Louisiana heron is distinctivelycolored, quite unlike any of the others. The top of the head iscovered with long hairlike plumes, nearly 041 inch long, shading from
NORTH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 173
"army brown" basally to "fawn color" and "vinaceous fawn"terminally; the back is clothed in long, soft down, "fuscous" to
?'hair brown" in color; the under parts are scantily covered withcoarse, white down; the bill, feet, and naked skin are light green,yellowish in the Hghtest parts of the bill and feet.The Juvenal plumage appears iirst on the back which is soon wellfeathered, then on the head, neck, and under parts, followed by thewings and lastly the tail; the flight feathers are not fully out untilthe young bird is fully grown. In full juvenal plumage, the headand neck are deep "chestnut" or bright "bay"; the tliroat, a narrowstripe down the front of the neck and the underparts are white ; themantle, wings, and tail are "dark Quaker drab," with "chestnut"tips on all the wing coverts, and more or less "chestnut" on theback. This plumage is worn through the winter with little change,except that bluish gray feathers gradually replace the brown onesand a partial prenuptial molt produces, by February or March, aplumage which somewhat resembles that of the winter adult; thewhite has increased on the underparts and there is more white andbrown in the throat stripe ; rudimentary plumes and long feathershave appeared on the back; but considerable chestnut still remainsin the neck, shoulders, and lesser wing coverts; and the juvenal wings,with their chestnut edgings, have not been molted.A complete postnuptial molt occurs during the following summerand fall after which the young bird is practically indistinguishablefrom the adult, at an age of 15 or 16 months.Adults have a complete postnuptial molt in summer and early falland a partial prenuptial molt in February and March, which doesnot include the flight feathers. The special adornments of thenuptial plumage are the long white head plumes, which form a partof the nuptial display and are lacking in the fall; but the "purple-drab" or " vinaceous purple" head plumes, the long feathers of thesame colors on the neck, breast, and shoulders, and the "cinnamon-drab" back plumes are all much more highly developed in the springthan in the fall, though all but the white head plumes are presentin fall adults to a limited extent.Professor Huxley says, in his notes:Although the sexes are qualitatively similar, it is ray experience that there isnormally a quantitive difference between the birds of each pair, in respect ofbrilliance and epi^amic structures, the male having the brighter colors and thelonger crest and aigrettes. In spite of this, the best adorned females are consider-ably above the level of the least brilliant males. This implies that assertivemating must occur, so that a well adorned male tends to mate with a well adornedfemale, and vice versa.Food.?The Louisiana heron seeks its food to some extent in theshallow bays and estuaries along the coast, but more often around
174 BULLETIN 135;, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe shores of ponds, marshes, rice fields, and fresh-water meadows.It seldom stands and waits for its prey, but prefers to pursue it moreactively. Stealing quietly along, with cautious and measured steps,its quick eye detects the presence of a school of minnows; thencrouching low, with head drawn in, it takes a few rapid steps, itssharp beak darts swiftly outward and downward with unerring aim;sometimes it misses but often two or three of the small fry are caught be-fore the school escapes. Its movements are so graceful, so swift and soaccurate that it is a pleasure to watch them, Audubon (1840) hasdescribed its feeding habits very prettily, as follows
:
See, it has spied a small fly lurking on a blade of grass, it silently runs a fewsteps, and with the sharp point of its bill it has already secured the prey. The min-now just escaped from the pursuit of some larger fish has almost rushed upon thebeach for safety; but the quick eye of the heron has observed its motions, andin an instant it is swallowed alive. Among the herbage yet dripping with the dewthe beautiful bird picks its steps. Not a snail can escape its keen search, andas it moves around the muddy pool, it secures each water lizard that occurs.Now the sun's rays have dried up the dews, the flowers begin to droop, the wood-land choristers have ended their morning concert, and like them, the heron, fa-tigued with its exertions, seeks a place of repose under the boughs of the nearestbush, where it may in safety await the coolness of the evening.He also says:The food of this species consists of small fry, water insects, worms, slugs, andsnails, as well as leeches, tadpoles, and aquatic lizards.Oscar E. Baynard (1912) found in the stomach of an adult Louisi-ana heron the remains of about 200 grasshoppers; and he reportedthat 50 meals of young birds accounted for 2,876 grasshoppers, 8small frogs, 17 cutworms, 6 lizards, and 67 smaU crawfish. Althoughthis species probably eats more fish than the other small herons, itsother food habits make it decidedly useful.Behavior.?When starting to fly, this, and all the other herons,hold the neck extended in a long curve, with the legs dangling belowbut, when well under way the head is drawn in between theshoiddersand the feet are extended behind to serve as a rudder. The wingstrokes are deliberate, but steady and the flight is direct and strong.The morning and evening flights between roosting and feeding placesare often made in loose flocks or long straggling lines, sometimes ata considerable height when traveling long distances. The whiteunderparts serve as a good recognition mark. The graceful andelegant carriage of this heron has been referred to above. Quite a vari-ety of croaking notes and squawks, some in soft conversational tonesand some loud and vehement, are heard in the rookeries. Althoughit is more quarrelsome than the other small herons, it seems to getalong well with its neighbors. However, I once saw a Louisiana heronalight on a little blue heron's nest and deliberately poke the eggsout of it onto the ground; no resistance was offered, as the owner
NORTH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 175was absent. The pilfering of sticks from the nests of others is a com-mon occurrence in the rookeries, which often leads to a quarrel.An interesting hiding pose, which suggests the usefulness of thestripe of brown, black, and white markings on the throat and neckof this and some other species of herons and bitterns, is thus describedby William Palmer (1909)
:
The following interesting experience occurred in Florida. I had been walkingamong the pines with my gun and had slowly approached the backwater of theKissimmee River where the water had overflowed the short grass well back ofthe usual shore line. Here I soon noticed a Louisana heron standing in a fewinches of water near a small clump of scrub palmettoes and at once conceivedthe idea of trying to find out how near I could get to the bird. Using the clumpas a blind T gradually moved to within about 60 feet. Waiting a while to noticethe bird and to allay its fears, for it had evidently detected me, I sat down onthe grass and slowly worked myself to one side of the clump in full view of theheron and not over 40 feet away. Here I sat for some time lounging, first onone side and then on the other, at the same time working myself graduallynearer to the water, the heron all the time standing upright and immobile withits breast toward me, the neck upstretched and the bill pointed skyward. Icould plainly see the irides, but the bird, now about 25 feet off, stood absolutelystill for perhaps 20 minutes until I arose and then it flew off.Professor Huxley says in his notes:The flight games of this species are interesting. They seem to be indulged inonly when the birds have arrived over the nesting pond when flying back fromthe feeding grounds. They fly in at a steady rate, 100 or 200 feet up, and, whenover the roosting place, they fold their wings and drop or volplane down.During the descent the aigrettes fly out like a comet's tail. Some birds volplanesteadily down; others fall more rapidly and must skid from side to side beforealighting. When thousands are thus performing at once, the sight is a verystriking one.Enemies.?Plume hunters have made no effort to hunt this spe-cies, as it has no marketable plumes?its plumes might have comeon the market, if the demand had continued after the supply ofwhite aigrettes had become exhausted. Many young birds and someolder birds have been killed for food. There is, however, a humanenemy, unconscious perhaps of his evil deeds, who causes consider-able havoc whenever he indulges in his supposedly harmless sport in aheron rookery; and that is the bird photographer, who sets up hisblind in a rookery and keeps the herons off their nests, often forlong periods. I remember that, after we had spent parts of threedays photographing birds in the great Cuthbert rookery, we left it in asadly depleted condition. The crows and vultures had cleaned outpractically all the nests anywhere near our blinds; the roseatespoonbills and American egrets had been completely broken up anddriven away; hundreds of nests of the smaller herons had been robbed;and the ground was strewn with broken egg shells all over therookery. The egg collector, who is constantly moving about in plainsight, frightens the crows away, as well as the herons, and is there-
176 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfore much less destructive than the bu'd photographer. The safesttime to practice bird photography, and the best time too to get goodresults, is when the young are partially grown, when there are noeggs for the crows to steal and when the young are too large for thevultures to swallow. Probably, when not disturbed by human be-ings, the herons' nests are constantly guarded by one of each pair.Otherwise, it is hard to conceive how many birds can be raised suc-cessfully, where fish crows are as common as they are in Florida orwhere great-tailed grackles abound as they do in Texas.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Southern and eastern United States, Central America, theWest Indies, and northern South America.Breeding range.?North to Lower CaHfornia (Margarita Island andLa Paz); Sinaloa (Mazatlan); Texas (Brownsville, Corpus Christi,Galveston, and Houston); Louisiana (Black Bayou, Jackson, andLake St. John); Mississippi (near Natchez, Rodney, and probablyBiloxi) ; Alabama (Petit Bois Island and Autaugaville) ; Florida (Tal-lahassee) ; and Virginia (formerly Clarkesville) . East to North Caro-lina (Orton Lake, formerly Beaufort); South Carolina (WashoePreserve on the Santee River, Charleston, and Frogmore) ; Georgia(Savannah, Darien, Blackboard Island, and St. Marys) ; Florida (St.Augustine, Mosquito Inlet, and Titusville) ; Bahama Islands (GreatAbaco, Berry Islands, New Providence, San Salvador, Mariguana,and North, Grand, and East Caicos Islands); Porto Rico; and prob-ably the Islands off the coast of Venezuela (Aruba and Bonaire).South to probably the coast of Venezuela (Aruba and Bonaire) ; andPanama (Rio Sabana and Lion Hill). West to Nicaragua (San Juandel Sur and Momotombo) ; Oaxaca (Tehuantepec) ; Colima (Colimaand Manzanillo) ; Tepic (Las Penas Islands) ; Sinaloa (Mazatlan)
;
and Lower California (San Jose Island, La Paz, and MargaritaIsland).Winter range.?North to Lower California (La Paz) ; Sinaloa (Ma-zatlan) ; rarely New Mexico (Gila River) ; Tamaulipas (Matamoros)rarely Louisiana (VermiUion Bay) ; Mississippi (Biloxi) ; and SouthCarolina (Charleston) . East to South Carolina (Charleston) ; Georgia(Savannah and Darien); Florida (St. Augustine, Mosquito Inlet, andTitusville) ; the Bahama Islands (San Salvador and the Caicos Is-lands); and probably other islands of the West Indies. South prob-ably to the Lesser Antilles; the northern coast of South America andPanama (Rio Indio) . West to Guerrero (Acapulco); JaKsco (Ocat-lan); Sinaloa (Mazatlan); and Lower California (La Paz).Migration.?The Louisiana heron is only partially migratory as it
"winters plentifully as far north as South Carolina. On the coast ofLouisiana and Texas, however, it is only seen there rarely at this
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 177season. It has been noted commonly at Breton Island reservation,Louisiana, on February 3 (1914); and at Corpus Christi, Texas, latein March, 1878. At the Breton Island reservation it was common attimes until November 10 (1913).Casual records.?The Louisiana heron apparently is not much givento postnuptial northward wanderings, as it has not been many timesdetected north of its usual summer range. It has been recorded fromCalifornia (La Punta, January 17, 1914, and San Diego Bay, March22, 1925); Arizona (near Fort Verde, September 24, 1884); north-eastern Texas (Texarkana); Missouri (Clark County, April 13, 1890);Kentucky (Franklin County, about July 15, 1917); Indiana (KnoxCounty, summer of 1894, and Starke County, June 26, 1876);Virginia (Cobb's Island near Washington, D. C, August 25, 1922);New Jersey (Cape May, August 1, 1920); New York (Patchogue,summer of 1836); and Manitoba (Nettley Lake, 40 miles north ofWinnipeg, September 7, 1924).Egg dates.?Florida: 57 records, December 8 to June 26; 29 records,April 7 to 26. Louisiana: 10 records, April 9 to June 21. Texas:21 records, April 21 to June 22; 11 records, April 27 to May 16.FLORIDA CAERULEA (Linnaeus)LITTLE BLUE HERONHABITSAlthough not as widely distributed and not as numerous as for-merly, the little blue heron is still very common in many of our South-ern States. As its plumes have not been in such demand for milli-nery purposes, it has suffered less at the hands of the plume huntersthan the white egrets have. It is, however, a shy and retiring speciesand has retreated somewhat before the advance of civilization. Al-though it is frequently seen feeding in coastal estuaries and ponds itis more essentially a bird of the interior than the other small heronsof the Southern States. It seems to prefer to feed in fresh waterponds and marshes and along the banks of inland streams. It breedsby preference farther inland than the other species and its rookeriesare seldom near the coast except in fresh water ponds on coastal is-lands. Dr. T. Gilbert Pearson (1922) describes its haunts very wellas follows:This species inhabits much of the extensive marshlands in our Southland.When traveling through the pine barrens of our South Atlantic and Gulf States,one will often come upon shallow ponds or small lakes whose margins and shal-low reaches are more or less grown over with various water plants and scatteredbushes; farther out the leaves of the water lilies are usually much in evidence.About the pond the bare grasslands, or prairies, extend from 100 feet to manyhundreds of yards. Here is the natural and favorite feeding ground of the littleblue heron. Singly, or in small flocks, they may be seen wading slowly along inthe shallow water or standing stationary with heads erect, watching the intruder
178 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfrom a distance. Sometimes these lakes contain islands covered with button-wood or willow bushes, and these frequently are chosen as nesting sites for vari-ous herons of the neighborhood. Other favorite breeding places of the little blueheron are the small ponds in dense hammock lands that surround many of thelakes. Here, in the heavy semitropical forests, one may find quiet little pondsthickly grown with bushes, and such places the herons love.Nesting.?In Florida, in 1902, we found little blue herons breedingin large numbers on the willow islands of the upper St. Johns, inrookeries with the Louisiana herons, which were much more numer-ous. So far as we could judge, from what few nests we were ableto identif}^ and from watching the birds rise from their nests as weapproached the rookeries, the little blue herons always nested in thesmaller willows on the outer edges of the islands. The nests were placedlow down, r^ :>stly from 2 to 4 feet from the ground, in small trees orbashes or on the lower branches. In Monroe County in 1903 wefound them breeding in the big inland rookeries with other speices;here also their nests were confined to the outskirts of the rookeries,where they were bunched together in compact groups. We did notfind them breeding on any of the Keys; I have never found thembreeding any where near salt water. We found none breeding in anyof the coastal rookeries in Texas, in 1923 ; but we found them commonand breeding in the big inland rookeries of Victoria County.C. J. Pennock has sent me some interesting notes on breeding col-onies of little blue herons in the ty-ty pond region of Wakulla County,Florida. Here several hundred acres "low, level moor" extend fromthe banks of the St. Marks River to the Gidf , where the " many ty-typonds, with their rank border growth, lie dotted around like so manyslands in a sea of grass." The ponds vary in size from 15 to20 yards indiameter to several times that size, in which there is sometimes 3 or4 feet of water and sometimes only dry mud, according to the season.The ty-ty bushes, for which the ponds are named, grow from 8 or 10to 20 or more feet high and their close-growing stems prove a formi-dable barrier. In one of these ponds Mr. Pennock found a colony of100 or more pairs of little blue herons established, with nests in thebushes from 5 to 8 feet above the water. Eight nests were found ina single clump of ty-ty only 15 feet in diameter. In another smallpond 18 to 20 pairs were nesting in isolated clump of bushes, less than20 feet in diameter, that grew almost in the center of the pond.Near Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, on May 19 and 20, 1915,while I was visiting Arthur T. Wayne, he showed me a small colonyof 8 or 10 pairs of little blue herons. After wandering for sometimethrough a grand old forest of tall pine, sweet gum, black gum, liveoak, and water oak, with occasional thickets of myrtle and bay, over-grown with tangles of vines, we came to a wet section in the forest,where the large live oaks and water oaks were standing in shallowwater; and beyond, where the water was from knee deep to waist
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 179deep, were thickets of willows and other small trees and bushes.The little blue herons, with a few black-crowned night herons, andgreen herons, had established a little rookery in the willow and otherbushes around the edges of an open pond, overgrown with wampeelilies {Pontederia cordata). The little blue herons' nests were from 3to 8 feet above the water in the small willows on the borders of thepond or in solitary trees in the open. The nests were very small,frail structures of fine twigs; fully half of them still contained 3 or 4eggs; some young were just hatching and some others were a fewdays or a week old.Doctor Pearson (1919) mentions a colony found by him in HydeCounty, North Carolina, in which "the nests were built in cypressand willow trees, at distances varying from 15 to 40 feet from theground," unusually high nests for this species. Also, another
"unusual fact noted was that the trees were not standing in water,but on virtually dry land." My experience has been that the littleblue herons build their nests very low down, usually over water ormud, and in dense groups. Dr. Frank M. Chapman (1908) counted32 nests in one bush. The nest is not distinguishable from those ofthe other small herons; it is a loose, frail platform of small sticks ortwigs, very slightly hollowed, and with no lining except that the finertwigs on top may be laid more smoothly. Dr. A. H. Cordier (1923)once watched one of these herons building its nest, of which he says
:
Near a rookery in Florida I witnessed a little blue heron building its nest of finetwigs, gathered from a burned-over area. Each twig was carefully selected fromthe dead limbs of the same bush, and was broken off and carried to the nest.The trips were made on an average of every 7 minutes and the nest was com-pleted and contained one egg at the end of 48 hours.Eggs.?The little blue heron usually lays four or five eggs, sometimesonly three, and occasionally six. The shape is usually ovate or oval,varying rarely to elhptical ovate or elliptical oval. The shell issmooth but not glossy. The color is pale bluish green, varying from
"light Niagara green" to "lichen green." The measurements of 54eggs average 44 by 33.5 millimeters; the eggs showing the four ex-tremes measm-e 49.5 by 35, 45.5 by 35.5, 40 by 33, 40.5 by 30.5.Young.?C. J. Pennock contributes the following notes on thebehavior of young little blue herons
:
Most of the nests were now empty; the oldest birds were able to use theirwings a little and when startled would fly from bush to bush, but I saw noneleave the pond. Younger ones were traveling though the branches or vereperched on the tops of the bushes. Other young were on the ground anda few were still too young to leave the nest; although at a very early age, whenapproached, they showed determination to abandon the nest and scramble overthe bushes. Several nests contained single dead birds. A few young were founddead on the ground and in two instances dead juveniles were found suspendedby the neck in narrow forks of branches, presumably having fallen and beingunable to extricate themselves. One young bird was seen stalking over the
180 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMground with the dead body of a still younger bird of the same species dangUngfrom its mouth. On catching this bird I found the head of the dead bird waswell down the throat of the captor and on puUing it out discovered that diges-tion had progressed considerably.The young are fed at jfirst on regurgitated food; as thus describedby Doctor Cordier (1923):The actual act of feeding is, to say the least, a vicious and terrible affair. Theparent bird stands by the nest in a seemingly indifferent mood, whUe the youngare screaming and fighting for the best position. Each time the parent's bill iswithin reach, a young bird seizes it crosswise at the base and jerks violently,while there is much protesting noise from the other less fortunate youngsters.The old bird may, with stoical indifference, refuse to feed for some time, duringwhich the young bird continues, with bull-dog tenacity, to puU and jerkat the parent's beak getting nearer and nearer to the tip. When the psycholog-ical moment for regurgitation arrives the partly digested fish is either forced downthe throat of the nestling, or, perchance it may light on the^interested photograph-er's head or camera outfit. When the j'oung birds have been fed the parentfrequently stands by the nest for an hour or more, all the while uttering a con-tented note, much like that of a barnyard hen as she struts around the yard withher half-grown brood following her. The owner of a nest near my tent had thehabit of descending to the ground and eating billful after billful of the mud soabundant under the trees, continually dancing and jumping around as if enjoyingthe feast.Plumages.?The downy young little blue heron is like the downyyoung snowy egret, all pure white. The body plumage is the firstto appear and the back is well feathered before the young bird is halfgrown and before the flight feathers burst their sheaths; the wingsand tail are not complete until the bird is fully grown. The primariesare tipped with bluish black when they first appear, but the rest ofthe Juvenal plumage is all pure white. This plumage, wholly whiteexcept the wing tips, is worn during the first fall and winter withoutmuch change; I have seen it as late as May 1. But usually youngbirds begin to acquire some blue in the plumage by February, whichincreases during the spring. Young birds are often found breedingin this first nuptial, mixed, plumage, which has suggested the ideathat they are adults in a white phase. The amount of blue in thisfirst nuptial plumage varies greatly in different individuals. Usuallyit appears first as a bluish wash in the crown or a sprinkling of bluein the primaries or tertials; the color then spreads to the lores, neck,and back, until the latter becomes largely blue in April; at aboutthis time some new scapulars, many new wing coverts, and occasion-ally some new remiges, wholly blue, are acquired by molt, in additionto those which are sprinkled with blue; these last suggest the possi-bility of color change. The above is the normal or commonest typeof progress, but there are exceptions to the rule. Some advancedbirds begin to show a suffusion of blue in the crown, neck, and pri-maries as early as November. Some remain nearly all white through
NORTH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 181the breeding season and acquire some rudimentary, white, plumelikefeathers on the back. Some other parti-colored birds acquire manylong, blue, plumelike feathers on the back, similar to those worn bybreeding adults. Both of these last two are probably breedingplumages.I spent the winter of 1924 and 1925 in the vicinity of Tampa Bay,Florida, where little blue herons were very common and constantlyunder observation. Up to the time of my departure, on May 1, Idid not see, among the hundreds of birds examined, a single whitebird which showed any appreciable signs of molting into the blueplumage, though I was always on the watch for them. Hence I inferthat the normal time of molting is in May or later.Apparently the first postnuptial molt begins in the spring; perhapsthe solid blue feathers seen in April birds show the beginning of itbut I have seen birds taken in July in complete fresh winter plumage.This molt is complete and removes all traces of inmiaturity. I cannot agree with the two-color-phase theory; I have never seen a birdin wholly blue plumage that was not unquestionably an adult. I havenever seen a white bird which was not unquestionably immature; thewhitest birds are all fall birds; the parti-colored birds are all springbirds; and I have never seen a white bird in the fall that showed anyconsiderable amount of blue. The change from white to blue is pro-gressive throughout the first year and no trace of it is seen afterward.Adults have the usual heron molts, a partial prenuptial molt begin-ning in February, and a complete postnuptial molt beginning inJuly; the wings are usually niolted in August. The long, "slate-blue," plumelike feathers of the back, and the "Indian red" plumageof the head and neck are characteristic of the nuptial plumage. Inwinter plumage the head and neck are more purplish, with more orless whitish in the chin and throat, and there are only a few short,plumelike feathers in the back.Food.?-The little blue heron feeds to some extent in salt or brack-ish waters in estuaries and coastal marshes, where it catches minnows,fiddler crabs, and other crustaceans. But its favorite feeding groundsare in fresh-water marshes and meadows, around the marshy shoresof ponds and lakes, and along the banks of inland streams. Its ac-tive method of pursuing its prey has been portrayed so well by theillustrious Audubon (1840) that I can not do better than quote hiswords, as follows:There, and at this season, reader, you may see this graceful heron, quiet) andin silence walking along the margins of the water, with an elegance and gracewhich can never fail to please you. Each regularly-timed step is lightly meas-ured, while the keen eye of the bird seeks for and watches the equally cautiousmovements of the objects towards which it advances with all imaginable care.When at a proper distance, it darts forth its bill with astonishing celerity, to92642?26t 13
182 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMpierce and secure its prey ; and this it does with so much precision, that, whilewatching some at a distance with a glass, I rarely observed an instance of failure.If fish is plentiful, on the shallows near the shore, when it has caught one, it im-mediately swallows it, and runs briskly through the water, striking here and there,and thus capturing several in succession. Two or three dashes of this sort, affordsufficient nourishment for several hours, and when the bird has obtained enoughit retires to some quiet place, and remains there in an attitude of repose until itshunger returns.Oscar E. Baynard (1912) found that 50 meals of young little blueherons consisted of 1,900 grasshoppers, 37 small frogs, 149 cutworms,8 lizards, and 142 small crawfish. And in the stomach of an adult,he found 51 grasshoppers, 2 small frogs, 3 cutworms, 1 small lizard,and the remains of 3 crawfish. These were quite substantial mealsand their contents show that these little herons are decidedly bene-ficial.Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1916) made a study of the food of thisspecies in Porto Rico, from which it appeared that over 97 per centwas animal and less than 3 per cent vegetable. The animal food con-sisted of mole crickets, grasshoppers, locusts, and other insects, frogs,crabs, shrimps, and lizards, Mr. Arthur H. Howell (1911) says ofthe food of the little blue heron in Arkansas
:
The food of this heron consists chiefly of fish, frogs, lizards, crawfish, smallcrabs, and insects. The rice growers of southern Texas consider it very usefulon account of its fondness for crawfish, which cause trouble in the rice fields bytheir depredations upon the crop and by burrowing into the embankments sur-rounding the fields. The stomachs of 4 specimens killed near Wilmot in Junecontained crawfish and aquatic beetles. One bird had eaten 35 of the crustaceansand 28 beetle larvae.Behavior.?The flight of the little blue heron is light, graceful, andstrong; it is performed in the usual heron attitude, with the headdrawn in upon the shoulders and the legs extended in the rear; thewing strokes are quicker than in the larger herons. On the groundor in the shallow water where it seeks its food, its movements are quick,graceful, and elegant. On its feeding grounds and in its breedingrookeries it is usually intimately associated with the Louisiana heron,with which it seems to be on friendly terms, though I once saw aLouisiana heron deliberately poke the eggs out of a little blue heron'snest. These two small herons are daylight feeders; I doubt if theyever feed at night. They may be seen at all hours of the day walkingdaintily and actively about on the marshes or mud flats; but theirprincipal feeding hours are early in the morning and late in the after-noon. They roost at night on the trees and bushes in their breed-ing rookeries or in other suitable places such as motes or clumps oftrees on open marshes or on islands, where they feel secure; largenumbers congregate in such roosts. Early in the morning they fly outin detached flocks and scatter over their feeding grounds ; returningagain at night, the flocks circle around the roost to reconnoiter and
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 183then come gliding down into the trees. When preparing to alight orwhen circling in a strong wind they sometimes scale along for somedistance on set wings.These little herons are usually silent; a low clucking or croakingnote is occasionally heard while they are feeding or a louder, harshercroak when alarmed. Doctor Chapman (1908) calls them "noisyand quarrelsome, calling at each other notes which sounded strangelylike tell you what, tell you what." Doctor Cordier (1923) writes:The feeding note of these birds as they approach the nest is much like that ofa guinea fowl; the fighting, or quarreling note resembles the scream of a parrotwhen it sees a dog coming around a corner toward its perch.Prof. Julian S. Huxley tells me that the behavior of the little blueheron on its breeding grounds appears to be essentially similar to thatof the Louisiana heron, which is so well described in his notes on thatspecies. The courtships, greeting ceremonies, nest-relief ceremonies,and emotional displays are much alike in all three of the small south-ern herons ; they all have plumes or aigrettes which they love todisplay. Their flight maneuvers are also similar. Little blue heronsoften travel in loose flocks. A flock of 15 or 20 birds, blue adultsand white young birds, frequented some small ponds near my winterhome in Florida; when frightened away from the ponds they invari-ably flew to and alighted on one of two dead pine trees in the vicinity;if disturbed there, they all took to wing, circled around in an openflock a few times and then all set their wings, scaling in unison, andreturned to one of the trees, where they all gracefully alighted. Thesetrees were their favorite perches to which they returned again andagain after a few turns in the air. I have seen all the herons settheir wings and scale, at times, especially when returning to theirrookeries or when about to alight.Enemies.?The lack of marketable plumes has saved this speciesfrom much of the slaughter from which the more popular species havesuffered. But, in many places in the Southern States and in theWest Indies it has been quite extensively killed for food, the youngbirds being particularly palatable. Its worst natural enemies arecrows and vultures, which destroy vast numbers of eggs and young.Fish crows, in Florida, are always sneaking around in the rookeries,looking for a chance to rob any unguarded heron's nests, and thelarge number of broken eggs seen under the nests shows that they areall too successful. Vultures, crows, and large grackles should besystematically shot by all wardens that guard rookeries.Fall.?The little blue is another of our southern herons that wandersfar north of its breeding range in summer and fall, from July to Oc-tober. These wanderings have carried it as far as Nova Scotia, Que-bec, Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Nebraska. It is mainly theyoung birds, in the white plumage, that indulge in these erratic
184 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMjourneys, which may be caused by overcrowding on their breedinggrounds resulting in a desire to find new fields in which to search forfood. The little blue herons are much more often reported from north-ern localities than the egrets, and during some seasons they are reallyquite common in New England. Throughout the southern portionof its range this species is a constant resident or, at least, always pres-ent; but it withdraws in winter from all but the southern tier ofStates. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?South America, Central America, Islands of the CaribbeanSea and southern and eastern North America.Breeding range.?-North to Tepic (San Bias, Las Penas Islands,and the Acaponeta River) ; Texas (Kerrville, Waco, and Houston)
;
Arkansas (Arkadelphia, Osceola, and probably Wilmot) ; Missouri(southeastern part); Kentucky (Bowling Green); North Carolina(Craven and Hyde Counties); Virginia (Hog Island); and formerlyNew Jersey (Cape May). East to formerly New Jersey (Cape May)Virginia (Hog Island) ; North Carolina (Hyde and Craven Counties)South Carolina (Washoe Reserve on the Santee River, Mount Pleas-ant and Frogmore) ; Georgia (Savannah, Darien, Blackbeard Island,and St. Marys) ; Florida (St. Augustine, Mosquito Inlet, Micco, andMiami) ; the Bahama Islands (Andros and New Providence) ; SanDomingo; Porto Rico (San Juan and Vieques Island); CarriacouIsland; Tobago Island; Trinidad; British Guiana (Georgetown) ; Brazil(Counani River, Bahia, Sao Paulo and Iguape) ; and Argentina (Mer-cedes). South to Brazil (Iguape) ; Argentina (Mercedes) ; and Peru(Tumbez). West to Peru (Tumbez) ; Ecuador (Vinces) ; Colombia(Lake Paturia and Cienega) ; Panama (Castillo and Remedios) ; CostaRica (Punta Arenas) ; Nicaragua (Escondido River and San Juan delSur) ; Guatemala (San Jose and Chiapam) ; and Tepic (Las PenasIslands and the Acaponeta River)
.
Winter range.?North to Sinaloa (Mazatlan) ; Texas (probably TomGreen and Concho Counties, Brownsville, Refugio County, and prob-ably Lee County) ; Louisiana (west side of Vermillion Bay, MarshIsland, and the State game preserve) ; South Carolina (probablyFrogmore, Charleston, and probably the Washoe Reserve on theSantee River); and North CaroUna (Currituck Sound). East toNorth Carolina (Currituck Sound) ; South Carolina (probably theWashoe Reserve, Charleson, and probably Frogmore) ; Georgia (St,Maryi^) ; Florida (Alachua County, Fruitland, Micanopy, MosquitoInlet, Lake Harvey, Titusville, Kissimmee, Miami, and Upper Mate-cumbo Key); the Bahama Islands; Haiti; Porto Rico; Cuba; ansouthwards through the breeding range where it is resident. Westto Jalisco (Ocatlan); and Sinaloa (Mazatlan).
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 185Migration.?Although the little blue heron remains in winterthroughout most of the breeding range, most of the birds withdrawfrom the northern areas. They have been observed to arrive at NewOrleans, Louisiana, on March 11 (1894) ; at Andrews, North Carolinaon April 4; at Beulahville, Virginia, on April 14 (1912) ; and at Miller,Virginia, on May 12 (1917).Casual records.?Like the egrets and some other herons, this spe-cies has a habit of wandering far north of its normal breeding range,although in the present instance, this is done not only after the nest-ing season but also before. This is particularly true of the birds inthe white plumage which are frequently mistaken for the snowy egretand the opposite. There are several spring and fall records of httleblue herons in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut,and Massachusetts, and others north to Vermont (Newbury, August16, 1912); New Hampshire (Amherst, April 28, 1897); Maine (Scar-borough, September, 1881, Vinalhaven, April 1, 1902, Popham Beach,May 19, 1901, and Whitneyville, August 16, 1906); Quebec (Quebec,October, 1881 and Lance au Loup, May 23, 1900); and Nova Scotia(Lawrencetown, March 18, 1896). In the Mississippi Valley and con-tiguous territory the species has been many times detected in Iowa,Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, with records of occurrence extending northto Michigan (Detroit, May 2, 1882); Ontario (Point Pelee, Septem-ber, 1904, and Aylmer, August 15, 1901); Wisconsin (Lake Koshko-nong, and Racine County, August 28, 1848); and Manitoba(Winnipeg, May 11, 1905). Farther west it has occurred north toOklahoma (Redrock, summer of 1884, Copan, July 16 to August 2,1906, and Ponca, April 7-10, 1918); Kansas (Winfield, May 2 andOctober 5, 1902, Wichita, May 2, 1917, Elmdale, April 18-26, 1916,and Manhattan, April 27-30, 1915); and Nebraska (Nebraska City,September, 11, 1900, Omaha, June 15, 1897, and August 15, 1903, andButler County). The Colorado record for this species really refersto the snowy egret, Egretta c. candidissima.Egg dates.?Florida: 89 records, December 27 to June 3; 45 records,April 1 to 25. Louisiana: 11 records, April 7 to May 16.BUTORIDES VIRESCENS VIRESCENS (Linnaeus)GREEN HERONHABITSContributed by Charles Wendell TownsendFamiliarity with the habits of this well-known little heron explainsits common or vulgar names such as "fly-up-the-creek," "chalk-line," "shite-poke; " and "skeow." These names are of long standingand very expressive, for the bird is a familiar one to the country bo}^and to the fisherman by stream or pond, where the tameness or stu-pidity^ of this bird often brings it within close range.
186 BULLETIN 135; UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMSpring.?The migratory flights of the green heron are generallymade at night and are described by Audubon (1840) with his usualpicturesqueness. Ho says:I have observed their return in early spring, when arriving in flocks of from 20to 50 individuals. They would plunge downwards from their elevated line ofmarch, cutting various zigzags, until they would all simultaneously alight on thetops of the trees or bushes of some swampy place, or on the borders of miryponds. These halts took place pretty regularly about an hour after sunrise.The day was occupied by them, as well as by some other species especially theblue, the yellow-crowned, and night herons, all of which at this period traveledeastward, in resting, cleansing their bodies, and searching for food. When thesun approached the western horizon, they would at once ascend in the air,arrange their lines and commence their flight, which I have no doubt continuedall night.The chance to see such a flight is, however, rare. Generally on aday in early spring one discovers at the pond or stream margin thefamihar bird that has been absent all the winter months and hasarrived unseen in the night.Courtship.?Audubon (1840) says;During the love season they exhibit many curious gestures, erecting all thefeathers of their neck, swelling their throat, and uttering a rough guttural notelike qua, qua, several times repeated by the male as he struts before the female.Mrs. Irene G. Wheelock (1906) describes the dance or "hornpipeof a solitary green heron" in June, "although," as she says, "possi-bly his mate may have been an unseen witness. Backwardand forward, with queer little hops, he pranced first on one footand then on the other. * * * The effect is as ludicrous asthough a long legged, dignified D. D. were to pause in his learned dis-course and execute a double shufile."Nesting.?The green heron nests singly or in colonies. Althoughit generally prefers for its nesting locality a region close to the water,it may choose dry woods or an orchard in the midst of cultivatedground. The height of the nest is also very variable, and althoughmost nests are placed from 10 to 20 feet from the ground, they maybe found in the tops of high trees, or, on the other hand, on lowbushes or even on the ground. Hatch (1892) says: "Instances haveoccurred under my observation, where in the entire absence of treesor bushes of any size, they have placed the nest, composed of coarsedry weeds and reeds and cat-tails, on a tussock in a reed-hidden quagmire." And he mentions one that was built on the topof a muskrat house. Maynard (1896) says that in Florida, "amongthe keys, they often place their domiciles on the roots of the man-groves, frequently not over 6 inches above high-water mark," W. J.Erichsen (1921) in his observations in Chatham County, Georgia, says:These birds breed in considerable numbers on Sylvans Island on the Herb River,some 3 miles from the town of Thunderbolt, placing their nests in the extreme
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 187tops of tall pine saplings. Probably the most populous colony in the countyis near Lazaretto station on Tybee Island. Here the birds breed in a jungleof oaks difficult to penetrate. So numerous are they that every available nestingsite is occupied, many new nests being built on the foundation of old ones.In Massachusetts, I have generally found single nests, but on sev-eral occasions, small colonies. One at Magnolia, many years agobetween the beach and a fresh water marsh, consisted of 20 or 30pairs nesting in pitch pines about 20 feet from the ground. Anothercolony was on an island in the salt marsh at Ipswich in trees of graybirch, red oak, and hickory about 15 feet from the ground. A colonyof about 20 nests at Westport on a salt marsh island was in cedars,sassafras, and hickories. In this case the nests varied from 3 to 20feet from the ground.The nest itself is a simple affair from 10 to 12 inches in diameter,ill-adapted, it would seem, to hold eggs when the tree branches wavein the wind, for it is a flat platform of sticks, destitute of any sort oflining and not cup shaped. Some at least of the twigs composingthe nest are green. The nest is so thin and flimsy that one can some-times look through it from below and see the eggs. In making thenest the herons must weave the twigs in and out to a certain extent,for if they merely laid the sticks one on top of the other, the nest wouldfall to pieces at the least disturbance. The nests on the ground made ofcourse weeds, reeds, and cat-tails already mentioned are very unusualboth in site and material.The green heron does not nest with other species as a rule, but isoccasionally found nesting in the same grove with little blue, Louisi-ana, black-crowned, and other herons. The boat-tailed grackle andthe bronze grackle have also been found nesting in the same group oftrees. Mrs. Wheelock (1906) says of the association with the latterbirds:The grackles were quarrelsome, thieving, noisy, and the only possible advan-tage the herons could hope to derive from them would be the loud alarm alwaysgiven by them at the approach of danger.Eggs.?[Author's note: Green herons have been known to lay fromthree to nine eggs, but the ordinary sets consist of four or five eggs;the larger sets are probably the product of two females. The eggsare ovate or oval in shape. The shell is smooth without gloss andthe color varies from " pale glaucous green " to " pale olivine. " Themeasurements of 43 eggs average 38 by 29.5 millimeters; the eggsshowing the four extremes measure 41 by 28, 40.5 by 30.5, 36 by27,5 millimeters.]Young.?The incubation according to Burns (1915) is 17 days. Theyoung at an early age are expert climbers among the branches of thenesting tree, long before they are able to fly and while the natal down
188 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
still adheres to the juvenal feathers and forms a halo around theirheads. In climbing they make use of their feet, wings and bill, or,rather of the neck, hooking their bills and chins over the branchesand pulling themselves up. The bastard wing is extended duringthe climbing process, suggesting an ancestral, reptilian use, butwhatever power it may have had in the past, this was long sincelost. I have never seen any attempt to use the bastard wing ingrasping. If the ornithologist climbs the tree in order to observethe half-grown young in the nest, these almost always leave inhaste and scatter to the outermost tips of the branches.Another ancestral trait, which is suggested in the adult by thepersistence of a distinct web between the middle and outer toes, isan ability on the part of the young to swim, an inheritance whichmust be of distinct value in many cases where the young fall fromthe nesting tree or bush into the water below. I once placed a vig-orous half-grown young green heron in the water below its nest andwas delighted to see it sit erect like a little swan and paddle grace-fully off, using its feet alternately. It seemed perfectly at its ease,dabbed at the water occasionally with its bill, swam a creek 20 yardsbroad, and threaded its way among the grass stalks until it dis-appeared from sight. The grace and ease with which it swam con-trasted forcibly with its movements on land. The adult also is ableto swim.When the young are approached too closely, they regurgitate the con-tents of their crops to the discomfort of the seeker after knowledge,although this action gives the latter an opportunity to learn the char-actor of their food. Mrs. Irene G. Wheelock (1906), who has madesome interesting and valuable studies of several famihes of these birdsin southern Wisconsin says:As soon as the little ones were fairly out of the shells and before the down wasdry on their heads we had taken several pictures of them. One of these revealeda remarkable heron trait, for the brand new baby, who had never been fed, andwho had scarcely opened his eyes on this queer world, yet attempted to protestagainst our meddling by the characteristic heron method of defense. In his casethe action was merely a nervous " gagging " and would seem to indicate that thisact is involuntary rather than intentional on the part of all herons. * *When first hatched the herons stretched up to a height of 3,1^ inches, and when7 days old, 11 inches.She found that they "gained one-half ounce in weight every dayfor 6 days, weighing three-fourths of an ounce at the beginning and3% of an ounce on the seventh da3^" These young were fed only inthe early morning and in the late afternoon, and the periods of great-est activity were from 4 to 6 in the morning, and from 5 to 7 in theevening. One record taken when the young were a week old, showedthat they were fed 7 times in the morning and 7 times in the after-noon. The food was given by regurgitation but was not predigested.
NORTH AMEEICAN MAESH BIRDS 189Plumages.?[Author's note: The downy young green heron isscantily covered with "drab" down, thickest on the back andlongest on the crown; the color varies to light gray on the underparts and to "hair brown" on the crown. The juvenal plumage isacquired in the usual heron sequence and is complete before theyoung bird reaches the flight stage, when fully grown.The sexes are distinguishable even in the juvenal plumage. Inthe young male, in August, the crown is solid, glossy, greenish black;the sides of the head and neck are solid "chestnut"; the chin, throat,and neck stripe are yellowish white, spotted with black; the back issolid, glossy, dark green; the wing coverts are the same color as theback, but the lesser coverts are edged with chestnut and the me-dian and greater coverts are rounded (not pointed, as in theadult), edged with pale buff and have a triangular buffy white spotat the tip of each feather; these spots soon fade out to white andthen wear away; the remiges and rectrices are glossy, greenish black;the secondaries and primaries are tipped with white in decreasingamounts from the inner to the outer; the under parts are buffywhite, streaked with dusky. The young female differs from thejuvenal male in having chestnut streaks in the crown and having thesides of the head and neck streaked with chestnut, buff, and dusky.The juvenal plumage is worn during the fall and earl}^ winter,without much change until the partial prenuptial molt begins inFebruary; this involves mainly the head, neck, and body plumage,which, by May, is much like the adult plumage, except that thereis more white in the chin, throat, and under parts, with more broad,dusky stripes in the fresh plumage of the lower neck and upperbreast than in the adult; some new, fresh back plumes, scapulars,and wing coverts, similar to those of the adult, are acquired at thismolt; but the flight feathers are old and worn and some of thejuvenal wing coverts are retained. The complete postnuptial moltbegins earlier in young birds than in adults ; I have seen a youngbird molting its primaries as early as April first; at this molt, whenthe young bird is but little over a year old, the adult plumage is as-sumed. The adult wing is easily recognized by the coverts; thelesser coverts are narrowly edged with rufous buff and the medianand greater coverts are pointed (not rounded as in the juvenal) andnarrowly edged with pale buff; only the inner primaries and thesecondaries are very narrowly tipped with white.Adults apparently have a partial prenuptial molt in late winterand early spring and a complete postnuptial molt from July to No-vember. I have seen an adult male molting its primaries as lateas January 16, which suggests the possibility of a complete prenup-tial molt, but this may be only a case of delayed molt. There isvery little seasonal difference in adult plumages.]92642?26t 14
190 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMFood.?The food of the green heron varies somewhat with thelocality. In birds taken in salt marshes, I have found the stomachcontents to consist of the minnows common in the little creeks to-gether with a variable amount of sand. Live stomach worms arealso common, a fact mentioned by other observers. In regions offresh water, tadpoles, water insects and their larvae, crayfish, and smallbony fishes are common articles of diet. Food is also gathered inthe uplands by these birds and their stomachs have been foundto contain earth worms, crickets, grasshoppers, snakes, and smallmammals. Grasshoppers in very large numbers have sometimes beenfound. B. S. Bowdish (1902) says of the food of the green heron inPorto Rico: "Several stomachs examined contained respectively,remains of lizards and crabs, and one whole fish about 6 inches long;a kind of water beetle about three quaters of an inch long, manyentire; crawfish and grasshoppers; 11 crawfish; small live worms."Oscar E. Baynard (1912) reports that the stomach of an adult greenheron taken in Florida contained 6 small crayfish, 16 grasshoppers, 2cut worms and the remains of small frogs.Behavior.?WiUiam Brewster (1906) said of the green heron:Like the crow and black duck, it is at once a wary and venturesome bird,endowed with sufficient intelligence to discriminate between real and imaginarj'dangers and often making itself quiet at home in noisy, thickly settled neighbor-hoods where food is abundant and where it is not too much molested.The green heron is equally at home in the salt water marshes andin the regions of fresh water. It is a day feeder but prefers the earlymorning and late afternoon, often taking a nap at midday. One ofthe familiar sounds and sights by salt creek or by river or pond isthe frightened cry of this bird and its awkward flight over the water.The names "skeow" and "fly-up-the-creek " are expressive of these at-tributes. The classic names "chalk-line" and "shite-poke" expressthe commonly observed physiological effect of fright. This effectmust incidentally serve a useful purpose in bhnding the stealthilycreeping pursuer, be it carnivore or savage.The length of the neck of the green heron in life is a most variableone and this bird well deserves to be called "rubber neck." Earlyone May morning I watched unseen one of these birds with its neckdrawn in creeping along the branches of a spruce. In the dim lightit looked more like a mammal than a bird. Suddenly it elongatedits neck and seized with its bill a twig of a near-by elm, but wasunable to break it off. It tried another and another and finally suc-ceeded in tearing the green twig off from its base. I watched anotherbird as it awoke from its morning nap and, as it stretched its neck toan equal length with its body and shook out its feathers, the general
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 191form and appearance of the bird went through a marvelous change.In short flights this heron may retain the elongated pose of the neck,but in longer ones it folds up and retracts that member.When walking about, especially if it knows it is watched, the greenheron nervously twitches its tail downwards and erects and depressesits crest. It is also able to remain perfectly still, especially when onthe watch for game. A common posture assumed on the margin ofa pond or sand flats at low tide is with the back and neck horizontaland the tarsi so nearly flat on the ground that the body is close tothe same. The bird under these circumstances is easily mistaken fora log of wood. In this position it waits patiently, ready to pounceon the little fish that swim its way and it rarely misses its aim. Atother times it approaches stealthily, putting down each foot with careand secures its prey with a quick stroke. That this stroke must bequick and accurate is evident when we consider the natm'e of someof its food, frogs, fish, and grasshoppers.That green herons in some cases jimip or even dive into the waterafter their prey, is shown in the following account by Samuel H.Barker (1901) who saw an individual plunge from a plank after fishinto a pond 3 to 6 feet deep.Although he missed his aim, the effort was well meant and, to judge by appear-ances, not the first of its kind. Turning about in the water, he rose from it withlittle difficulty and with a few flaps was back on the plank. * * That thisone instance of an individual green heron plunging into deep water after foodproves such to be a natural habit of the species can hardly be said. I would add,however, that further study of the feeding habits of the green heron, with a viewto settling this question, convinces me that a quite usual method of fishing is forit to watch from a stand a few inches above the water and from there to jumpquickly down upon its prey.W. Sprague Brooks (1923) watched a green heron walking stealth-ily along the stone rim of the Public Garden pond in Boston.After a while it turned cautiously until facing the water, toes at the rim of thestone, its neck stretched out at full length, and suddenly, as a swinamer in a raceplunges from the marble rim of a tank, it plunged into the water, completely sub-merged, came to the surface with a goldfish which it immediately swallowed, andraising its wings, flew back, only a matter of two wing strokes, to the stone bor-der. Twice I watched it do this.The note commonl}^ emitted by this bird as it flies from the intrudercan, perhaps, best be represented by the syllables yeu-ah. It gener-ally resembles very closely the sound made by blowing a blade ofgrass stretched tightly between the thumbs side by side. Whenmuch startled the green heron croaks hoarsely but soon returns tothe usual peu-ah. Sometimes, especially about the nesting tree, itmay be heard to give a short caekle or cluck. Early one morning,when I was lying concealed in a grove of trees, a green heron alighted
192 BULLETIN X35, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMamong them nearly aver my head. Thereupon it emitted a series oflow double groans at irregular intervals. If I had not seen the bird,I should have been puzzled as to the source of the sounds.The small size of this heron, somewhat smaller than a crow, itsshort cut-off tail, its general greenish-black color with a chestnut-colored throat and bluish-gray primaries make its recognition in thefield easy.The green heron is too interesting a bird to be used for a pothunter's target as is often the case. He who is so fortunate as to havea breeding place for this bird near him should zealously guard it andhe will learn many interesting and amusing traits and will be wellrewarded. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Central America north and west of Honduras, with theUnited States and southern Canada east of the Rocky Mountains.Breeding range.?North to South Dakota (Vermilion and probablySioux Falls) ; Minnesota (Minneapolis and Lanesboro) ; Wisconsin(Elkhorn, Kelley Brook, and Sturgeon Ba}^ ; Michigan (Grand Rap-ids) ; Ontario (Guelph, Yarker, and Loughboro Lake) ; Quebec (Mon-treal) ; Maine (Pittsfield and Calais) ; and probably New Brunswick
^St. John and Grand Manan). East to New Brunswick (probablyGrand Manan) ; Maine (Calais) ; Massachusetts (Essex, Barnstable,and Dukes Counties) ; Rhode Island (Newport and Haversham)
;
New York (Long Island) ; New Jersey (Elizabeth, Red Bank, Tuck-erton, and Sea Isle City) ; Virginia (Cobb's Island, Wallops Island,and Dismal Swamp) ; North Carolina (Pea Island and Beaufort)South Carolina (Charleston and Frogmore) ; Georgia (Savannah,Blackboard Island, St. Marys, and Okeefinoke vSwamp) ; Florida (Pa-latka, Micco, and Cape Sable) ; Yucatan (Cozumel Island) ; BritishHonduras (Belize); and Guatemala (Lake Yzabel and Duenas).South to Guatemala (Lake Yzabel and Duenas) ; Oaxaca (Tehuan-tepec) ; and Colima (Colima). West to Colima (Colima) ; Tamaulipas(Tampico) ; Texas (Brownsville, Del Rio, Kerrville, and Waco) ; Okla-homa (Chattanooga and Fort Reno); Kansas (Wichita, Ellsworth,Hays, and Onaga) ; Nebraska (Gibbon probably, and Alda) ; and SouthDakota (Vermilion, and probably Sioux Falls).Winter range.?Principally Mexico and Central America. Dis-tribution during this season severely circumscribed as this race is notfound south of the southern limits of the summer range. North toSinaloa (Mazatlan); Texas (Brownsville, Aransas Bay, and WallerCounty) ; Florida (Lake lamonia, Gainesville, St. Augustine, andMosquito Inlet) ; and South Carolina (Capers Island). East to SouthCarolina (Capers Island); Florida (Mosquito Inlet and Kissimmee)
;
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 193Yucatan (Coziimel Island) ; and Honduras (Ceiba). South to Hon-duras (Ceiba); and Colima (Manzanillo). West to Colima(Manzan-illo) ; and Sinaloa (Mazatlan). Accidental at this season in PortoRico (Fajardo). Twice reported from Indiana in the winter months,Indianapolis, Januarys, 1916 (Wilson), and Goshen, March 18, 1918(Eby).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are North Carolina,March 29, 1893; District of Columbia, Washington, April 9, 1905;Pennsylvania, Holmcsburg, April 1, 1900, Philadelphia, April 16,1884, and Kenova, April 24, 1899; New Jersey, Englewood, April 1,1913; New York, Brooklyn, April 17, 1884; Connecticut, Fairfield,April 15, 1920 and Meriden, April 12, 1919; Massachusetts, Needham,April 9, 1905, and Dennis, April 8, 1920; Maine, Portland, April 25,1905; Quebec, Montreal, April 30, 1895; Louisiana, New Orleans,March 21, 1894, and Lake Catherine, April 2, 1918; Missouri, Monteer,April 10, 1905; Kentucky, Bowling Green, April 8, 1918, and Gutlirie,April 16, 1918; Indiana, Bloomington, April 10, 1903, and Waterloo,April 13, 1905; Ohio, Oberlin, April 6, 1913, Scio, April 14, 1918,and Youngstown, iVpril 16, 1919; Michigan, Vicksburg, April 25^1908; Ontario, London, April 20, 1917; Iowa, Keokuk, April 21,1893, and Bentonsport, April 22, 1920; Illinois, Chicago, April 11,1908; Wisconsin, Delavan, April 20, 1896; Minnesota, Red Wing,April 18, 1919, and Lanesboro, April 23, 1885; Texas, Beaumont,April 4, 1887, and Kerrviile, April 7, 1906; Oklahoma, Ponea City,April 15, 1918; Kansas, Manhattan, April 16, 1883; Nebraska, south-eastern part, April 15, 1899.Fall migration.?Late dates of departure are: Quebec, Montreal,September 2, 1897; Maine, Pittsfield, October 2, 1898; New Hamp-shire, Durham, October 13, 1900; Massachusetts, North Truro,October 5, 1889; Connecticut, Meriden, October 20, 1919; New York,Rochester, October 23, 1917, and Rhinebeck, October 11, 1921; NewJersey, New Providence, October 10, 1894; District of Columbia,Washington, October 2, 1910; North Carolina, Raleigh, October 5,1910, and Weaverville, October 10, 1891; South CaroHna, Frogmore,October 4, 1886; Ontario, Ottawa, September 20, 1918, and PortDover, September 24, 1916; Michigan, Detroit, September 14, 1919,and southern part, October 4, 1903; Ohio, Waverly, October 1, 1898,Scio, October 4, 1919, and Oberiin, November 13, 1897; Indiana,Greensburg, October 7, 1894, and Cra^vfordsvillc, October 9, 1919;Kentucky, Bowling Green, September 23; Tennessee, Athens, Oc-tober 10, 1902; Wisconsin, Elkhorn, September 30, 1916, and Madison,September 20, 1919; Minnesota, Lanesboro, September 25, 1891;Nebraska, Dunbar, S('ptember 24, 1904; Kansas, Onaga, October 10,
194 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM1917; Oklahoma, Copan, October 14, 1916; and Texas, Bonham,September 20, 1889.Casuals.?Accidental in Colorado (Loveland, July 23, 1895) andin Porto Rico (Fajardo, February 16, 1899).Egg dates.?Southern New England and New York: 58 records,May 8 to June 25; 30 records, May 22 to June 1. New Jersey andPennsylvania: 25 records, April 30 to June 11; 13 records, May 20to June 2. Georgia and Florida: 24 records, March 29 to July 9;12 records, April 6 to May 10. Indiana and Illinois: 15 records,May 12 to June 18; 8 records, May 19 to June 4. Louisiana andTexas: 11 records, April 4 to June 28; 6 records, May 2 to 23.BUTORIDES VIRESCENS FRAZARI (Brewster)FRAZAR GREEN HERONHABITSThe green herons of the American species, Butorides virescens, havebeen split by Dr. H. C. Oberholser (1912) and others into someeighteen subspecies, only three of which come within the limits ofour check list. This form, which is restricted to central and south-ern Lower California, was described by William Brewster (1888) andnamed in honor of M. Abbott Frazar, who collected the type speci-men. It is slightly larger than virescens and its general coloring isdarker, duller, and more uniform. "The deeper, more purplishmaroon of the neck with its decided glaucous tinge, is perhaps thebest character of the new form," according to the describer. Mr.Brewester (1902a) does not tell us very much about its habits, inwhich it probably does not differ much from its eastern relative.He says that it " was discovered in 1887 by Mr. Frazar, who foundit only at La Paz. His notes state that it frequented mangrovethickets about the shores of the bay, where it was common duringFebruary and March, but as he mistook it for our eastern bird hepreserved only two specimens."Eggs.?The eggs of this subspecies are not distinguishable fromthose of our common eastern bird. The measurements of 10 eggsaverage 30.8 by 29.4 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasure 39 by 29.2, 37.5 by 30.5, 37 by 29.5, and 37.5 by 28.7millimeters. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Lower California, from San Ignacio and Magdalena Baysouthward to La Paz, where it is resident.Egg dates.?Lower California: 10 records, May 11 to June 27; 5records, May 24 to June 5.
NORTH AMEKICAN MARSH BIRDS 195BUTORIDES VIRESCENS ANTHONYI (Mearas)ANTHONY GREEN HERONHABITSThis is the large, pale race of the green heron which inhabits Cali-fornia and the arid regions of the Southwest. It was described byDr. Edgar A. Mearns (1895) from specimens collected by him in theColorado Valley, near the Mexican boundary, and named in honorof A. W. Anthony. It is described as similar to the green heron "ofthe eastern United States, but slightly larger, and paler throughout,with the light markings of the wings, neck and throat much lessrestricted, and whiter." It is not nearly so abundant anywhere asour eastern bird is in many places, and is restricted to comparativelyfew favorable localities, particularly the irrigated valleys.Nesting.?In the arid, desert regions of Arizona, water birds arescarce, but many species of ducks visit the lakes and irrigation reser-voirs on their migrations and shorebirds of various kinds are fre-quently seen along the river beds, where in the dry season the wateris restricted to a narrow shallow stream meandering through broadexpanses of mud or sand flats. Here too an occasional heron maybe seen flapping lazily along searching for some pool deep enough tocontain a few fish. In the well irrigated valley of the San PedroRiver, where numerous ranches have cultivated and watered land,
.conditions are markedly different. Every ranch has its reservoirs,driven wells, and system of irrigating ditches, which have producedabundant crops and fertile conditions. Along the banks of the ditchesvegetation is luxuriant, with large wiUows and Cottonwood trees andoften with a dense undergrowth of shrubbery and vines. On May27, 1922, we were wandering along one of these irrigation ditches,exploring the thickets of small willows and wild gooseberry bushes,and looking for nests of Sonora redwings, Abert towhees and othersmall birds, when we sa\^ the familiar figure of a green heron watch-ing us from a tree top. Pushing on through the thick tangle ofunderbrush we soon found its nest, about 12 feet up in a slenderwillow. It was a typical green heron's nest, no different from thoseof our eastern birds, made of small sticks and lined with finer twigs.It held five fresh eggs. My companion, Frank C. Willard, was notsurprised, for he had often found nests of the Anthony green heronalong this and other similar ditches in the San Pedro Valley, whereit finds a congenial home together with a host of small birds notfound in the arid regions.In other portions of its breeding range the nesting habits of thislittle heron are generally similar to those of its eastern relative, butsometimes it builds its nest at rather high elevations. John G. Tyler
196 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM(1913) mentions a nest near Fresno, California, which was 30 feetfrom the ground; there is a set in the CaUfornia Academy of Sciences,taken at Napa, California, from a nest, at the same height, in amaple tree; and Lam'cncc M. Huey (1915) records a nest foundnear San Diego, "situated in the top of a willow tree about 50 feethigh."Eggs.?^The eggs of this heron are not distinguishable from those ofour eastern green heron. Two rather remarkable sets of eggs havebeen taken in San Diego Countj^ Cahfornia, by Mrs. May Canfieldand Messrs. D, R. Dickey and L. M. Huey. They were taken onMa3' 11 and 30, 1915, and contained eight and nine eggs, respectively.In writing to me about these two sets, Mr. Dickey says
:
The presumption is that the two sets were laid by the same birds and theinteresting possibility of polygamy, or at least of two females laying in one nest,suggests itself. In former years, several pairs had nested in that general vicinity,but with the thinning out of the bottom-land timber, only these two nests v/erelocated in 1915. Of course, the actual cause of these large sets is purely specu-lative, but?as I say?the thought that possibly the scattered colony had beenreduced to two females laying in one nest, with one male as the mate of both, isnot beyond the realm of such pure speculation.The measurements of 51 eggs average 39 by 29.7 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 42 by 29.8; 40.7 by 31.5;36.5 by 28.7; and 39 by 28.2 millimeters.Plumages.?A. J. van Rossem writes to me regarding the moltsand plumages of the two western subspecies of green herons, as follows:We have exceptionality good series of various subspecies of the green heron,particularly anthonyi and fraseri, and the following notes are based principallyupon these two races. There is a complete post juvenal body molt in most indi-viduals. The new plumage is very similar to that of the adult, but as the juve-nal remiges and their coverts are retained, there is no particular difficulty inseparating the adults from birds of the year. The white-tipped primary covertsof the juveniles are subject to little wear, and retain their character until lost atthe first postnuptial molt. One juvenile of anthonyi at hand has skipped thepost-juvenal molt entirely and is, in April, still in pure juvenal plumage. Suchcircumstance is probably rather rare, although some October juveniles show notraces whatever of any post juvenal plumage. The spring prenuptial molt is avery limited one, particularly in adults, and amounts to little more than thetaking on of some additional plumes on the back. In the first spring birds,there are also a few new feathers in evidence on the shoulders. By far themajority of the long, lanceolate feathers of the back are taken on with the fallplumage, and therefore cannot be properly cljissed as "lireeding plumage."Some fresh post juvenal birds have plumes fully as long as the average adult ofthe same sex. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?CaMiorma, southern Arizona and Mexico to (rarely) CostaRica; north rarely to southern Oregon.Breeding range.?T^orih to California, (Ukiah, Lower Lake andColusa). East to California (Colusa, Grafton, Murphy, and prob-
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 197
ably Little Owens Lake) ; Arizona (Big Sandy Creek, Verde Riverand San Pedro River), and Sonora (San ^edro River). South toSonora (San Pedro River) ; Arizona (Tombstone and Yuma) ; andLower California (Gardners Laguna and Los Coronados Islands).West to Lower California (Los Coronados Islands) ; and California(San Diego, Whittier, Santa Barbara, Buena Vista Lake, Alcalde,San Benito, Gilroy, Alameda, Gloverdale, and Ukiah). Has oc-curred in summer north to Yreka, California, and Fort Klamath,Oregon.Winter ranges.?North to California (Old Fort Tejon, and San Ber-nardino). East to Jalisco (Ocotlan) ; Michoacan (Zamora) ; theValley of Mexico; Guerrero (El Limon) ; Oaxaca (Tehuantepec) ; andCosta Rica (San Jose). South to Costa Rica (San Jose) ; and Oaxaca(Tehuantepec) . West to Guerrero (El Limon) ; the Plains of Colima;Sinaloa (Mazatlan); Lower California (San Jose del Cabo and Mira-flores);and California (San Bernardino and Old Fort Tejon). Cas-ually north to Oakland and Stockton (Belding).Migration.?Early dates of arrival in California- are : vSanta Barbara,April 3, 1920; Gilroy, April 21, 1916; Palo Alto, April 13, 1919;Stockton, April 4, 1885, and Redbluff, May 9, 1884.Late dates of departure in California are: Stockton, early October,1878; Gilroy, Septmber 19, 1914; Santa Cruz, September 8, 1895;Clovis, September 7, 1905, and Santa Barbara, September 17, 1909,Egg dates.?California: 22 records, April 16 to June 17; 11 records,May 12 to 25. Arizona: 13 records. May 5 to July 16; 7 records,May 11 to June 27.NYCTICORAX NYCTICORAX NAEVIUS (Boddaert)BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERONHABITSThe familiar night heron or "quawk" is one of the best knownand most widely distril)uted of our herons. Closely related formsof the same species are found throughout much of South America,Europe, Asia, and Africa. Throughout its wide North Americanrange it is practically homogeneous. It is decidedly different inmany ways from our other herons; its short, stout iigure is easilyrecognized; and it well deserves the name of night heron. Howoften, in the gathering dusk of evening, have we heard its loud, chok-ing squawk and, looking up, have seen its stocky form, dimly out-lined against the gray sky and propelled by steady wing beats, as itwings its way high in tiie air towards its evening feeding place insome distant pond or marsh! And hov/ often, as we walked alongthe reedy border of some marshy creek or pond hole, have we beenstartled by its croak of alarm, as it rose unexpectedly from behindthe reeds and flew deliberately away, a wide band of black supported
198 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMby broad gray wings ! The young birds are particularly unsuspiciousin such situations and often spring up almost under our feet; theirpeculiar shape and speckled plumage are easily recognized.The name, night heron, immediately suggests to my mind SandyNeck and the famous rookery that has flourished and struggled alter-nately for over a century on that long chain of sand dunes that sep-arates Barnstable Harbor from Cape Cod Bay. Many ornithologistshave visited it and I have seen it many times in spring, summer,autumn, and winter. Several times it has been "shot out" and ithas, within my memory, occupied three different parts of the neck amile or more apart. Sandy Neck is about 6 miles long. Its north-ern or bay side is the continuation of a broad, flat, sandy beach,which extends for many miles along the north side of Cape Cod andterminates in a wide point of bare sand. On its southern or harborside it is bordered by extensive salt meadows or marshes, covering sev-eral square miles and intersected by numerous creeks, channels, andditches. The central portion consists of a series of picturesque sanddunes, some low and rolling hillocks and some high mountains ofsand with steep sides and narrow crests, from which one may gain acomprehensive view of the long succession of barren, wind-sweptpeaks, protecting sheltered hollows filled with luxuriant vegetation.Some of the older hills are heavily wooded with oaks and pitch pinesand many of the hollows contain little forests of oaks, pitch pines,maples, sassafras, and wild cherries, beneath which are often impene-trable thickets of scrub oak, alder, sumac, and other underbrush,interwoven with tangles of cat-briar, woodbine, and poison ivy.There are also numerous clusters of beach plums and bayberrybushes in the hollows or on the sand dunes and several small cran-berry bogs and swampy pond holes. Altogether it is an ideal loca-tion for a heron rookery, with plenty of suitable nesting sites insecluded spots and with abundant food supplies, on the broad sandflats off the beaches, along the many miles of tidal creeks on themarshes, and around the marshy pond holes and bogs in the hollows.Here the largest colony of night herons, at least the largest of whichI can find any record, in North America makes its summer home.Courtship.?On April 30, 1924, 1 made a special trip to the Barn-stable rookery to study the courtship of this heron. I found thebreeding season well under way; many nests were in process of con-struction and some already held from one to three eggs. The birdswere rather shy, but several times I was able to observe the rathersimple courtship ceremony. The male alights in the tree top besidethe female, or a little above her; he bows low, leaning down towardher, erecting his crest and the feathers of his neck, breast, and backin a rather striking display; she responds in much the same way;their red eyes glow with sexual excitement; they caress each other
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 199
with their bills and then assume a quiet pose, side by side, the plum-;age as smooth as usual. Or perhaps the female alights in a tree wherethe male is standing; with plumage erected, she courts his attentionwith a squawk of invitation; he responds in the same manner, comesto her and mounts her, holding her head with his beak, spreading hiswings and erecting his plumage. Thus the conjugal pact is sealed.If another male alights near them, the female urges her spouse to
?drive him away; and he does so, with much squawking and rufflingof plumage, and with many savage bill strokes and wing blows.Similar plumage displays are seen all through the breeding season,in this as in all other herons, as mutual greetings, in the ceremony ofnest relief and when feeding the young. They seem to be expressions
?of love or sexual emotion.Nesting.?My acquaintance with the Barnstable rookery began in1897. It then occupied a heavily wooded area near the southern
-edge of the sand hills ; the center of abundance seemed to be in a largedeep hollow where the red oak, sassafras, and maple trees grew to aheight of 25 or 30 feet. I remember standing in this hollow one dayin the winter when the leaves were off, and counting 275 nests in sightfrom one spot. The herons were still occupying the same nesting
^ite in 1908, but the colony had increased greatly in size ; myimpres-ision was that it had nearly doubled, and it had spread out over amuch larger area, nearly half a mile long and an eighth of a mile wide.The nests were placed in pitch pines, red oaks, maples, scrub oaks,
.and sassafras, mainly in the oaks, often two or three nests in a treeAnd sometimes as many as four or five. The so-called sportsmen ofthe neighborhood found the herons useful as targets on which to prac-tice, and their constant persecution forced the herons to move to aoew nesting site about a mile farther out on the neck. Here we foundthem in 1910, occupying a mixed tract of pitch pines and oaks on theborders of a cranberry bog in a hollow among the sand dunes. Weestimated that the colony contained from 1,500 to 2,000 pairs of her-ons. The main portion of the colony was closely concentrated in a
.grove of small pitch pines, from 15 to 20 feet high, with a denseundergrowth of scrub oak and an almost impenetrable tangle of catbrier and other vines.Three years later, in 1913, we found that the colony had movedagain and was located still farther out on the neck, near the extreme
-end of the wooded areas, in an extensive grove of pitch pines, withcomparatively few oaks. Here it has remained ever since and is stillin a flourishing condition. During the summer of 1920, Dr. Alfred O.Gross (1923) camped on the neck for two months and made an inten-sive study of these birds; the published results of his exhaustivestudy would make an excellent life history of this species. I shalluse his data freely, but would refer the reader to his excellent paper
200 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfor many details which space will not permit me to publish. OnJune 22 and 23 he made a detailed census of the rookery, markingeach tree as it was counted and recording the number of nests in each.The count showed 2, 536 nests in 854 trees, the largest number oftrees, 282, contained only 1 nest each; and the largest numbers ofnests were recorded in 13 trees which held 8 nests each, 5 trees whichheld 11 nests and 1 tree each which held 13 and 14 nests, respect-tively.About 90 per cent of the nests of this colony were built in low pitch pines andthe remainder were in scrub oaks, maples, and a few in the bayberry and alderbushes which grew in the lower swampy portions of the grove. The height ofthe nests varied from one in a bayberry bush 2 feet above the water to one 42feet high in one of the larger pines. The average height of 100 nests, which werecarefully measured, was 22 feet, four inches. These nests, unlike those in thespruce groves of Maine were generally located on the forked tips of the largebranches and a considerable distance from the main trunk of the tree.The nests in this rookery vary greatly in size, stability, and com-position. Many of them are crude, loosely-built platforms, made ofcoarse sticks, and scantily lined with finer twigs. Some are so smalland so insecurely placed that the eggs or young are shaken out ofthem by heavy winds and the nests are blown out of the trees duringthe winter storms. Others are large, well-built structures, securely-located in some firm crotch or supported by two or three flat branches;such nests usually survive the winter storms and are used year afteryear. These better types of nests consist of substantial foundationsof sticks and twigs of pine, oak, cedar, beach plum, and bayberry^lined with fine twigs, roots, vines, grasses, and pine needles. DoctorGross (1923) says:A large percentage of the nests were lined in part or wholly with the long flex-ible roots of beach grass. It puzzled me to know how it were possible for thebirds to secure some of the very long roots, some of which were more than ameter in length, until I chanced upon a score of adult herons tugging at the rootswhich had been left unearthed in the wake of a traveling sand dune. The numei-ous footprints in the sand evidenced that such places were the common sourceof their supply. The roots provided an unusual but admirable nesting materialand some of the nests lined with them represented the finest types built by theherons at Sandy Neck. Both the male and the female actively concern them-selves in the work of building the nest which usually requires from two to fivedays, but, in the case of one nest, construction work and alterations were goingon for a period of more than a week.A rookery quite similiar to the Sandy Neck colony, formerly locatedon Plum Island, Massachusetts, is well described by S. WaldoBailey (1915). On July 5, 1903,1 examined a fair-sized colony onChappaquiddic Island, adjoining Martha's Vineyard ; the rookery waslocated on the highest land in the center of the island in an extensivetract of dry woods, principally black and red oaks with some sassa-fras and beech; the nests were all in the oaks from 7 to 15 feet from
NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 201the ground. On Juno 8, 1919, 1 found a colony of from 200 to 300 pairsprobably the same olony, nesting in an extensive patch of low cedarsnear the shore, a mile or more away ; even at that date most of thenests contained young, some of which were fully grown and were
?climbing out on the branches. Dr. Charles W. Townsend showedme, on July 19, 1913, a somewhat different type of rookery in Ham-ilton, Massachusetts, which he had previously described ; it was in amixed swamp of larches, black spruces, white pines, and maples inwhich the nests were from 20 to 30 feet up; the young were nearlyall on the wing, but there were still a few in the nests.I have seen several night heron rookeries on the coast of Maine,where this species nests in colonies by itself or in company with thegreat blue heron. Referring to some of these colonies Doctor Gross(1923) says:lu Maine, spruce-covered islands or dense groves of conifers on the mainlandnear the salt water are the places where one is most likely to meet with successin locating the largest breeding places and roosts. Mr. A. H. Norton of thePortland Natural History Society visited Aliens Island in June, 1921, and founda rookery comprising about 100 great blue herons, and nearly 400 black-crownednight herons. The nests on Aliens Island were built at an average height of 25feet in the low spruce trees which there do not exceed 30 to 40 feet in height. Themajority of the nests were supported by the lower branches of the green conicaltops so that they were in plain view to an observer standing on the forest floor.Several ravens were seen at this colony and Mr. Norton thinks some of the deadhalf-eaten j'oung that were lying on the ground represented the work of theseblack marauders. The colony at Whaleboat Island which contained only 30pairs of herons in 1915 has increased to a thriving community of more than 250birds, not including about 50 great blue herons which regularly nest there. Thenests seen here were without exception built in the tall dead spruces, those of thenight heron at an average height of 34 feet from the ground. None of themwere lower than 10 feet and one was l)uilt near the top of a tall spruce morethan 60 feet in height. At this place there seemed to be a rough correlationbetween the height of the trees and the position of the nest. The majority ofthe nests were nearly the same distance from the top of the respective trees, aplace where the densely branched limbs were best adapted for holding the nest.They were built near the trunk and were usually supported by the bases andsmaller lateral branches of two or more horizontal limbs.In other parts of the country night herons nest under widelydifferent conditions. Where suitable trees can not be found infavorable localities the herons are often found breeding in marshes
-or sloughs, where their nests are concealed in some secluded spot.Robert B. Rockwell (1910) found a particuhxrly interesting colony
?of this type near Barr, Colorado, of which lie writes:As we approached the spot where the colony was supposed to be located, nota sign of the birds was to be seen?save the monotonous expanse of cat-tailmarsh, flanked by a small rush-bound lake on one side and the sunburned prai-rie on the other. We had worked well into the cat-tails, which towered somedistance above our heads, when as if by a given signal the breeding birds rose
202 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfrom their nests in a cloud, and with much squawking, scolding, and flapping ofwings, rapidly retreated to a place of safety in the marsh half a mile or more-distant. Fifty yards farther on we came to the spot from which the birds had-risen, and here in the dense cat-tails were the nests, probably 150 in all, large,clumsy, yet withal well built struetures of coarse sticks and weed stalks, rang-ing in height from 6 inches to 3 feet above the ground, which was wet and boggyand in many places covered with several inches of water. On May 11, whileworking over a small lake about half mile below the marsh which harboredthe nesting colony of the preceding year, we found two nests of these erraticbirds, built just above the surface of water almost waist deep and fully 50yards out from the shore of the lake. These nests?the bottoms of which werejust level with the surface of the water?were supported by masses of floating,dead vegetation, and were anchored in place by a few upright dead cat-tailstalks. They were beautifully built affairs of slender twigs and weed stalks,,very large, bulky, deeply cupped and quite symmetrical; and lying far out fromshore upon the open water they were very conspicuous, being easily discernible-at a distance of 100 yards. The parent birds were very wild, and it was impos-sible to approach anywhere near the nests without flushing the birds.In Florida we often found black-crowned night herons nesting insmall numbers in the rookeries with other herons. Many of therookeries examined on the coast of Texas contained a few pairs oTthis species, nesting in low situations in the shrubbery. On oneisland, in Galveston Bay, they were nesting in tall canes, wheretheir nests were made wholly of the stems of dead canes. On Dress-ing Point Island, in Matagorda Bay, we found a fair-sized colonynesting on the dry ground among tufts of tall grass.Doctor Gross (1923) refers to a number of different colonies nest-ing in a variety of situations, among which he mentions a colonywhich "selected an old apple orchard for their nesting site," whichthey occupied for 10 years, near Atwood, Illinois.W. L. Finley (1906) found a colony of about 200 pairs in a fir for-est south of Portland, Oregon, in which none of the nests were less-than 130 feet up and some were 160 feet above the ground. In acolony which he found at the lower end of San Francisco Bay, Cali-fornia, in the summer of 1904, he noted 41 nests of the great blueheron and 28 nests of the black-crowned night heron in a single giantsycamore, 7 feet thick at the base, 120 feet high and with a spread equalto its height. In another tree there were 17 great blue and 28 nightheron nests. In this large colony of 700 nests those of the nightheron were placed at the very upturned tips of the sycamore limbs-or else in the willows and alders at a relatively short distance from,the ground. Mr. Finley counted 400 eggs from a single point in agiant sycamore tree which gives some idea of the density of the her-on homes at this unusal rookery. In other localities in California,such as Merced and San Diego Counties, night herons have also beenfound nesting in tule swamps, sometimes in company with white-facedglossy ibises.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 203Eggs.?This night heron usually lays from three to five eggs, some-times only two or even one, occasionally six and very rarely sevenor even eight; the larger sets may be the product of two birds. Inshape they vary from ovate or oval to cylindrical ovate. The shellis smooth with no gloss. The color is pale bluish green, varyingfrom "glaucous green" to "pale fluorite green." The measurementsof 48 eggs average 51.5 by 37 millimeters; the eggs showing the fourextremes measure 68 by 35.5, 50 by 39.6, 48 by 36.6 millimeters.Young.?Doctor Gross (1923) found that the period of incubationvaried from 24 to 26 days and that both sexes take an active part init; he "frequently had nests under observation when the shift fromone sex to the other took place. Sometimes the shift involved adomestic quarrel in which there resulted a vigorous interchange ofsharp, rebuffing shrieks accompanied by violent thrusts." He saysit is customary to start incubation after the first egg is laid, althoughit may take a week to complete the set; this accounts for the in-equality in the sizes of the young. He describes the hatchingprocess in detail; a young bird which had pipped the shell at noonwas not entirely free from it until 4.20 p. m. the next day.Young night herons are fed by their parents until they are largeenough to learn to fly and fish for themselves. Doctor Gross (1923)says:The first food received by the downy young consist of juices of predigestedmaterial. In the examination made at Sandy Neck, this food was so completelyliquified that it was practically impossible to determine the kind of animals com-posing it. In delivering the food to the downy young the adult seemed to insertthe tip of her beak into the wide open mouth and the transference of the juiceswas made with comparatively little effort. The parent bird usually deliverssmall amounts at rather short intervals and I have frequently seen, from myblind, the downy heads of day old birds appear between the feathers of the par-ent to receive their ration of fish extract. By the third day, more substantialfood, such as semidigested fish and shrimp, were given to the young. Among 20regurgitations of nestlings 3 to 10 days old 16 were made up entirely or largely ofshrimps present in pieces ranging from a few millimeters to one and in someinstances three centimeters in length. When the young became more than threeweeks old the food was made up chiefly of fish, which were often delivered with-out any predigestion.I have several times watched the old birds feeding their young; themethod varies with the ages of the young. The old bird approachescautiously, climbing over the branches towards the nest and givinga few warning calls, soft guttural croaks, at which the young rise upin eager anticipation, or, if they are large enough, scramble over thebranches toward her; she may keep them waiting for several min-utes, but, when ready to feed them, she raises her crest, fluffs outher plumage, half spreads her wings and lowers her head to regurgitatethe food. If the young are small, she inserts her bill into the mouth of
204 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe little one and pours into it the liquid, semidigested food; if theyoung are older they may seize the parent's bill and struggle with heruntil she delivers a good sized fish: sometimes the food is too large tobe swallowed entirely and the tail is left protruding from the youngbird's mouth until the lower end of it is digested. Often, with largeyoung, the fish is deposited on the nest to be picked up, which frequent-ly results in its falling to the ground and adding to the delightful odorsof the rookery. The young have a very bad habit of voiding theirexcrement and vomiting the contents of their crops, when frightened;the investigator is quite likely to receive some very unpleasant showerbaths under such circumstances. It would be well for the observerto wear an old hat and an old suit of clothes, which can be thrownaway or better still a complete suit of oilskins or overalls, which canbe washed as soon as he comes out of the rookery, else he may carryhome some unpleasant reminders.Provided one can stand the nauseating odors or does not mindthe filth, the briars and the insect pests, flies, mosquitos, and woodticks, it is an exceedingly interesting experience to visit the SandyNeck rookery in July. As he climbs to the crest of some command-ing sand dune, he looks down upon a broad expanse of pines, mingledwith oaks and thickets of underbrush and vines. The scene becomesa lively one, as hundreds of the gray, black-backed birds rise in greatclouds, circle over the rookery in a bewildering maze and then driftaway to settle in the tops of distant trees. The tops of the trees in therookery are dotted with hundreds of young birds in the brown Juve-nal plumage, clearly outlined against the dark green of the pines;they arc not yet able to fly but have climbed up out of the nests tobask in the sunshine and see the outside world. As he walks downinto the rookery the excitement increases, the air is full of birds over-head, the trees are full of scrambling and fluttering young and thedin of many voices adds to the pandemonium; the shrill piping notesof the youngest birds, the "yip, yip, yip," or the "yak, yak, yak" ofthe older young, and the various croaks antl squawks of the adultscreate a volume of sound that is not soon forgotten. AlexanderWilson (1832) has well likened it to 200 or 300 Indians choking orthrottling each other.The young birds remain in the nest, where their parents brood them,or stand over them with wings partly spread to protect them fromthe sun, until they are two or three weeks old; I believe that theywould remain in the nests a week or two longer, if they were left un-disturbed. But at the age of two or three weeks, or when abouthalf or two-thirds grown, they are easily frightened from their nestsand climb out on the branches or even scramble and flutter fromtree to tree. They are awkward and ludicrous in appearance, butthey are usually quite successful in their efforts and more expert
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 205
at climbing than they appear to be. They make good use of all fiveof their extremities in climbing, clinging with their feet, supportingthemselves on their wings, hooking the neck over a branch orseizing it with the bill. I have seen one do what we used to callthe "giant swing," clinging to a branch with bill and feet. But,even with all these safeguards and aids to climbing, accidents some-times happen and I have seen many a dead young heron, hanging bywing or foot, where it was caught and was unable to free itself.Often one falls to the ground where its parents can not find it, whereit must starve unless some prowling fox or cat finds it and endsits misery.Plumages.?The small downy young of this heron is partially cov-ered on the upper parts with long soft down, varying in color from
"dark mouse gray" to "deep neutral gray"; the crown is coveredwith long, rather coarse, whitish filaments an inch or more long; theunder parts are covered more sparsely with soft down, varyingfrom "dark mouse gray" on the neck to "pallid neutral gray" onthe belly. These colors all fade out paler with advancing age.Doctor Gross (1923) has described the development of the Juve-nal plumages, as follows
:
The first papillae of the juvenal plumage make their appearance in the regionof the flanks and scapulars on the fifth or sixth day after hatching. These areclosely followed by the papillae of the wing coverts and of the ventral tracts.By the seventh day the papillae of the alar tracts (primaries and secondaries),show through the integument but those of the rectrices (tail) do not appear untilthe bird is about 10 days old. At this age the tips of the feathers of the scap-ular region and flanks are unsheathed. The primaries and secondaries presenttheir unsheathed tips about the fifteenth day, but no unsheathing takes place inthe rectrices imtil the bird is about three weeks old. The unsheathing whenonce started proceeds rapidly and by the time the bird is four weeks old it hasthe smooth contour possessed by an adult bird. The complete growth of thejuvenal plumage is not accomplished, however, until the bird is about 50 daysold.He describes the juvenal plumage, of an unfaded specimen 28 daysold, as follows:Crown and back glossy olivaceous black, neck Chaetura drab, the feathers withmedian streaks of varying shades of bufT. The median streaks in the feathersof the back are of a richer and deeper color approaching very nearly that of cin-namon. The apices of the crown feathers have filaments of natal down but theremainder of the juvenal plumage is entirely free of vestiges of this first plum-age. The throat with an elongated median patch of white tinged with ivoryyellow which extends posteriorly to the neck. Sides of chin, head and neckstreaked with Chaetura drab, fuscous-black, and various shades of buff. Feath-ers of the breast, upper belly, and flanks white tinged with light cartridge buff,each feather with Inroad lateral streaks or bands of light fuscous or hair brown.Lower belly and crissum white and not streaked. Tail feathers deep mouse gray,primaries and secondaries fuscous black, tipped with white and with outer veinstinged with cinnamon. The white tips of the secondaries are much reduced and
206 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe outer veins have less of the cinnamon than have the primaries. The feath-ers comprising the wing coverts and tertials have large conspicuous terminalspots of white or light buff.I have several young birds in my collection in which the colors arericher and more rufous than those described above; the feathers ofthe mantle are largely "auburn" and "hazel" and the buffy centralstreaks and tips are "ochraceous buff. " However, these colors soonfade; in one bird, taken in July, the streaks and spots have all fadedout to white and there is no rufous anjrwhere and very little palebuff. This plumage is worn until the middle of winter or later. Themolt into the first nuptial plumage begins in January with the acqui-sition of clear brown plumage in the back, varying in color from
"bister" to "snuff brown," which gradually replaces the streakedand spotted juvenal plumage; this molt spreads during the springuntil the entire mantle, back, scapulars, and wing-coverts, becomeclear, dark, rich brown, with a purplish or greenish gloss when fresh;the crown becomes much darker, "clove brown"; the streaking be-comes less conspicuous on the sides of the head and neck; and thebreast and belly become clearer gray and white, with hardly anysigns of streaking; the tail is molted, in April or May, in which thenew feathers are clear drab; but the wings are not molted until Julyor August. There is great individual variation in the time and prog-ress of this prolonged molt.Almost continuous with the above molt, beginning in July, or evenearlier in some individuals, comes the first complete postnuptial molt.This produces, by September or later, a second winter plumage, inwhich the crown is glossy, greenish black and the mantle becomes"mouse gray," darkest on the back, with a greenish gloss. Duringthe late winter or early spring, a partial prenuptial molt, involvingonly the contour plumage, produces a second nuptial plumage, whichis nearly adult; but the white space in the forehead is washed withdrab, instead of being clear white; the black areas of the crown andback are less brilliantly glossed; the wings are darker and morebrownish gray, "mouse gray" or "neutral gray"; and there is muchmore gray in the neck and breast, "light drab" to "drab-gray."One or two of the long, slender, white occipital plumes are acquiredat this time. At the next postnuptial, complete molt, which beginsusually in June or July and lasts sometimes until December, theyoung bird assumes the fully adult plumage, when about 23^ years old.Adults have a partial prenuptial molt, in late winter or early spring,and a complete postnuptial molt from August to October. In thespring adult the forehead is pure wliito; the crown, and particularlythe back, are brilliantly glossed with green; the wings are "palemouse gray" or "pallid mouse gray"; and the neck and underparts
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 207vary from "pallid mouse gray" to pure white. The white occipitalplumes are often present in the fall, but less highly developed.Food.?^As its name implies, the night heron feeds largely at night,or during the dusk of evening and before sunrise. It is a commonexperience to hear its familiar croaking notes, as it flies overheadduring the evening, to or from its feeding grounds. During thenesting season, when the young demand an extra amount of food,it is necessary for their parents to spend more time in search of foodand they are kept busy all day and probably most of the night. Butthe niglxt heron is by no means wholly nocturnal in its feeding habitsat any season. It may be flushed at any time during the day, evenlate in the fall from favorable feeding grounds around the marshyborders of ponds or along the reedy banks of streams. On the sea-coast it is largely influenced by the tides and may be seen at low tideout on the mud flats or around the fish weirs; and it knows at justwhat stages of the tides it can fish to best advantage in the shallowsof the tidal creeks.Audubon (1840) says that "it is never seen standing motionless,waiting for its prey, like the true herons, but it is constantly movingabout in search of it. " This active method may be the one employedwlien in search of the less active aquatic animals on which it feeds;but when fishing, I believe, it usually stands still, in shallow water, onthe shore, or on some convenient perch. I once saw a young nightheron given a lesson in still fishing by, presumably, one of its parents.Both birds had been standing as motionless as statues, for some timein the shallow water of a tidal creek; the young bird began to showits impatience by moving its head slightly from side to side; thenit took a few steps forward, slowly and stealthily, with its neckstretched out and crouching close to the water; whereupon the adult,which had stood immovable, flew at the young bird, with loud, scold-ing croaks, and struck it some hard blows on the back with its bill.The young bird was forced to fly, but it settled again a few yardsaway and did not attempt to move again ; perhaps it had learned itslesson.Doctor Gross (1923) determined that at Sandy Neck about 80 percent of the night herons' food consists of fish, the commonest speciesbeing "whiting {Merlucceus hilinearis) , herring (Clupea harengus), andrunners ( Tantogolahrus adspersus)." "Many of the whiting and some
?other fishes wore picked up dead on the beaches. Among the otherfish taken were a few small flounders, an occasional mackerel and evensculpins, sea robins, and puffers. Many of these were taken fromthe fish weirs. Other kinds of fish, such as perch, carp, pickerel, andeels, have been reported by other observers. Probably fish consti-tute the bulk of the food everywhere and whatever species are easilyavailable are taken.
208 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMDr. Alexander Wetmore (1920) observed that, at Lake Burford^New Mexico, the night herons fed on waterdogs (Amhystoma) andfrogs, where they acted as scavengers by eating the dead Axolotlswhich they found floating on the water. Doctor Gross (1923) says:The remains of animals in the food which could be identified comprised marine-annelids, chiefly Nereis virens, crustaceans, represented by numerous shrimp,,sand-hoppers, and a few small crabs; insects, chiefly beetles, flies, and dragon-flynymphs, all present in negligible quantities.Of the mollusks he found only squids, which were probably picked!up dead; and the only fresh water animals found were tadpoles andadults of Fowler's toad. Oscar E. Baynard (1912) found that 50'meals of young night herons in Florida consisted of GO crayfish, 610small catfish, 31 small pickerel, and 79 dragon flies. B-. P. Sharples^wrote me that he found in the stomachs of this species a frog and asnake about a foot long. Other observers have also noted crabs,lizards, salamanders, leeches, moths, and even mice. Doctor Gross(1923) refers to a case, reported by Mr. S. F. Denton, "in which apartly fledged young swallowed a downy nestling which had been,placed in the same cage." Referring to vegetable food, which is sel-dom eaten, he cites authorities to show that sea lettuce, algae, andsimilar aquatic plants are sometimes eaten and fed to the young.Behavior.?The flight of the night heron is ver}^ different from thatof the other herons; in flight and in appearance on the wing it ismore like a gull than a heron. It holds itself much like a gull or a-crow; its neck is shortened, but not folded back in true heron fash-ion; and its appearance is that of a short, stout bird. Its flight isstrong, direct, and swifter than that of other herons, with usuallyquicker wing strokes. Sometimes it flies with the graceful ease of alarge gull and sometimes it soars or scales almost as well as a hawk;often it sets its wings and scales down into the tree tops or onto the-ground. When not too busy with its search for food, it spends muchtime, especially during the middle of the day, in idleness, perched onsome tree or on the shore in its characteristic pose, a short necked,,round shouldered bird. Its periods of greatest activity are fromdawn till sunrise and from a little before sunset until after darknesshas settled; but it is never quiet, day or night, in a night heronrookery.The characteristic note of the night heron is well expressed in itspopular names. Doctor Gross (1923) notes variations which may becrudely represented by "Qua," "Qaak," "QuarJc," or "Squawk."He has described the varied vocabulary of the species so well, thatI can not do better than to quote his words, as follows:When one approaches the colony he invariably disturbs first the outpost sen-tinels who seem ever ready to give a warning note which sounds like, " Woe, woe,,woek! a-woe, woe, woe." This call usually results in a number of herons rising
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH SffiDS 209
a'roni the neighboring tree tops, who take up the call and repeat it until a vir-tual cloud of birds is flying about in great confusion. After you have enteredthe rookery, the notes of the adults are drowned out by the incessant clatter ofthe young birds which during July and August are represented by birds of allages. The call of the downy young resembles a faint " Tet! tel! tet!" or " Yip-yip-yip" the half-grown nestlings utter a sound more like " Yak! yak! yak!" andthe older young utter a harsher, coarser sound resembling roughly the words"Chuck, chxick-a-chuck, chuck, chuck." These various calls of the young all min-gled together sound like the deafening clatter and hum of an infinite number ofmachines in a great factory, and, indeed, it is a heron factory. Daring the courseuf the day the intensity of the calls of the young varies directly as the keennessof their appetites. These calls couM be heard at all hours of the day or night,but just before the bulk of the adult birds came in from the feeding grounds, atime which varied with the tide, the number of young calling and the volume ofsound was at a maximum. At such times the rookery resounded with a deaf-ening monotonous clatter. When the young were hungry, they were also irri-table, and the least disturbance by a neighbor would cause them to render a de-fensive thrust accompanied by a ghastly, sharply accented " Sque-e-e-e-e-e-ak."In uttering this squeal the beak is thrown wide open, during the "Sque-c-e-e-e-e "and then suddenly snapped together at the termination of the much accented"ak." Doubtless it is these weird sounds which have led some observers tocompare the noises of a colony of night herons to the war whoops of a band ofIndians.A similar note is uttered by adults when they are defending their nests againstintruders. When the parent bird arrives with food she often utters a series oflow guttural tones, some of which resemble very much the sounds made by anold hen when she is brooding her chicks. At other times, she would give a seriesof loud calls resembling " Oc-oc-goc-goc-goc-oc, oc-oc-oc" or " Woc-a-woc, ivoc, xvoc,Wock-a-ivoc, woe," which, judging from the actions of the young, conveyed adefinite unmistakable meaning.Enemies.?Audubon (1840) says that:Crows, hawks, and vultures torment the birds by day, while raccoons andother animals destroy them by night. The young are quite as good for eatingas those of the common pigeon, being tender, juicy, and fat, with very little ofthe fishy taste of many birds which, like them, feed on fishes and reptiles. Inthe neighborhood of New Orleans, and along the Mississippi as far up as Natchez,the shooting of this species is a favorite occupation with the planters, whorepresent it as equaling any other bird in the delicacy of its flesh.Gracklcs often nest in or near the rookeries and ma}^ do somedamage to the eggs. Ravens are destructive in the Maine rookeries.Foxes are very common on Sandy Neck and probably pick up manyyoung birds that have fallen from the nests ; Doctor Gross saw onein the rookery one night. Undoubtedly nest-robbing crows are theworst enemies of all herons.FaZZ.?Young night herons, like the young of several other lierons,are somewhat inclined to wander northward after the close of thebreeding season. By September first, or soon after that, the SandyNeck rookery is practically deserted, the herons having scattered inall directions, either to find new feeding grounds or to satisfy thelust for wandering, and the same seems to be true of other rookeries.
210 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMSystematic bird banding has thrown considerable light on this sub-ject and given us a number of positive records, some of which Doc-tor Gross (1923) has published. Young birds, banded at Sandy-Neck, have been taken at Goat Island, Maine, 120 miles north, atSeabrook, New Hampshire, 90 miles northwest, at Kenncbunkport,^Maine, and at Fryeburg, Maine, 200 miles north. Birds banded byDr. Paul Bartsch, near Washington, D. C, were taken at Abing-ton, Maryland, at Pennsville, New Jersey, and at Leesburg,.Virginia. Herons banded by Dr. John C. Phillips, at Wenham,.Massachusetts, were taken at Masonville Station, Quebec, and atSeabrook, New Hampshire.Winter.?A few night herons occasionally spend the winter as farnorth as New England, but most of the birds which breed in thenorthern States migrate south in the fall to join the resident heronpopulation of the Southland, where they can lead an indolent life ofluxurious ease, grow fat, and prepare for the next breeding season.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?South and Central America, and North America to south-ern Canada.Breeding range.?North to Oregon (Willow Junction and Pendle-ton) ; Idaho (Midvale, probably, and Deer Flat Bird Reserve) ; Utah(Bear River Marshes) ; Wyoming (Sheep Mountain) ; Manitoba (OakLake and Shoal Lake) ; Wisconsin (Oak Center) ; Michigan (Roches-ter and probably Lake St. Clair) ; Ontario (Toronto and Ottawa)
;
Quebec (Montreal and near Quebec) ; Maine (Houlton) ; and NewBrunswick (Woodstock). East to Maine (Calais, Bucksport, andSaco) ; Massachusetts (Essex, Barnstable, and Dukes Counties)New York (Shelter Island and Gardiner Island) ; New Jersey (Tuck-erton, 7-mile Beach, and Cape May); Virginia (Dismal Swamp);North Carolina (Mattamuskeet Lake and Newborn); South Carolina(Waverly Mills, Santee, Mount Pleasant, and Frogmore); Georgia(Savannah, Darien, Blackboard Island, and St. Marys); Florida (Pa-latka, Titusville, Indian River, Kissimmee, and Passenger); Cuba;Haiti; Porto Rico; Venezuela (Angostura); Brazil (Corumba, Riode Janeiro, Curytiba, and Taguara); Argentina (Buenos Aires); andthe Falkland Islands (Hope Place). South to the Falkland Islandsand Chile (Valdivia). West to Chile (Valdivia, Santiago, and Val-paraiso) ; western Argentina (Tucuman and Salta) ; Peru (Tumbez);Ecuador (Quito); Colombia (Medellin); Costa Rica (La Palmaand Rio Frio); Honduras (Fonseca Bay) ; Chiapas (Comitan) ; Guer-rero (Acapulco); Sinaloa (Esquinapa and Mazatlan); the HawaiianIslands; Lower California (mouth of the Colorado River); California
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 211(Escondido, near Long Beach, Santa Barbara, Del Monte, Alameda,Colusa, and Chico) ; and Oregon (Fort Klamath, Silver Lake, andWillow Junction)
.
Winter range.?Resident in Central and South America. In NorthAmerica the winter range extends north to Oregon (Pendleton andprobably Malheur Lake) ; Utah, rarely (Provo) ; Colorado, one record(Ft. Lupton, December 20-24, 1902); Texas (Matagorda and LakeSurprise) ; Louisiana (Cameron Parish and the Mississippi Delta)
;
Pennsylvania (Philadelphia) ; Rhode Island (Providence) ; and Massa-chasetts (Boylston and Cambridge). East to Massachusetts (Cam-bridge); New York (Brooklyn and Shelter Island); New Jersey(Pensauken and Trenton); District of Columbia (Washington);North Carolina (Pea Island); South Carolina (near Charleston andFrogmore); Georgia (Blackbeard Island); Florida (Mosquito Inlet)and the Bahama Islands (Abaco, Andros, and Great Inagua Islands).West to Lower California (San Jose del Cabo, La Paz, MargaritaIsland, and the mouth of the Colorado River) ; California (Escondido,Santa Barbara, Tulare Lake, and San Geronimo); and Oregon (Pen-dleton). Accidental in winter at St. John, New Brunswick, and atAnn Arbor, Mich.Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival in the north Atlanticareas are: Vermont, Woodstock, April 10, and Middlebury, April26, 1888; New Hampshire, Monadnock, April 11, 1902, and Hanover,April 13, 1917; Maine, Bucksport, April 12, 1890, and Portland, April18,1906; Quebec, Montreal, April 19, 1890, and Quebec, April 10,1904; and New Brunswick, St. John, April 20, 1888. In the Mis-sissippi Vallej : Arkansas, Jonesboro, April 17, 1913, and Osceola,April 20, 1886; Missouri, Stillwell, April 1, and Corning, April 10,1907; Illinois, Urbana, March 26, 1904, Fernwood, March 27, 1886,Elgin, March 29, 1914, and Chicago, March 30, 1904; Iowa, CharlesCity, March 29, 1918; Indiana, Richmond, April 6, 1911, Hanover,April 7, 1910, and Indianapolis, April 8, 1884; Ohio, Hamilton,March 22, 1897, Garrettsville, March 31, 1888, and Sandusky, March28, 1907; Michigan, Ann Arbor, April 25, 1910, and St. Clair Flats,May 5, 1904; Ontario, Todmorden, April 9, 1891, and Ottawa, April18, 1894; Wisconsin, Beaver Dam, April 4, 1897, Janesville, April 7,1888, Clinton, April 9, 1886, and Delavan, April 19, 1896; and Mani-toba, Margaret, April 25, 1917, and Shell River, May 16, 1885. Onthe Great Plains, Kansas, Wichita, April 8, 1916, Richmond, April17, 1885, Manhattan, April 19, 1885; and Lawrence, April 21, 1906;Nebraska, Dunbar, April 2, 1904, Vesta, April 2, 1882, and Lincoln,April 5, 1.900; and South Dakota, Forestburg, March 23, 1913, andVermilion, April 17, 1911. In the Rocky Mountain region: Colorado,Colorado vSprings, April 9, 1913, Boulder, April 7, 1912, and Greeley,April 17, 1911.
212 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMFall migration.?Late dates of departure on the Atlantic coast are
:
Quebec, Quebec, October 15, 1894, and Montreal, October 11, 1895;Maine, Portland, September 16, 1907; New Hampshire, Durham,October 1, 1900, and Vermont, Bennington, October 2, 1914, andRutland, October 2, 1912. In the Mississippi Valley: Manitoba,Margaret, September 4, 1910; Wisconsin, North Freedom, September10,1903, Madison, September 8, 1915, Milwaukee, September 24, 1887,and Delavan, September 24, 1894; Ontario, Ottawa, October 27, 1894,Kingston, September 6, 1905, Modoc, September 15,1913, and PointPelee, October 14, 1909 ; Michigan, Detroit, September 20, 1912; Ohio,Waverly, November, 18, 1898, and Columbus, November 26, 1876;Indiana, Lebanon, October 10, 1894, and Carroll County, November24, 1884; Illinois, Lake Forest, October 20, 1906, Kensington, October16, 1892, Rantoul, October 22, 1912, and Canton, October 27, 1894;Iowa, Emmetsburg, October 31, 1919; Missouri, Forest City, October25, 1915; and Arkansas, Turrcll, November 19 (McAtee). On theGreat Plains: South Dakota, Huron, October 18, 1887, Forestburg,November 12, 1905, and Sioux Falls, November 20, 1910; Nebraska,Lincoln, October 27, 1900; and Kansas, Richmond, October 15, 1885.In the Rocky Mountain region: Colorado, Greeley, October 18, 1912,and Littleton, October 11, 1908, and New Mexico, November, 1908.Complementary to the fall southward flight is the northward post-breeding wandering, which in no species is more strikingly illustratedthan with these birds as indicated by the returns from young bandedon June 16, 1923, at the colony at Sandy Neck, Barnstable, Massa-chusetts. Data from these birds have been secured from points inNew Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Ontario, and Quebec, through themonths of August and September while one (Biological Survey num-ber 233871) was recovered at Amherst Island, Ontario on November 1,1923. Several returns have come from points on the St. LawrenceRiver, the most northerly being number 233847, recovered on Sep-tember 9, 1923, within a few miles of the city of Quebec.That all birds from any colony do not undertake these wanderingsto the North is illustrated by returns from other birds, banded at thesame time and place and which evidently moved directly south.Thus number 233601 was returned from Napanoch, New York, onAugust 27, 1923; number 233764, from Now Holland, Pennsylvania,on August 22, 1923, and number 233845 from the mouth of the WhiteOak River, North CaroHna, on October 9, 1923. The winteringgrounds of the bulk of the New England birds may possibly be indi-cated by the return record of number 233845, which was killed in thecypress swamps in northern Lee Country, Florida, on December 25,1923, and by number 233743, which was killed in Hanover County,Jamaica, early in November, 1923.
NOETH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 213Egg dates.?Southern New England and New York: 55 records,April 30 to July 19; 28 records, May 13 to 20. California: 30 rec-ords, April 2 to July 15; 15 records, May 3 to 23. New Jersey andPennsylvania: 14 records, April 10 to June 12; 7 records, April 17 toMay 8. Florida: 6 records, March 1 to April 17.NYCTANASSA VIOLACEA (Linnaeus)YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERONHABITSThis handsome and conspicuously marked heron has, always beenassociated in my mind with the fresh-water swamps and bayous ofour tropical and semitropical regions, where the deadly mocassinlurks under leafy shadows and the lazy alligator slumbers on muddybanks. We found it in Florida in the extensive marshes of the upperSt. Johns, living with the Louisana and little blue herons on the willowislands and on the borders of the big cypress swamps; there wereat least one or two pairs of these herons in nearly every rookery wcvisited. In Texas we found the yellow-crowned night heron commonin the swamp and bayou forests along the banks of the GuadalupeRiver, in Victoria County. Its favorite haunts seemed to be in thebayous and stagnant backwaters, where the stately cypress grows,along with a heavy mixed forest of swamp tupelo, sweet and blackgums, water oak, magnolia, and various willows. I understand that itlives under similar conditions in Louisiana and other Southern States.But it has been found living under strikingly different conditionsin other places. Mr. B. S. Bowdish (1902) "found it common onMona," an island near Porto Rico, which seemed rather remarkable,as it is a dry, hot rock, with no sign of lagoon or swamp." Col. A. J.Grayson (1871) found it on Socorro Island, one of the RevillagigedoIslands, of which he writes:Upon this remote island, where there is a scarcity of fresh water, I was surprisedto find this well-known species. Here its natural haunts are entirely wanting.Here there are no lagoons or mangrove swamps to skulk in during the day;and the croaking of frogs, its favorite prey, is not heard. All is dry and desti-tute of such localities suited to the nature of fresh-water birds. I saw solitaryones in the daytime perched upon the rocks in the interior of the >land, and onone or two occasions were started from the dry grass, where they were concealed.Hardly a night passed that I did not hear the well-known quak of this heron asthey came to our spring to drink. From the appearance of the male bird onexamination and the presence of the young one shot they doubtless breed hereto some extent.E. W. Gifford (1913) found it along the shores of many of theGalapagos Islands, while on two of them it was seen in the interioras well. It frequented rocky and cliff-bound coasts, as well as thosefringed with mangroves. On Tower Island, two or three were noted92642?26t 15
214 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
a quarter of a mile inland among the rocks and bushes. On theeast side of Cowley Mountain, Albemarle Island, the tracks of thesebirds were noted in the dust of the donkey trails at an altitude ofabout 2,400 feet, and an immature bird was seen.Nesting.?My first experience with the nesting habits of the yellow-crowned night heron was in the marshes of the upper St. Johns, inFlorida, on April 21, 1902. We saw one or two pairs of this speciesin nearly all of the rookeries of small herons, found on the littlewillow-covered islands scattered over the marsh, but found only twonests. The first nest was on the outer edge of one of these islandsin a leaning willow, about 4 feet above the water; it was made oflarge sticks and lined with smaller twigs; it measured 20 by 16inches and contained five eggs which were on the point of hatching.The other nest was similarly made and was 8 feet above the groundin a clump of willows on dry land ; it was within a few yards of anoccupied Ward heron's nest; it contained two eggs and two youngbirds. The old birds were quite tame in both cases and remainednear the nests watching us.We found no nests in Texas, but in Florida, in 1925, we foundtwo colonies. The first was a small mixed colony of yellow-crownedand black-crowned night herons, little blue and Louisiana heronsand a few Ward herons in a small willow swamp on the prairie inCharlotte County, found on March 5. The Ward herons had smallyoung, but the other species were building nests and had not laid atthat date. The water was waist deep or more, but the trees wereall small and none of the nests were over 9 or 10 feet above thewater in the slender willows.The other colony, on Bird Key, in Boca Ceiga Bay, Pinellas County,was much larger, but it was very difficult to determine its limits, asthe foliage was very dense and the birds were very shy; they sneaked
oft' their nests when they heard us coming and kept out of sight; allwe saw were fleeting glimpses of departing birds, or an occasionalindividual flying over. The nests were grouped in a grove of thelargest black-mangroves, where there were no other species nestingexcept a few Louisiana herons; they were placed at moderate heights,15 to 20 feet, in these trees, on the larger limbs and mostly under theshade of the upper branches. When I first visited the colony, onMarch 11, these heions were building their nests, but in April theyall had eggs. The nests could usually be distinguished from thoseof the smaller herons; they were larger, thicker, and more substan-tially built of heavier sticks ; but occasionally an especially well madenest of a Louisiana heron could be recognized only by the smaller eggs.Audubon (1840) says:This species places its nest either high or low, according to the nature of theplace selected for it, and the abundance of food in the neighborhood. In the
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 215interior of swampy woods, iu lower Louisiana, I have found the nests placed onthe tops of the loftiest cypresses, and on low bushes, but seldom so close togetheras those of many other herons. On the Florida Keys, where I have examinedmore of these tenements than in any other part, I found them either on the topsof mangroves, which there seldom attain a greater height than 25 feet, or ontheir lowest branches, and not more than 2 or 3 feet from the water. In theCarolinas, they usually resort to swamps, nestling on the bushes along their mar-gins. The nest is similar to that of other herons, being formed of dry sticksloosely put together, and a few weeds, with at times a scanty lining of fibrous roots.C. J. Maynard (1896) says that, in the Bahamas, "the nests aregenerally placed low, in some instances not over a foot from theground. They are usually huge stick-built structures, well hollowed,and remind one strongly of the nests of hawks, and they are oftenlined with leaves." Arthur T. Wayne (1906) found a nest that wasbuilt in a short-leaf pine, 40 feet from the ground, on the high land andhalf a mile from water, in South Carolina. John G. Wells (1886)says that, in the Lesser Antilles, "they sometimes build in the man-groves, but generally resort to the rocky islets during the nestingperiod, in April and May. There they build in the prickly-pearbushes a large platform of dry sticks."Eggs.?The yellow-crowned night heron usually lays three or fom*eggs, rarely five. Those that I have seen are ovate in shape and theshell is smooth but not glossy. The color is pale bluish green, vary-ing from "pale glaucous green" to "pale olivine." The measure-ments of 40 eggs average 51.3 by 36.9 millimeters; the eggs showingthe four extremes measure 57 by 36.8, 50.5 by 39.5, 46 by 35 milli-meters.Plumages.?I have no specimens of the downy young of the yellow-crowned night heron, nor any partially fledged young; and I can notfind any descriptions of them in print. In the full juvenal plumagein August, the crown and occiput are black, with whitish shaft streaks,and a few long whitish, hairlike plumes remain on the tips of somefeathers; the sides of the head are streaked with "fuscous" andwhitish; the mantle is "bister," or "warm sepia," with terminal, buffyarrowheads on the feathers of the back and wing-coverts; the chinand throat are white; the neck and under parts arc pale buff andwhite, broadly striped with "olive brown," "hair brown" and "fus-cous"; the remiges and roctrices are "dark grayish brown," or "fus-cous," very narrowly tipped with white when fresh; the white tipssoon wear away.This juvenal plumage is worn through the first fall and winter,until February or March, when a complete first prenuptial moltbegins; by the time that this molt is finished, in May, the entireplumage has been changed, except perhaps a few old, juvenal wing-coverts, showing a decided advance towards maturity; the headpattern suggests that of the adult, but the crown is brownish, black
216 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMtipped, and white basally on the forehead, with short whitish plumes;the auriculars are grayish, but mottled; the black areas in the headare streaked with white and the chin and throat are white; the neckis drab; the new plumage of the mantle is a mixture of brown andblackish and sometimes there are a few long, plumelike feathers inthe back; the under parts are striped, much as in the juvenal plum-age. This is the first nuptial plumage, but it is probably not abreeding plumage.Summer and fall specimens are so scarce in collections that I havebeen unable to trace what takes place during these seasons, but thereis probably another complete molt, perhaps two molts, between thefirst nupital and the second nuptial plumages. I have, however,seen a small series of specimens, taken in March, which show variousstages of a complete prenuptial molt into the second nuptial plumage,which is probably a breeding plumage. This plumage is nearlyadult, but the crown is more or less brown and the chin and throatare partially black, but centrally grayish and whitish; the upperparts, particularly the wing coverts, are tinged with brown, insteadof being clear gray and black; the under parts are tinged with brown;and the occipital plumes are nearly as in the adult.A complete postnuptial molt, beginning in July or August, producesthe fully adult plumage, with the wholly black throat, the whitecrown and the clear grays, blacks, and whites, without any tinges ofbrown. The young bird is then about 2}^ years old. For lack ofmaterial, collected at the proper seasons, I can not trace the moltsof the adults.Food.?The yellow-crowned night heron is not quite so nocturnalin its feeding habits as the black-crowned night heron ; it feeds moreor less during the night, but it also feeds commonly at all hours ofthe day, chiefly, however, in the morning and evening hours. Fishseem to constitute a comparatively small portion of its diet, whichis largely made up of crabs and crawfish; this may account for itsmore diurnal habits. Audubon (1840) says that it is not at alldelicate in the choice of its food, but swallows ' ' snails, fish, small snakes,crabs, crays, lizards, and leeches, as well as small quadrupeds, andyoung birds that have fallen from their nests." He also says thatit appears to seize its food "with little concern, picking it up fromthe ground in the manner of a domestic fowl."Mr. Maynard (1896) says:The food of the yellow-crowned night herons is mainly land crabs, which theyare very expert at catching, killing and breaking to pieces. They will eat allkinds, excepting possibly the large white crab, a species which often measures14 inches across the body and claws, and which weighs about 1 pound. Thisanimal appears to be too strong and bulky for the herons to manage, but theywill kill the black crab, a crustacean which measures nearly or quite a footacross the body and claws. But a favorite crab with this heron is a smaller
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 217
species, which resembles the black crab in form, which is, on account of itsbeing a favorite with the herons, called the galden crab by the Bahamans.This crab is very abundant. Another crab, or rather group of land crabs,which I think is exempt from the attacks of the galden is the hermit crab, forthey retreat within their borrowed shells, and guard the entrance with their largeclaws.Mr. Bowdish (1902) found in the stomachs of birds, taken in PortoRico, fiddler crabs, two fresh-water eeLs about 6 inches long and twocrawfish. Mr. Wayne (1906) says that in the breeding season thefood of these birds is chiefly crawfish, but that after the breedingseason they "resort to the salt marshes, and feed chiefly upon fiddlersand fish."Behavior.?The appearance of the yellow-crowned night heron inflight is midway between that of the black-crowned and that of theother small herons, hence it is quite distinctive; it is a more slen-der bird and has a longer neck and longer legs than the black-crowned ; its flight is slower and its neck is folded, after the manner ofother herons, rather than contracted. The color is distinctive andthe large, black bill is conspicuous. Its appearance on the groundis also characteristic, as it walks gracefully and slowly about on itslong legs, with its long neck extended and its orange-red eyes search-ing for its prey. I have found immature birds very tame and easilyapproached, but the adults are rather shy, as a rule.Audubon (1840) writes:This species is by no means entirely nocturnal, for I have seen it searching forfood among the roots of mangroves at all hours of the day, and that as assidu-ously as any diurnal bird, following the margins of rivers, and seizing on bothaquatic and terrestrial animals. Whilst at Galveston, I frequently saw a largeflock similarly occupied. When they had satisfied their hunger, they wouldquietly remove to some safe distance toward the middle of an island, where, stand-ing in a crouching posture on the ground, they presented a very singular appear-ance. That they are able to see to a considerable distance on fine clear nights, Ihave no doubt, as I am confident that their migratory movements are usually per-formed at such times, having seen them, as well as several other species, comedown from a considerable height in the air, after sunrise, for the purpose of rest-ing and procuring food. When in numbers, and surprised on their perches, theyusually rise almost perpendicularly for 30 or 40 yards, and then take a partic-ular direction, leading them to some well-known place. Whenever I have startedthem from the nest, especially on the Florida Keys, they would sneak off onwing quite low, under cover of the mangroves, and fly in this manner until theyhad performed the circuit of the island, when they would alight close to me, asif to see whether I had taken their eggs or young."Enemies.?Audubon (1840) notes that the yeUow-crowned nightheron was ''watched and shot with great eagerness, by the Creolesof lower Louisiana, on account of the excellence of its flesh" but itcan not now be regarded as a game bird. According to Mr. Maynard(189G) it was also much hunted as a game bird by the inhabitantsof the Bahamas.
218 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMDISTRIBUTIONRange.?Soiithoasiern United States, Central America, and thenorthern half of South America.Breeding range.?North to Kansas (formerly Coffee County) ; Illi-nois (formerly the lUinois River and Mount Carmel); Indiana (for-merly Bicknell and Wheatland) ; Alabama (Autaugaville) ; and SouthCarolina (Washoe Reserve on the wSantee River, and Charleston).East to South Carolina (Washoe Preserve, Charleston, and Frog-more) ; Georgia (Savannah mouth of the Altamaha River and St.Marys) ; Florida (St. John's River, Micanopy, Kissimmee, Bassenger,and the Hillsboro River) ; the Bahama Islands (Little Abaco, Abaco,Eleuthera, Watling, and Great Inagua Islands) ; Porto Rico (GuanicaValley) ; the Lesser Antilles (St. Thomas, Virgin Gorda, St. Croix, St.Bartholomew, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Santa Lucia, St. Vincent,the Grenadines, Grenada, Tobago, and Trinidad Islands) ; BritishGuiana (Georgetown) ; French Guiana (Cayenne) ; and eastern andsoutheastern Brazil (Cajutube Island, Bahia, Sapitiba, Cape Frio,Paranagua, and Santa Catarina). South to southeastern Brazil(Paranagua and Santa Catarina) ; and Peru (Santa Lucia) . West toPeru (Santa Lucia and Tumbez) ; Ecuador (Babahoyo) ; the Galapa-gos Islands; Panama (San Miguel Island); Costa Rica (San Jose)
;
Nicaragua (San Juan del Sur) ; Mexico, Guerrero (Papayo) ; Tepic(San Bias) ; Sinaloa (Mazatlan) ; Lower California (Magdalena Bay)
;
Texas (Lomita, Laredo, Corpus Christi, mouth of the ColoradoRiver, and Gurley) ; Oklahoma (Fort Reno and Copan) ; and Kansas(Coffee County).In the United States most of the colonies are now located in theSouth Atlantic and Gulf coast regions.Winter range.?The yellow-crowned night heron appears to beresident throughout its breeding range in the islands of the Carib-bean Sea, and in central and South America, remaining north at thisseason rarely to Florida (Upper Matecumbe Key, Tampa, and nearFort Myers) : Louisiana (Vermillion Bay) ; Texas (Giddings) ; andLower California (La Paz).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are Florida, Polk County,February 14, 1901, and Orange Springs, March 19, 1910; Alabama,Barachias, April 15; Georgia, Darien, Aprils, 1890, and Savannah,March 12, 1905; South Carolina, Mount Pleasant, March 24, 1891;Louisiana, New Orleans, February 19, 1914; Mississippi, Rodney,March 20, 1890; Missom-i, St. Louis, April 10; and Kansas, Wells-ville, March 27, 1920.Casual records.?The yellow-crowned night heron occurs with fairregularity both spring and fall in North Carolina and has been takenor noted at other points much farther north. These are: District of
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 219Columbia (Washington, one taken in August 1901); New Jersey(Elizabeth, August 16, 1922 and Woodbine, May 23, 1891): Penn-sylvania (near Philadelphia, Ten-mile Creek, Glenolden, April 23,1922 and Berwyn, May 14, 1916); New York (Freeport,Long Island,April, 1893. Wading River, April, 1901, near Orient about 1892 andMay 4 and 7, 1905) ; Rhode Island (Newport, August, 1892 and June15, 1778, and Tiverton, April 23, 1886); Massachusetts (Province-town, March 8, 1891, Lynn, October, 1862, and Somerville, July 30,1878); Maine (Back Cove, April 13, 1901, and Portland, April 11,1906) ; Nova Scotia (Cape Sable Island, April 13, 1904, and one prev-iously at the same place); Ontario (near Toronto, August 15, 1898);Iowa (Council Bluffs, May 2, 1843, Lee County, June 2, 1883, Omaha[Iowa side]. May 1, 1892, Florence Lake, August 23, 1903, and Jack-son County, September 15, 1892) ; Nebraska (Beatrice, July 19, 1901)
;
and Colorado (Salida, May 1, 1908 and Byers, May 3, 1914).Egg dates.?Florida: 25 records, March 25 to May 15; 13 recordsApril 4 to 26. Texas: 8 records, April 13 to May 23.Order PALUDICOLAE, Cranes, Rails, etc.Family MEGALORNITHIDAE, CranesMEGALORNIS AMERICANUS (Linnaeus)WHOOPING CRANEHABITSThis magnificent species, one of the grandest and most striking ofNorth American birds, is supposed to be on the verge of extinction.In its former abundance, its great migration flights, its curious con-ventions, in which it indulged in grotesque dances, and its interest-ing aerial evolutions must have formed some of the most spectacu-lar performances in American ornithology. This is the tallest andmost stately of all our birds and, as Coues (1874) says, when seenon the prairies, "its immense stature is sometimes singularly exag-gerated by that quality of the prairie air which magnifies distant ob-jects on the horizon, transforming sometimes a weed into a man."He knew of a person who mistook a sandhill crane for one of hisstray mules and went in search of it. Once he himself mistook awhooping crane for an antelope feeding with its broad white sterntoward him, and attempted to stalk it, until the "antelope" spreadits broad, black-tipped wings and flew awa}".Like many of our larger birds and mammals, particularly thosethat lived on the broad plains of the interior, the whooping cranehas been steadily reduced in numbers and has become entirely extir-pated in much of its former range. It has retreated before advanc-
220 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMing civilization, farther west and then farther north, for it is one ofour wildest birds, it can not stand human companionship and it lovesthe great open spaces in primitive solitudes.Dr. E. W. Nelson (1877) wrote, half a century ago, that "a fewpairs breed upon the large marshes in central Illinois." Dr. R. M.Anderson (1907) found it breeding in Hancock County, Iowa, in 1894;and it was found breeding, according to Prof. W. W. Cooke (1914),at Yorkton, Saskatchewan, in 1900. Having heard that whoopingcranes had been seen recently around Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, Ispent considerable time there in May and June, 1917, chasing upvarious clues; several men told me that they had seen white cranesthere that spring and that they bred there regularly; though I didnot succeed in finding them, I have no doubt that a few pairs stillbreed in northern Saskatchewan and Manitoba. M. P. Skinnerwrites me that he saw five of these cranes in Yellowstone Park,Wyoming, on August 4, 1914; after circling about high in the air,they flew off towards the southwest. George Lang, of Indian Head,Saskatchewan, "a reliable observer of long standing," reported toFred Bradshaw, that he "saw 15 whooping cranes pass over thattown on April 15, 1920"; and J. R. Garden, 20 miles east of there
"got within 50 yards of six whooping cranes in the fall of 1921. Inthe spring of 1923 even larger numbers were reported from Qu'Appelle and Tynan." Under date of October 1, 1923, C. E. Boardmanwrites to me that, for the past 10 days, a flock of five adult and oneyoung whooping cranes have been seen in the vicinity of Long Lake,south of Steele, North Dakota. Harry L. Felt, of Findlater, reportedto Mr. Bradshaw that he saw nine whooping cranes passing over, onMay 3, 1924. From the above records and from recent Texasrecords, to be referred to later, it would seem that the whoopingcranes are not all gone yet. Let us hope that the few survivors willlong continue to outwit their relentless pursuers.Courtship.?Mr. Ernest Thompson Seton sends me the followingnotes on what is probably a com'tship performance:While the lowlands were their chief haunts, they had always not far awaysome high knoll on which one or more pairs would meet in the early morningaud near sundown during spring and summer, and indulge in a sort of statelydance with much bowing, capering, flapping, and trumpeting. Fragments of thisdance are sometimes rendered by the captives in zoological gardens. In somesort, it is the practice of many, if not all, cranes. It bears much resemblance tothe mating dance of the prairie chicken. While dancing on the knoll, the craneswere visible for a mile or two. This with their raucous and daily trumpeting,called attention to the fact that a pair were nesting near. The result, alas, hasbeen the extermination of the cranes in most of the Northwest.Nesting.?Our knowledge of the nesting habits of the whoopingcrane is mostly past histor}", about which very little has been pub-lished. Nor have we much definite knowledge as to the exact limits
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 221
of its former breeding range, which occupied a comparatively narrowbelt in the interior of the continent; perhaps it once included much orall of the prairie regions from Great Slave Lake to Illinois.J. W. Preston (1893), writing of conditions "years ago, when north-western Iowa was a vast prairie, out into which few settlers had ven-tured, thus describes the nesting of this species in that State
:
One memorable afternoon in early May I left the tent in kindly shelter of thefringe of woods on Crystal Lake, Winnebago County, Iowa, the lakelet in whosesparkling waters classic Iowa River finds birth. Following the stream as itwound about through fiat meadows or by low, gravelly hills, I reached the im-mense marsh lying north from Eagle Lake. Here were secured a number of thelarge, drab-and~spotted eggs of the white crane. They had chosen the center ofthe marsh for a nesting place, and there, a mile from the higher shores, the motherbirds could be seen upon the nests, which were formed of soft grass gathered to-gether in a firm heap about 1 \A feet high, and placed on firm sod, out of water, butvery near it. In the top of this heap was a very slight depression for the eggs. Up-on these nests the birds sit in the same posture that a goose assumes, the legs pro-truding behind. They often let the head and neck lie down along the side of thenest in a wearied way, which is usual for the Canada goose, especially if the hunteris near. Upon my approaching the marsh these birds moved away with statelytread, walking much faster than I cared to do, yet apparently taking it easy.The white crane is certainly a strikingly handsome bird in its wild retreats. Onedoes not tire of watching their peculiar movements. When walking at a distancethey appear almost as tall as a man. They are far more alert and much wilderthan the brown cranes.Dr. R. M. Anderson (1894) gives us another good account of whatwas probably the last nesting of the whooping crane in that sameregion as follows:On May 24, 1894, a boy offered to sell me two sandhill crane's eggs, which hehad found about a week previously. The next Saturday, May 26, 1 started out tohis place to try and collect some eggs. In the afternoon we started for a marsh,which a pair of white cranes had frequented all spring. The boy said that quitea number of white cranes had been seen around there in the early spring, butonly one pair had remained over. As we came up over the top of a hill we sawin the middle of a large marsh two white objects, which looked like large rocks,but they began moving, and had evidently seen us as soon as we saw them, forthey soon rose up with slow, heavy flaps of their great wings and flew over tothe further side of the marsh, where we could see them stalking along with longstrides as fast as a man could walk. In fact, when they stood straight upthey looked almost as tall as a man. Occasionally one would utter a whoop thatcould be heard for a long distance. We waded along the whole length of theslough finding some masses which looked like crane's nests, but securing nothingbut a Grebe's egg, which I dug out of a wet, floating mass of rotten vegetation.While wading through the slough we scared up several small flocks of mallards,pintails, blue-winged teals, and saw Wilson's phalaropes and black terns by thedozen. When we got near the west end of the slough, I started to wade down abranch that went off toward the south. I saw several cranes' nests or muskrathouses, I could not tell which, only a few rods apart. As I stood up on one andlooked around I saw two great eggs on the next one. All this while the twocranes had been stalking along on the hill quite a ways off, keeping close to-gether, and seemed trying to attract our attention by holding their heads down,92642?26t 16
222 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMdragging one leg, and sometinies spreading their wings. I yelled to the boys tocome over, as I had found a crane's nest. While they were coming up, the craneswere approaching nearer until they were about 20 rods away. They would standperfectly still for a minute at a time, with the wings widespread and held outfrom the body, and made a beautiful picture with their graceful snowy whitebodies and great black-tipped wings. On our coming toward them they flew ashort distance and lighted again. My companion and I went around in oppositedirections to try and get a shot at them, but the cranes were too wary to beoutwitted by such maneuvers and before we could get within 40 rods of themthey flew up again and lighted over in the slough nearer the nest. My brother,who was sitting on the nest while we sneaked around, said they then came upwithin about 10 rods from him, and would hop on one leg, stretch out one wing,and try to decoy him after them. We could see the cranes far out on the prairiefor the hour or two we were around there, and even after we were out of sight wecould hear their loud singing whoops. The whooping crane's note seems to belouder and has a more ringing and resonant tone than the sandhill crane's voice,which has a rougher, rasping sound. But, let us speak of the nest. It was amass of grass, rushes and reeds about 2 feet across and 8 or 10 inches above thewater, which at this place was about a foot and a half deep. The water was openfor a few feet around the nest, but in most places was grown up with rushes andsaw grass. The nest was so solid that I sat down on it without sinking it intothe water.In 1914 the keeper at Buffalo Park, Wainwright, Alberta, told Mr.Seton "that at least one pair of white cranes breed each year on thewest part of the Park." A. D. Henderson writes to me that afriend of his, C. E. Mills, saw a pair of whooping cranes, aboutthe end of April, 1922, about 10 miles west of Birch Lake, Alberta.The residents told him that they were breeding and were beingprotected.The latest information regarding the nesting habits of the whoop-ing crane comes from the Game Commissioner of Saskatchewan, FredBradshaw, who has sent me the fine photographs illustrating thehome life of this rare species and his notes made in regard to it. Hehas also sent me a copy of a very full and interesting report by NeilGilmour, a provincial game guardian, relating his experience insearching for a nest, which he finally located on May 19, 1922, inwestern Saskatchewan. I quote from Mr. Gilmour's report asfollows
:
This marsh is approximately' 3 miles long and from 1 to 2 miles in width andcomprises an area of upwards of 3,000 acres. It is a shallow marsh, the water atno part being of a depth of more than 3 feet, and much of it being only aboutknee deep. The entire marsh is covered by a heavy crop of grass growing to aheight of about 2 feet above the level of the water. As the marsh does not dryout, the hay, or grass, is never cut, and at the time of my visit, the previousseason's growth everywhere covered the marsh with a carpet of brown. Overtoward the west end of the marsh there is a small irregular strip of land of pos-sibly 10 acres extent that forms an island elevated, at the time of my visit, about1 foot above the level of the water. Failing to see anything of the birds at theeast end of the marsh, I traveled westward along the south shore for a distanceof a mile and half, pausing from time to time and with the aid of my field glasses.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 223
searching the surface of the marsh for evidence of the cranes. Suddenly, I saMa single bird where a moment before I thought no bird had been. I sat downupon a mound, the creation of some badger, and through the glasses studied thisbird, which appeared to be strolling about gathering its breakfast. Chancing toelevate the glasses a little I picked up in the distance, perhaps a half mile beyondthe north shore of the marsh, a white object which proved to be the second cranefeeding in a stubble field. Watching this bird through the glasses I had thesatisfaction, in a little time, of seeing it spread its great wings, and with slow,and apparently, effortless strokes of these mighty pinions, glide out over themarsh and alight within a short distance of its mate, where both strolled, seem-ingly, aimlessly about picking from time to time some morsel of food as theystrolled.Being myself inclined by nature to leisure, and further influenced by thedelightful warmth of this day in early summer, I stretched myself upon theground, yet in such a position that with the aid of my field glasses, I could seewithout being seen, and follow the movements of the cranes. No sooner hadI thus rendered myself invisible to the birds, than I noticed a change in theactions of one of the pair. Instead of continuing to wander in an easterly di-rection as both had been doing, this one, the smaller of the two, and the onewhich had flown in from the wheatfield, turned and began drifting westward,and in the direction, apparently, of the point in the marsh where I had firstobserved the other bird. Finally it came to a place where it seemed to risehigher above the level of the dead grass or hay of the marsh. After preeningthe feathers of its breast for a time, it gradually settled down until only the topof its head was visible. At once I was filled with interest and rose to my feetthe better to study what I had witnessed. But almost as soon as I arose thebird also, rose up and again drifted off aimlessly in the direction of its mate.A very natural conjecture was the possibility that the point where the bird set-tled down out of sight in the grass was where the nest was located; on the otherhand the squatting of the bird in the water might very well be some natural habitof the crane. If the former were the correct deduction then I had to deal withan exceedingly wary bird, if the sight of a man standing at a distance of fully amile was enough to alarm it and cause it as a matter of precaution to move awayfrom the nest. I spent the next two hours playing hide and seek with this bird.Each time I lay down, thus concealing myself from its view, the bird wouldslowly drift back and again settle down, until only the tip of its head was visible,and exactly at the same spot so far as I could judge. I remained hidden for20 minutes at a time and as long as I did not expose myself the bird remainedin the one spot. The nest was there I felt assured, but how to locate it was theproblem. I crawled to the left until I had the head of the hidden bird and abuilding some miles distant across the lake in line. I figured that if I could riseand walk in a perfectly straight line in the direction of the building, I must cometo the nest, if nest there were. I arose and immediately the bird did the same,and tramped off to the eastward. Fixing my eyes upon the distant building,and keeping them steadily upon it, I started forward; but when I entered themarsh, I found that the bottom on this side was boggy, and at each step growingworse, so that I had difficulty in withdrawing my feet, and I feared, was in dangerof being engulfed. I was glad to get back in safety to the shore and, my hope oflocating the nest began to wane. I determined to have a try at it from anotherpoint of the compass. I traveled for another mile or better turning the westend of the marsh, and for a distance up that end. During the time I was thusvisible the pair of cranes continued to wander about although at such a distancefrom me that it seemed remarkable they should be concerned by my presence onthe shore. Selecting my proposed point of attack I again concealed myself in
224 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthe tall grass and very shortly was rewarded by observing one of the birds sep-arate itself from its mate and stroll for some distance in a dififerent direction toa point where, after preening the feathers of the breast as before, it settled downuntil only the top of the head was visible through the waving grass. Donningmy waders, I again set forth, and this time to my great relief I found the bedof the march fairly firm so that I had no difficulty in proceeding.If, however, the reader has ever tried the experiment of wading through amuskeg with uneven bottom, without once daring to drop his eyes in the direc-tion of his pedal extremities, he will have some idea of the task I had set myself.Time and again when one foot or the other would drop into a bit of a pothole,threatening a spill with its inevitable result, it was with the utmost difficulty Ikept my eyes raised, and steadfastly fixed upon the distant lodestone. Afterplunging along for what appeared like miles, I stopped and without moving astep, looked all around me. I saw nothing of the nest, but the two birds, a fewhundred yards to my left, appeared uneasy I thought and were making manifestefforts to attract me to themselves. Again sighting my beacon and getting mybearings I trudged on, and when next I paused and looked about me, I couldscarcely believe my eyes when about 10 feet to my right I beheld the object ofmy two day's search, the nest of the whooping crane. In the center of an opensheet of water about 30 feet in diameter, there arose out of the water a mound ofcoarse grass and reeds that just resemble the upper part of a two-thirds sub-merged coil of hay. It arose about one foot above the level of the surface of thewater, was flat on top being just slightly concave. In this depression were placedthe two large grayish cream colored eggs. They were about 4 inches in length,and only slightly larger at one end than the other. The distressed whoopingcries of the birds, as I tarried at the nest, I shall never forget. They were themost remarkable calls I had ever heard. They boomed out and floated over themarsh, until the whole air seemed to vibrate, and for a time I was not at all surethat an attack was not imminent.Mr. Bradshaw's experience with the birds was almost exactly simi-lar. The nest contained three eggs when found on May 28, 1922.One egg hatched the next day and one was infertile. He says inhis notes:After a long tiresome tramp through 2 feet of water in a heavy marsh, I lo-cated a nest and three eggs despite the efforts of the birds to lead me off the track,one went to the left and the other to the right, and when I found the nest theycame closer and closer, feigned many times to be on the nest and went throughantics of coshering eggs; one bird circled within 100 yards radius twice while I wastaking a photograph. The nest was made of rushes, three-sided sedge grass, pulledup by the roots. I found it very difficult to uproot, it having adventitious roots.These rushes were nipped from 1 to 5 inches from the root and I am of the opin-ion that this is done when the birds are gathering material for the nest. Thenest was from 4 to 5 feet in diameter and about 15 or 18 inches above the water,dry on top amd lined with the finer outside covering of the old dry grasses, the seedof which is a brownish color and pear-shaped. A very slight depression formedthe top of the nest. The gathering of material for the nest clears the watersurrounding the nest of rushes and forms an island home for the birds, as shownin the photograph.Eg?s.?The whooping crane lays ordinarily two eggs, occasionallyonly one and very rarely three; in the set of three, referred to above,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 225one egg proved to be infertile. The shape is elliptical ovate. The shellis smooth, but more or less pimpled and slightly glossy. The eggsare usually, if not always, darker colored and more heavily markedthan those of the sandhill crane. The ground color varies from"cream buff" to ''olive buff." This is clouded and blotched, quiteheavily near the larger end and more sparingly elsewhere, with dullbrowns, "wood browns" or "huffy brown," overlaid with blotchesof darker and brighter browns, "Verona brown" or "hazel." Themeasurements of 38 eggs average 98.4 by 62.4 millimeters; the eggsshowing the four extremes measure 107.5 by 63.5, 98 by 67.5, and87.4 by 50.2 millimeters.Young.?Mr. Bradshaw while near the nest "heard a strange pip-ing whistle," which he discovered to be "that of a young crane justbreaking through the shell. The call was very vigorous for an un-hatched bird." After hatching the young bird called "almost con-stantly, by a whistle resembling that of the red-winged blackbird,but fainter; occasionally it would be louder or more pathetic." Onthe day after hatching he was surprised to see the young bird leavethe nest at his approach and start swimming toward the rushes.Plumages.?I have never seen a downy young whooping crane, butMr. Bradshaw describes, in his notes, one that he found in a nest,apparently recently hatched on May 30, as follows:The young bird for the most part is of a buff color; from the neck to the rumpon the back it is somewhat darker, while the under parts are much paler thanthe color of the head. The bill is about three-fourths inch long, upper half fleshcolor, lower half darker or horn color, a small white spot on the upper mandible.Specimens of immature birds are too scarce in collections to giveany definite idea of the time required to reach maturity. A youngbird collected in October probably represents the juvenal or firstwinter plumage. The head is wholly feathered, including the fore-head and lores. The plumage is mainly white, but it is heavily mot-tled on the head and neck with "pinkish cinnamon" or "cinnamonbuff, " almost solid color on the crown; the back and wing coverts arevariegated with the same colors, due to a mixture of white feathersand colored feathers in varying amounts, the colored feathers beingthicker in the back and scapulars and more scattered in the wings;the colored feathers are darkest in the scapulars, some as dark as
"sayal brown"; the primaries are dull black.Apparently a partial molt of the contour feathers occm*s in winterand spring, producing an advance toward maturity. A young bird,taken February 16, has the head and neck still mottled and the largerscapulars, wing coverts, rectrices, and upper tail coverts more or lessextensively washed at, or near, the tips with cinnamon. Anotheryoung bird, taken April 10, has less cinnamon in the head and neck
226 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand the crown and malar regions arc becoming blacker. Unfortu-nately we do not know the ages of these young birds. At the sea-sonal molts of adults we can only guess, for lack of material.Food.?The whooping crane is not at all fastidious in its diet; it isquite omnivorous and eats a great variety of both animal and vege-table food. Audubon (1840) supposed that the sandhilll cranes werethe young of the whooping cranes, so some of his remarks may applyto either species; but he says that
?
Both old and young may be seen digging through the mud before the rainshave begun to cover the shallow ponds with water, for during summer theybecome almost dry. The birds work very assiduously with their bills, and suc-ceed in uncovering the large roots of the great water lilly, which often run to adepth of 2 or 3 feet. Several cranes are seen in the same hole, tugging at rootsand other substances, until they reach the object of their desire, which theygreedily devour.His plate illustrates a whooping crane killing young alligators.Nuttall (1834) writes:In the winter season, dispersed from their native haunts in quest of subsist-ence, they are often seen prowling in the low grounds and rice fields of theSouthern States in quest of insects, grain, and reptiles; they swallow also mice,moles, rats, and frogs with great avidity, and may therefore be looked upon atleast as very useful scavengers. They are also at times killed as game, their fleshbeing well flavored, as they do not subsist so much upon fish as many otherbirds of this family.In the fall whooping cranes resort to the grain fields and feedamong the stubble, with the sandhill cranes, on various kinds ofgrains. They are also said to eat vegetables, plants, bulbous roots,snakes, frogs, mice, tadpoles, snails, slugs, worms, grasshoppers, andsometimes a few fish.Behavior.~Qo\. N. S. Goss (1891) says:These birds are very wary and ever upon the lookout, rising over everj' sus-picious spot when on the wing, and when on the ground spring into the air at thefirst sight or appearance of danger, with a warning note to others. In flight,their long necks and stiltlike legs are stretched out in line with the body to theirfull extent, moving strongly, with slowly beating wings, but not swiftly; I saystrongly because they they are able to face a strong wind, and to sustain them-selves for a long time in the air, often circling spirallike to a great height. Theyoccasionally bunch up, and I have seen them in a triangular form, but, as a rule,they travel in single file, following their leader in a wavy line, croaking as they go,like hounds upon a cold trail.A writer in Forest and Stream over the pseudonym, Picket (1883)
,
writes as follows:The whooping crane is, to say the least, a fantastic fowl. When marchingabout on terra firma he appears awkward to the last degree. Judging from thelength of his stiltliice legs, one would suppose he was made to run rather than fly;but in spite of his clipper build and striding abilities, he is only a moderate pacer.His manner of taking flight is peculiar. Spreading his wings and stooping down,he apparently runs up an inclined plane of air until his feet no longer touch the
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 227
earth, then stretching them out behind him, he floats away as gracefully as aracing yacht before a steady breeze. In fine, calm weather he delights to mountup, in great undulating spirals, to the height of a mile or so, and talie a quietfloat, while he whoops at neighbors in the adjoining counties. After airing himselfto his heart's content, he descends, sometimes spirally as he arose, at other timeswith great plunges and wild, reckless dives, until within about 50 feet of the earthwhen he hangs himself upon the air with his long, spindling legs down, gentlysettles and alights.Dwight W. Huntington (1903) refers to this interesting flight per-formance as follows
:
I was once shooting mallard on the margin of a western lake, with an Armyofficer. The daj^ was warm and bright, and, after a short morning flight, theducks ceased to move about, and we retired to a slight elevation, ate our luncheon,and reclined in the grass to smoke our pipes and tell tales of shooting game ofall sorts. A large flock of white cranes arose from the marsh and flew directlytoward us, ascending, however, as they came, far beyond our range. When quiteoverhead, in the azure sky, their white feathers gleaming in the sunlight, theyproceed to go through many graceful evolutions, flying about in a circle, formingsides and crossing over and back and dancing in midair to their own loud music.We were much entertained by their performance, and observed them until theexhibition was ended and they continued their flight until quite out of sight.The whooping crane is a dangerous antagonist when wounded,striking with great force and with unerring aim with its powerfuland sharp bill. Many stories have been told of men being severelywounded by its savage thrusts. Picket (1883) says:At another time I crippled one of the large white species by breaking a wing.As it was marching off rather rapidly, I sent a little rat terrier to bring it to bay.No sooner did the dog come up with it than it turned about, and quick as light-ning drove its long sharp bill clean through him killing him on the spot.Mr. Seton writes to me:An extraordinary tragedj' was much talked of in my earliest days in the North.About 1879, there was a young Indian living near Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.In the spring, he went out shooting among the famous wild-fowl marshes of thatsection. A white crane flew low within range and fell to a shot from his gun.As it lay on the ground, wounded in both wing and leg, crippled and helpless, hereached forward to seize it. But it drove its bill with all its force into his eye.The brain was pierced and the young hunter fell on the body of his victim.Here next day, at the end of a long and anxious search, the young wife foundthem dead together and read the story of the tragedy.Doctor Coues (1874) once measured the windpipe of a whoopingcrane and found it to be about 58 inches long, ''quite as long as thebird itself"; about 28 inches of this is "coiled away in the breastbone." This is the trumpet through which the bird produces the loudsonorous notes for which it is named and which are said to be audibleat a distance of 3 miles Nuttall (1834) writes:At times they utter a loud, clear, and piercing cry that may be heard to avery considerable distance, and which, being not unaptly compared to the whoopor yell of the savages when rushing to battle, has conferred upon our bird hisjieculiar appellation. Early in February, Wilson met with several of these cranes
228 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMin South Carolina; at the same season and in the early part of the followingmonth I heard their clamorous cries nearly every morning around the enswampedponds of west Florida and throughout Georgia, so that many individuals prob-ably pass either the winter or the whole year in the southern extremity of theUnion. It is impossible to describe the clamor of one of these roosting flocks,which they begin usually to utter about sunrise. Like the howling monkeys, orpreachers of South America (as they are called), a single individual seemed atfirst as if haranguing or calling out to the assembled company, and after uttering around number of discordant, sonorous, and braying tones, the address seemed as ifreceived with becoming applause, and was seconded with a reiteration of jinglingand trumpeting hurrahs. The idea conveyed by this singular association ofsounds so striking, quaint, and ludicrous that I could never hear it withoutsmiling at the conceit. Captain Amidas (the first Englishman who ever set footin North America) thus graphically describes their clamor on his landing on theisle of Wokokou, off the coast of North Carolina, in the month of July: " Such aflock of cranes (the most part white) arose under us, with such a cry, redoubledby many echoes, as if an army of men had shouted all together."According to Mr. Bradshaw's notes, the whooping crane can "riseagainst the wind with no run to speak of; sometimes one or two stepsare taken ; at other times it simply crouches down and seems to springfrom the feet and tarsi." In flight the wings are in motion most ofthe time and average, approximately, one beat per second; there isa very slight curve in the neck when flying and the legs are heldsUghtly down from the horizontal. The birds are very graceful whenplaning. Previous to alighting, there is a "slight downward curve inthe wings" and the legs are spread apart and "thrust well forward."While walking through the marsh the tibiae are held "horizontal withthe body" and there is a "kink in the neck." The reddish patchon the crown is very prominent in the sun and the plumes areconspicuous.Fall.?Nuttall (1834) witnessed a great fall flight of this species,of which he says:In the month of December, 1811, while leisurely descending on the bosom ofthe Mississippi in one of the trading boats of that period, I had an opportunityof witnessing one of these vast migrations of the whooping cranes, assembled bymany thousands from all the marshes and impassable swamps of the North andWest. The whole continent seemed as if giving up its quota of the species toswell the mighty host. Their flight took place in the night, down the greataerial valley of the river, whose southern course conducted them every instanttoward warmer and more hospitable climes. The clangor of these numerouslegions passing along high in the air seemed almost deafening; the confused cryof the vast army continued with the lengthening procession, and as the vocal callcontinued nearly throughout the whole night without intermission, some ideamay be formed of the immensity of the numbers now assembled on their annualjourney to the regions of the south.Audubon (1840) unquestionably referred to this species when hewrote:The variegated foliage of the woods indicates that the latter days of Octoberhave arrived; gloomy clouds spread over the heavens; the fierce blasts of the
NORTH AMEBICAN MARSH BIRDS 229North, as if glad to escape from the dreary regions of their nativitj', sportingdreadful revelry among the forests and glades. The ducks and geese have alreadyreached the waters of the western ponds; here a swan or two is seen followingin their train, and as the observer of nature stands watching the appearances andevents of this season of change, he hears from on high the notes of the swiftlytraveling but unseen whooping crane. Suddenly the turbid atmosphereclears, and now he can perceive the passing birds. Gradually they descend,dress their extended lines, and prepare to alight on the earth. With necks out-stretched, and long bony legs extended behind, they proceed, supported by wingswhite as the snow but tipped with jet, until arriving over the great savannahthey wheel in their circling flight, and slowly approach the ground, on whichwith half-closed wings, and outstretched feet they alight, running along for a fewsteps to break the force of their descent. Reader, see the majestic bird shakeis feathers, and again arrange them in order. Proud of its beautiful form, andprouder still of its power of flight, it stalks over the withering grasses with all themajesty of a gallant chief. With long and measured steps he moves along, hishead erect, his eye glistening with delight. His great journey is accomplishedand being well acquainted with a country which has often been visited by himhe at once commences his winter avocations.Mr. Seton, in his notes for October 11, 1907, made on the Atha-baska River, writes:This morning, besides honkers (Canada geese) and waveys (snow geese), weheard the glorious trumpeting of the white crane. It is less of a rattling croakand more of a whoop or trumpet call than the note of the brown crane. Bela-lise (the Indian guide) says that every year a few come to Fort Chipewyan, thengo north with the waveys to breed. In the fall, they come back for a monthand linger on the great marshes about Fort Chipewyan. They are usually inflocks of three or four, two old ones and their offspring of the year. If you getthe two old ones, the young are easily killed, as they keep flying about low overthe place where the parents fell.Winter.?The winter range of the whooping crane formerly ex-tended east to Florida, but the remnants of the race, now left, spendthe winter in the great wild fowl sanctuaries of the Louisiana coast,on the open coastal prairies of Texas or in Mexico. It is a veryrare bird even here and is restricted to a few favored localities whereit is not disturbed.On the King Ranch, in Kleberg County, Texas, about 30 milessouthwest of Corpus Christi, is a large shallow lake, known as Lag-una Larga. This is a famous resort for wild-fowl in winter, particu-larly snow geese and Hutchins geese. Every winter for a numberof years a few whooping cranes have frequented this vicinity andhave been observed by several good ornithologists. Mr. RichardM. Kleberg, one of the owners of the ranch, an educated gentlemanand a student of natural history, told Herbert W. Brandt, in 1919,
" that there are now 10 whooping cranes on the place and they grewfrom a flock of 3, all breeding here in the wild stretches along thecoast." Apparently there is no positive evidence of their breedingthere, but some of the birds remain there all through the year and I was
230 BULLKTIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMtold that they were still there when I visited Texas in 1923. It is ofinterest to note that they have apparently increased in numbers. Mr.Kleberg says that they are the most wary creatures he has ever triedto approach; one does well if he can come within 300 yards of them;so, as they frequent country which is flat and entirely open, there isnot much danger of their being shot. In their winter resorts theycan probably survive, but, as they require immense wild tracts ofopen country in which to breed, it will be necessary to set apartsome very large reservations within their breeding range in order tosave these magnificent birds from extinction.Charles L. Broley writes to me that on September 13, 1925,he saw a whooping crane "at fairly close range at Shoal Lake, 40miles north of Winnipeg. He flew over us leading 28 sandhillcranes." Thus this remnant of a vanishing race, once the proudleader of a mighty host, still retains his place at the head of thetrumpeting column. May he lead them on in safety! And may helong survive to perpetuate a noble race of birds
!
DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Formerly the central Canadian Provinces, the UnitedStates, and Mexico, east rarely to the Atlantic coast. At present thespecies is almost extirpated and probably breeds only locally in southcentral Canada.Breeding range.?North to Mackenzie (probably Fort Simpson andFort Resolution) ; Alberta (Fort Chipewyan, Whitford Lake and stonyPlain); and Saskatchewan (Qu'Appelle and Yorkton). East to Mac-kenzie (Fort Resolution) ; Manitoba (near Moose Mountain, ShoalLake, Winnipeg, and probably Fort Churchill); North Dakota (prob-ably Larimoro) ; Minnesota (probably Herman and Mille Lacs) ; andIowa (Eagle Lake, Dubuque and Midway). South to Iowa (Frank-lin County, Spirit Lake and Midway); probably Nebraska; easternMontana and Alberta (Whitford Lake). West probably to Nebraskaand eastern Montana; Alberta (Whitford Lake, Birch Lake, andWainwright); and Mackenzie (probably Fort Simpson).Winter range.?Gulf coast of the United States and central Mexico.Florida (Hastings and Lee County); Alabama (Dauphin Island andprobably Prattville); Louisiana (Avery Island and Vermillion Bay);Texas (Harris, Brazoria, Refugio, and probably Tom Green Counties)
;
and Mexico (northern Tamaulipas, Guanajuato, and Jalisco).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: Arkansas, Corning,April 22, 1914; Missouri, Stotesbury, March 9, 1894, St. Louis, March17, 1884, and La Clede, March 20, 1889; Illinois, Mount Carmel, March6; Indiana, Waterloo, April 4, 1907; Iowa, Indianola, March 18, 1901,Wall Lake, March 21, 1904, Storm Lake, March 22, 1886, Gilbert,March 22, 1891, Emmetsburg, March 23, 1885, Ferry, March 23, 1890,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 231and-La Porte. March 30, 1885; Minnesota, Heron Lake, March 26,1891, North Star, March 28, 1890, and Waverly, March 28, 1889;Kansas, Richmond, March 7, 1887, and Baklwin, March 18, 1904;Nebraska, Falls City, March 16; 1890, Gibbon, March 19, 1890, andDoss, March 21, 1890; South Dakota, Harrison, March 25, 1890, and
-Grand View, April 6, 1888; North Dakota, Menoken, April 5, 1885,Larimoro, April 8, 1893, and Devil's Lake, x\pril 11, 1903; Manitoba,Aweme, April 6, 1900, Reaburn, April 9, 1900, Margaret. April 12,1913, and Shell River, April 16, 1890; Saskatchewan, Qu'Appelle,April 20, 1901, and Indian Head, April 20, 1905; Mackenzie, HayRiver, May 12, 1908, Fort Anderson, May 25, 1805, and Fort Simpson,May 28, 1861; Colorado, Loveland, April 8, 1889; Montana, BilHngs,April 8, 1918, and Big Sandy, May 1, 1903; and Alberta, WhitfordLake, May 21, 1909.Fall migration.?Late dates of departure are: Alberta, Fort Mc-Murray, October 16, 1907; Montana, Terry, October 5, 1904;Saskatchewan, Indian Head, October 2, 1904; Manitoba, Aweme,October 12, 1904, and Margaret, October 20, 1909; North Dakota,Inkster, October 18, 1904, and Chase Lake, October 11, 1913; SouthDakota, Harrison, November 1, 1891, and Huron, October 13, 1887;Nebraska, Gresham, October 11, 1896, Cherry County, October 16,1912, Lincoln, October 27, 1899, and Doss, November 12, 1890; Kan-sas, Onaga, October 20, 1907; Minnesota, Heron Lake, November13, 1885; and Iowa, southern part, November 12, 1871.Casual records.?In addition to the range above outlined, the whoop-ing crane has been taken or reported from: Ontario (Yarker, Septem-ber 27, 1871, and Emsdale, 1895); New York (Cayuga Lake); NewJersey (Beesley's Point, 1857, and Cape May) ; South Carolina (Wac-camaw River, 1850) ; Georgia (St. Simons Island) ; Alabama (DauphinIsland and Prattville, November or December, 1899) ; New Mexico(Fort Thorn) ; Colorado (Loveland, April 8, 1889, and April 16, 1890,and Fort Collins); Wyoming (Yellowstone Park, August 4, 1914);and California (Butte and Sutter Counties). Some of these recordsthat are unsupported by specimens, may apply to either M. cana-densis or M. mexicanus.Egg dates.?Central Canadian Provinces: 11 records, May 9 toJune 2. Iowa: 8 old records, April 25 to May 15.MEGALORNIS CANADENSIS (Linnaeus)LITTLE BROWN CRANEHABITSThe little brown crane is brown only in its immature plumages andthe sandhill crane is brown at the same ages; both birds begin tobreed in the brown plumage ; the only good field mark is the differ-ence in size; and size is often very deceptive. For these reasons
232 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMmuch confusion of the two birds exists in the hterature of ornitholo-gists, egg collectors, and sportsmen. The little brown crane breedsonly far north in the Arctic regions well across the continent; it spendsthe winter mainly in southern Texas and Mexico ; but it is very abun-dant on migrations in the Western part of the continent, mainly westof the Rocky Mountains. It is now generally conceded, I beUeve,that this and the sandhill crane are only subspecifically distinct.Spring.?Dr. E. W. Nelson (1887) has had abundant opportunitiesfor studying this crane in its summer home in Alaska and gives usthe best account of its habits; of its arrival in the spring, he says:At Saint Michaels it sometimes arrives by May 7, when there is yet scarcelya bare spot of ground, and one season these early comers had to endure somesevere weather, and several inches of new snow, over which they stalked glumand silent, showing little of their usual roystering spirit. As a rule they arenot seen until from the 10th to the 15th of the month, when the ground is usu-ually half bare and the cranes can search every hillside for last year's heathber-ries, which, with an occasional lemming or mouse, constitute their food at thisseason. They come from the south toward the lower Yukon, and on mild, pleas-ant days it is a common sight to see the cranes advancing high overhead in widecircuits, poised on motionless wings, and moving with a grace unexpected in suchawkwardly-formed birds. As the weather gets warmer they become more andmore numerous, until the drier parts of the wide flats and low, rounded elevationsare numerously populated by these odd birds. The air is filled with the loud,hard, rolling k-r-roo, kr-r-r-roo, ku-kr-r-roo, and either flying by, with trailing legs,or moving gravely from place to place, they do much to render the monotonouslandscape animate.Courtship.?Of this interesting performance, he goes on to say:The end of May draws near, and the full tide of their spring fever causes thesebirds to render themselves preeminently ludicrous by the queer antics and per-formances which the crane's own book of etiquette doubtless rules to be theproper thing at this mad season. I have frequently lain in concealment andwatched the birds conduct their affairs of love close by, and it is an interestingas well as amusing sight. Some notes jotted down on the spot will present thematter more vividly than I can describe from memory, and I quote them. OnMay 18, I lay in a hunting blind, and was much amused by the performance oftwo cranes, which alighted near by. The first comer remained alone but a shorttime, when a second bird came along, uttering his loud note at short intervals,until he espied the bird on the ground, when he made a slight circuit, and drop-ped close by. Both birds then joined in a series of loud rolling cries in quicksuccession. Suddenly the newcomer, which appeared to be a male, wheeled hisback toward the female and made a low bow, his head nearly touching the ground,and ending by a quick leap into the air; another pirouette brings him facing hischarmer, whom he greets with a still deeper bow, his wings meanwhile hangingloosely by his sides. She replies by an answering bow and hop, and then eachtries to outdo the other in a series of spasmodic hops and starts, mixed with aset of comically grave and ceremonious bows. The pair stood for some momentsbowing right and left, when their legs appeared to become envious of the largeshare taken in the performance by the neck, and then would ensue a series ofstilted hops and skips which are more like the steps of a burlesque minuet thananything else I can think of. Frequently others joins and the dance keeps upuntil all are exhausted.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 233Dr. Joseph Grinnell (1900) observes:The peculiar and often ludicrous performances of these birds during the matingseason have been well described by Nelson, but these antics do not seem to beconfined to the courting season only for late in June I observed a pair of craneswhich I knew to have a set of eggs in the near neighborhood already laid, accom-plishing a series of hops, skips, and profound bows, though these were mainlyparticipated in by one of the birds, the male I presume. Possibly such belateddemonstration is analogous to the singing of smaller birds even long after thecourting season.I find another phase of this curious performance described by F.Sejrnour Hersey in his field notes for July 5, 1915, made near St.Michael, as follows:To-day I watched two cranes for about 20 minutes. They were walking aboutover the tundra some half mile from where I lay concealed. As they drew neartogether they turned facing one another and first one and then the other wouldjump into the air to a height of about 3 or 4 feet. They would do this six orseven times with half-open wings, then run along side by side for a few yards,again wheel and face each other and resume their odd dance. This was repeateduntil both birds passed out of sight.Herbert W. Brandt, in his notes, sent to me in advance of pubUca-tion, relates his experience with a pair of dancing cranes in the vicin-ity of their nests, as follows
:
Both parent birds were very much agitated, striding back and forth past eachother, when suddenly they bowed gravely to one another a few times and begantheir picturesque dance. This was a series of hops and jumps, and of bowinglow to the left and right, with the wings limply extended, as if loose jointed, andnearly touching the ground. Their movements were those of ease and rhythm,while they arched their necks in graceful curves that moved in perfect unisonwith their bodies. We had drawn the kyak up alongside the nest, and one ofthe Eskimo boys now removed a blunt bird arrow from its place. With this hebegan to beat the tightly drawn sealskin deck of the boat so as to produce theonly native instrumental music. Then both boys chanted their crane song accom-panied by rhythmic beating of their improvised drum. As they sang the twocranes continued their dance and seemed to keep perfect time with the strangemusic. Their movements were not continuous, but were punctuated by a slightpause at the end of each motion, giving to them thus all the grace for which thefamous Spanish minuet dancer is noted. This continued for perhaps 10 minutesand was to me one of the most entrancing, as well as one of the most novel,experiences that I enjoyed while in the North.Nesting.?Doctor Nelson (1887) describes the nesting habits ofthe Uttle brown crane, as follows:The site for the nest is usually on the grassy flats, where the drier portions orthe slight knolls afford them suitable places. The spot usually has an unobstruc-ted view on all sides, and it is common to see the female's long neck raised sus-piciously at the appearance in the distance of anything unusual. If oneapproaches, the head sinks lower and lower to avoid being seen, but if theperson, even though 150 or 200 yards away, should stop and look toward thebird, she will generally rise and skulk away, her neck close to the ground, wingshanging loosely by the sides, and legs bent, so as to avoid being seen. Whenshe is 100 yards or more from the nest she straightens up and stalks anxiously
234 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
about, uttering her loud call note incessantly, and is generalh' joined bj' themale; but it is rarely that either can, even then, be approached within gunshot.In one case the female was about 75 yards from the nest, and as we drew near shestaggered from side to side with trailing wings, looking as if in death agony-The nest is frequently a mere hollow in the ground and is commonly lined'with more or less coarse grass stems and straws. In one instance a nest wasfound on a bare flat, and was lined with a layer of straws an inch deep, all of whichmust have been brought for some j^ards; this is unusual however.MacFarlane (1908) who found this species breeding at Franklinand Liverpool Bays and on the lower Anderson River says "the nestis usually a mere cavity in the sandy soil, thickly lined with fine drygrasses and a few feathers."Doctor Grinnell (1900) says:Doctor Coffin found a set of two eggs of the little l)rown crane in the Kowakdelta on the 14th of June. They lay about 6 inches apart on the level ground ofthe tundra near a willow bush. For a diameter of 2 feet the ground was sprin-kled with finely broken twigs; otherwise there was nothing to mark the spotas a nest.George G. Cantwell sent me a photograph and some notes on anest he found on Kalgin Island, Cook Inlet, Alaska, on June 10, 1913.The nesting site was a wild grass marsh of several miles extent, com-pletely surrounded by small spruces, probably a partly dried up lakein the center of the island. The nest was made of dead grass, wetand soggy. The bird was flushed from the nest and returned severaltimes, trying to entice him away; it kept up a continual bugling.,which final!}' attracted its mate.Mr. Brandt says in his notes:The little brown crane nests on the grassy lowland flats that are just above-high tide. Through these meander tidal sloughs, and scattered about are manyponds mostly very irregular in shape. The grass that grows long and dense onthe flats is in early June dead and still matted down from the snow of the pre-vious winter. Here on tlie ground the crane makes of this dead grass a nesiabout 3 feet in diameter and 4 to 6 inches high with an inner depression fron>12 to 15 inches across. Some of the birds, however, merely tramp the mattedgrass down and place their eggs upon this. On Maj' 27 a nest with two eggs^perhaps five days incubated, was found by an Eskimo, and after this date manyothers were discovered. The male and female share in the duties of incubation,changing places often, and at such times each bird calls, the one as it approachesthe nest, the other as it departs. The nest-changing call is different from theregular notes and gives the natives a clue to the location of the nests, of whichthey are quick to take advantage, for the eggs as well as the birds themselvesare considered among the finest delicacies of Eskimo home life. One nativebrought in six fine fresh eggs for which he refused a considerable sum, preferringto serve them to his family, as they are supposed to render those who eat themimmune from disease.Eggs.?Two eggs is the usual set laid by the little brown crane.These vary in shape from ovate to C3"lindrical ovate. The shell issmooth or slightly pimpled, with little or no gloss. There are many
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BHIDS 235
wrougly identified eggs of this crane in collections. All authenticeggs of the little brown crane that I have seen average much darkerin color than those of the sandhill crane. The ground color variesfrom "buffy brown" or "Saccardo's umber " to dull "clay color" or
"deep oUve buff." This is spotted and blotched, generally moreprofusely around the larger end, with various shades of brown. Theunderlying markings are of dull browns, such as "fawn color,""wood brown," or "arni}^ brown." The overlying markings are ofdarker and brighter colors, "walnut brown," "russet" or "chestnut,"and often there are a few small spots of "blackish brown" nearthe larger end.Doctor Grinuell (1900) describes his two sets of eggs as follows:The eggs of these two sets are quite similarly colored. The general effect israther pale. The ground color is olive-buff, over which are evenly distributedspots and longitudinally extending dashes of clay color, Vandyke brown, vina-ceous, and lavender. These spottings are rather more numerous at the large endof the eggs, but not so pronouncedly so as to form a wreath. The longitudinaltendency of the markings easily reminds one of the pattern of coloration onthe eggs of Myiarchus.Doctor Nelson (1887) says:The eggs vary in ground color from pale greenish clay color to buffy brown orwarm brownish, and the entire surface is irregularly marked with spots andblotches of chocolate brown, rather sparsely distributed at the small end, butnumerous about the large end of the egg, chiefly at the very apex.The measurements of 25 eggs average 89.5 by 55.1 millimeters;the eggs showing the foiu" extremes measure 101 by 56.5, 83 by 60,77.4 by 46.5 and 79.2 by 44 millimeters.Young.?H. B. Conover writes to me:The first newly hatched young were seen June 21, when a nest with one chickand a badly pipped egg was found. The nest was visited several times duringthe day to see if the other egg had hatched. At each visit the two old craneswould fly off to a little side hiU where a cock ptarmigan was always stationed,evidently standing guard over his mate and her nest. Immediately the big birdshad alighted, the grouse would ruffle up like a game cock and make a dash atthe male crane, who would jump into the air and strike out with his long legs.The ptarmigan always kept a safe distance away and no damage seemed to beinflicted by either side. After a little of this, however, the cranes would stalksolemnly away on their long legs, with the ptarmigan in hot pursuit, but badlyput to it to keep up with his enemy.Mr. Brandt says:We helped one pair of chicks out of their eggs on June 21, and as soon as theybecame dry they were handsome sturdy little fellows, balls of golden-browndown. The strong legs were slatey red, rather short in proportion to the bird,and in great contrast to the long legs of the parent. The "knees" were thickand the legs fleshlike throughout. The reddish color in the legs and bill of thenewly hatched chick was due, no doubt, to the fact that the blood could be seen
236 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthrough the transparent covering. During the first day the legs of the littlecranes were large and soft, but by the next morning they had shrunken andhardened considerably. The "knees" were visibly enlarged, the skin had lostits reddish tinge and become of a shiny, slatey color. The young showed inter-est in food shortly after hatching, but they would not pick up boiled egg yolkthemselves until a tapping noise was made with the fingers on the floor, where-upon they at once began to eat. Their high pitched "peep" had a gurgle in it,a miniature of the rolling "r-r-r-r-" in the trumpet note of the adult.Plumages.?My remarks on this subject are based on a study ofa considerable series of little brown and sandhill cranes of variousages and refer to the plumage changes of the two birds combined,as the two are, apparently, exactly alike in this respect and are, prob-ably, only subspecifically distinct. The small downy young crane iscompletely covered with thick, soft down and is very prettily colored.The color is deepest in the centers of the crown, hind neck and backand on the wings, where it is "chestnut" or "burnt sienna" ; it shadesoff on the sides to "ochraceous tawny" and on the throat and bellyto dull grayish white. These colors fade somewhat as age advances,I have seen no specimens showing the change into the juvenalplumage.In the juvenal plumage the crown, which at first is fully feathered,is " tawny" ; the head and neck are washed and mottled with " tawny "and "cinnamon" and the under parts are mottled with the samecolors; the back is almost solid "hazel " or " tawny " and the scapularsand wing coverts are heavily washed with these same colors.This brown plumage is worn through the first fall and winter, butthe crown and lores become partially bare before spring. A partialprenuptial molt, involving the contour feathers, scapulars and some ofthe wing coverts, but not the flight feathers, produces a fresh, brownfirst nuptial plumage, in which I think that some birds breed.At the next complete molt, the first postnuptial, from Septemberto December, most of the adult gray plumage is assumed, but manyof the feathers in the neck, back, scapulars and wing coverts are stillbrown. During the second winter, or at the second prenuptial molt,most of the brown plumage is replaced by new gray feathers, " mousegray" to "pale mouse gray," on the head, neck, and body; but someof the old brown wing coverts are still retained in the second nuptialplumage. At the next, complete, postnuptial molt, which is notfinished until December, the young crane becomes fully adult, at anage of 23^ years.Adults have a complete molt from August to December; the flightfeathers are molted in August, but the molt of the body plumage andwing coverts is not finished until December. The prenuptial molt,if any, must be very limited; it probably involves only a renewal ofsome of the contour plumage.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 237Food.?Doctor Grinnell (1900), referring to the food of this cranein the Kotzebue Sound region, says:Its food consisted largely of berries and grass, while a few insects and, I havereason to believe, mice, also entered into its diet. We found the cranes usuallyfat, and they proved very fine eating, in fact we esteemed crane above everyother game except ptarmigan.Doctor Nelson (1887) included berries, lemming, and mice. Mr.Brandt says that "they feed usually out on the drier parts of themarshes and the tundra, though I have often seen them grazing highup on the mountain sides more than 1,000 feet above their home in thevalley." Dr. A. K. Fisher (1893) found in the stomach of one killedin Nevada "small bulbous rootlets, foliage of young plants, and aquantity of barley, which it had picked up from the place where thehorses had been fed." Messrs. Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer (1918)write, regarding its food in California:When feeding on the plains or in stubble fields these birds dig up the groundwith their bills in such a way that it looks as though a pick had been used. Inthe tule country near Stockton, Belding states that they used to feed extensivelyon sagittaria bulbs. In the Imperial Valley, Van Rossem observed cranes visitingthe grain fields to forage, going and coming from Salton Sea morning and even-ing and as regularly as though timed by a clock. In 1901 it was reported thatcranes were so numerous in the wheat fields west of Tulare that they had to bescared away. The birds were seeking the newly sprouted grain, but no detailedaccount of the kind or amount of damage has been obtained.Behavior.?In flight and in general behavior the little brown craneis much like its larger relative, the sandhill crane and can not be readilydistinguished from it in the field. It flies with the neck and legsoutstretched to full length and, when migrating, it flies at a greatheight. It is said to bear some resemblance to a turkey when walk-ing about on the ground and feeding. Its loud and sonorous notesare described by Doctor Nelson (1887) as "hard, rolling K-r-roo,Er-r-r-roo, Ku-kr-r-roo.^^ It is said to be a very shy bird and verydifficult to approach, but Doctor Nelson (1883) writes:They arc not very shy, and I have frequently approached them within gunshotby merely appearing not to notice them but continuing in a narrowing circuitto walk round their position until within 60 or 75 yards; the bird continued tostare stupidly at me and uttering its long note and appearing as if doubtfulwhether it was worth while to take wing or not, until its thoughts were acceler-ated by a shot. They are extremely curious at this season, and I have frequen-tly decoyed them within gunshot by lying upon the ground and waving a handor some conspicuous article in the air. As the birds approach from a distancethey will almost invariably turn and try to investigate the matter before passingon their way. In many cases they only make a slight detour from their courseand pass on, but I have frequently had six or eight of the birds circling aboutuntil some would approach within 35 or 40 yards, offering an easy prize.Mr. Hersey had a chance to see an exibition of its curiosity, whichhe describes in his notes as follows:
238 BULLETIN 136, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMWhile lying in my boat in a narrow channel in the canal a crane came downclose to the bank. Only his head could be seen, but after looking at me forawhile he ran along some 50 feet in a series of hops of about 6 feet in distance,stopping at each to raise his head and survey the boat. He then turned lookedme over carefulij^ and went back to about an equal distance the other side of hisfirst position, examined me critically from that point of view and then returnedto the point where I first saw him. I do not know how much longer he wouldhave continued his antics had I not ended the interview with a charge of shot.Doctor Grinnell (1914) relates the following incident, illustratingthe caution displayed by this species in selecting a roosting place, whichhe observed in the lower Colorado Valley
:
A large flock spent the night of March 9 on a mud bar in the river at thelower end of Chemehuevis Valley. This roosting ground was about midwaybetween the high wooded banks of the river, and about 200 yards from eitherbank. The cranes had thus selected a place which could not be approachedexcept in the open, and were evidently on their guard all night. They were justopposite our camp; every now and then something would disturb them anda chorus of sonorous calls and wing-flappings would ensue for a minute ormore.Fa7Z.?Doctor Nelson (1887) says:The last of July, and during August, the cranes frequent the hillsides, and feastupon the berries growing there, and early in September the small flocks, whichhave been trooping about from one feeding ground to another, join into largercompanies, until toward the last of the month?from the 18th to the 30th?theypass to the south, making the air resonant with their guttural notes as they fileaway toward the Yukon.Dr. Wilfred H. Osgood (1904) writes, of their migration at the baseof the Alaska Peninsula:Little brown oranes were first seen September 3, on the Malchatna River, a fewmiles above the mouth of the Yikchik, and from that point down to the vicinityof the mouth of the Nushagak, they were very abundant. The river for thisdistance abounds in islands and long sand bars and spits upon which large waterbirds spent much of their time. When not flying the cranes are seldom seenexcept on these sand bars, where they mingle with the more numerous gulls andgeese. On fine days they stand for hours in small groups enjoying the sun,scarcely ever making a move. Their unmistakable rattling, metallic cry usuallykept one informed of their whereabouts when they were flying anywhere withinhalf a mile. They were quite wary and rarely came within gunshot.E. S. Cameron (1907) says that the little brown crane is commonerthan the sandhill crane in Montana, occuring in flocks of from 10 to150. He writes:In September, 1898, a regular invasion of southward-bound flocks took placeat Terry. The inhabitants pursued them with every description of weapon butonly one was shot?by J, C. Braley, with a rifle at 300 yards. When fired atwith a rifle the birds would fly only about half a mile and again alight, so thatthe fusillade could be continued at intervals. The only possible way of obtain-ing specimens is from concealment in the corn fields which they frequent. The
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 239
cranes always flew low, generally within shot from the ground of a heavy shoul-der gun, and in a straggling manner, although during migration they rise to agreat height. They continued to arrive in the neighborhood of Terry for threeweeks (until October 10) when all had left excepting a small flock.Game.?The little brown crane is just as good a game bird as itslarger relative, but it is nowhere sufficiently abundant, except onthe Pacific coast, to be of much interest to sportsmen. In Califor-nia it seems to be much commoner than the sandhill crane. Accord-ing to Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer (1918) cranes brought fancyprices in the San Francisco markets in the early days when turkeyswere scarce
:
More recently cranes were of regular appearance in the markets of San Fran-cisco and Los Angeles. In the season of 1895-9G, 385 cranes were sold, bring-ing to the hunter about 50 cents each, considerably more than any of the geese.All testimony agrees as to the edible quality of the flesh of the crane, and thisis to be expected from its chiefly vegetable diet. * * * There are a few ofour game birds which, because of their extreme wariness, may be expected tosurvive in spite of the increased efficiency of firearms and the increasing num-ber of hunters. The little brown and sandhill cranes are to be included in thiscategory. It is nowadays only by mere chance that the shotgun can bring oneof these birds to bag. To get within range with a rifle, even, takes considerableingenuity. This, with the protection afforded them by our closed seasons, shouldsuffice to maintain cranes indefinitely, as far as California is concerned.In this connection it is pleasing to note that Mr. Brandt learnedfrom the Eskimos of Alaska that cranes have been increasing innumbers there during recent years; this may be due to better pro-tection in their winter homes or to increasing wariness on the partof the birds. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?North America to central Mexico.Breeding range.?North to the coast of Siberia (Semiavine Strait)
;
northern Alaska (Kotzebue Sound region, Colville River and Circle);nortliern Mackenzie (delta of the Mackenzie River, Liverpool Bay,Franklin Bay, and probably Cape Kellett, Banks Island) ; and Frank-lin (Mercy Bay, Melville Sound region, the Boothia peninsula,Igloolik, and Baffin Island) . East to eastern Franklin (Baffin Island)southeastern Kcewatin (Southampton Island and near Cape Eskimo).South to southeastern Keewatin (near Capo Eskimo) ; Mackenzie(Fort Resolution and Nyarling River) ; and Alaska (Nushagak andCook Inlet). West to Mackenzie (region of Great Slave Lake); andwestern Alaska (Nushagak and St. Micliael).Winter range.?North to southern Texas (San Patricio and CorpusChristi). East to Texas (Corpus Christi) ; and San Luis Potosi (Rio
240 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMVerde). South to San Luis Potosi (Rio Verde) ; Guanajuato (Silao)
;
and Jalisco (Ocotlan). West to Jalisco (Ocotlan).Accidental in winter in California (near San Francisco).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: Missouri, ClarkCounty, April 10, 1896; Iowa, La Porte, April 5, 1884, Whiting, April6, 1886, and Holly Springs, April 8, 1887; Nebraska, Dunbar, March28, 1904; Wisconsin, Johnstown, April 4, 1894; North Dakota, April12, 1886, and Cutler, May 1, 1907; Manitoba, Duffcrin, April 25,1874, Reaburn, May 4, 1895, and Portage la Prairie, May 5, 1898;FrankHn, Igloolik, June 25, 1823, Felix Harbor, June 4, 1830, andCape Graham Moore, July 29, 1858; Colorado, near Colorado Springs,March 27, 1900; Wyoming, Albany County, April 3, 1912; Saskat-chewan, Indian Head, April 14, 1915, and Carleton House, April 28,1887; Alberta, Alliance April 19, 1917, Stony Plain, April 24, 1911,Fort Vermilion, April 24, 1906, Athabaska River, 40 miles belowAthabaska Landing, May 7,1901, and Fort McMurray May 15, 1901;,Mackenzie, Hay River, May 1, 1908, Fort Resolution, May 7, 1860,and Fort Simpson, May 9, 1904; Franklin, Mercy Bay, about May15, 1852; California, Riverside, February 19, 1893, Needles, March1, 1914, San Jacinto Lake, March 11, 1897, and Long Beach,.March 24, 1912; Nevada, Ash Meadows, March 10, 1891; Oregon,Malheur Lake, April 17, 1915; British Columbia, Chilliwack, March19, 1889, and Okanagan Landing, April 20, 1906; and Alaska, Bethel,,May 14, 1915, and Beaver Mountains, May 12, 1917.Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Alaska, KowakRiver, September 4, 1898, St. Michael, September 15, 1889, Nome,September 17, 1899, and near Iditarod, September 18, 1915; Yukon,Russell Creek, September 30, 1903; British Columbia, Chilliwack,September 22, 1888; Washington, Pierce County, October 10, 1909;Mackenzie, Fort Reliance, September 14; Alberta, near Edmonton,September 17, 1911, 20 miles below Athabaska Landing, September22, 1903, and Belvedere, October 5; Saskatchewan, Fort Pelly, Sep-tember 16, 1881; South Dakota, Edmonds County, October 22,1883; Montana, Terry, October 10, 1898; Wyoming, YellowstonePark, August 4, 1917; Colorado, Fountain, September 29, 1913; andOklahoma, Canadian River (at 98?), October 7, 1845.Casual occurrences.?The little brown crane has been taken ornoted at a few places east of its normal range: South Carolina (Mt.Pleasant, October 21, 1890); Rhode Island (Natick, October 9, 1889);and Prince Edward Island (Alexander, September 22, 1905, andEarnscliffe, October 23, 1905).Egg Dates.?Alaska: 28 records. May 1 to June 17; 14 records,June 3 to 12.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 241MEGALORNIS MEXICANUS (MUller)SANDHILL CRANEHABITSThe sandhill crane has a very peculiar breeding range, or rathertwo distinct breeding ranges, separated by an area of more than 600miles wide, in which it does not now breed. Its extensive breedingrange in the Northwestern States and southern Canada and its morerestricted breeding range in Florida, the Gulf States, and Cuba areprobably the remnants of what was formerly a continuous breedingrange.Since this chapter was written James L. Peters (1925) has shownthat these two separate ranges are occupied by birds which are prob-ably subspecifically distinct, but, as their habits are doubtless similar,I prefer to let this stand as a life history of both forms.The advances of civilization, the drainage of swamps and the cul-tivation of prairies have doubtless driven this wary, old prairie scoutaway from all the central portions of the United States; and theyare still driving it farther west and north into the unsettled wilder-ness; the wilderness is fast disappearing and with it will go the cranesand many other interesting forms of wild life. According to Prof.Wells W. Cooke (1914):Its numbers have decreased decidedly in the past 30 years, and it is now rareas a breeder in the southern half of the above-defined breeding range, althoughwithin the last 10 years it has nested in southern Michigan (1907), northernIndiana (1905), northern Iowa (1907), northwestern Nebraska (1904), and cen-tral Colorado (1903).It nested in Ohio as late as 1897, in Louisiana in 1907, and in Ala-bama in 1911.It is interesting to note that it still breeds commonly in Floridawhere it can still find large tracts of uninhabited, open plains; hereit will perhaps make its last stand. While driving through the "flatwoods,*' or pine barrens, and the extensive inland prairies of BrevardCounty in April, 1902, I was greatly impressed with the similarity ofthese plains to the prairie regions of North Dakota, Saskatchewan,and Manitoba. We first saw the cranes in the "fiat woods," throughwhich we drove for 6 or 7 miles, flat, level country with an open,parkhke growth of large, long-leafed pines; among the scattered pinesthe ground was covered with a low growth of saw palmetto aboutknee high or with large areas of tall line grass. Occasionally amongthe pines we found open spaces covered with prairie grass, or wetmeadows, or saw-grass sloughs. Beyond the pines we drove for 8miles over the open prairie to the marshes of the St. Johns River;the country here was as flat and level as any we had seen in North
242 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMDakota, but not quite as boundless, for always there were some treeswithin sight in the distance. Roving bands of wild cattle, which wewere told were dangerous, and an occasional mounted cowboy addeda western tinge. The rich song of the southern meadowlark sug-gested , but did not equal, that of his gifted western relative, and theloud familiar whistle of a pair of upland plover added to the charmand made us dream of happy days on the northern prairies. Sand-hill cranes flew over us in the "flat woods," making the air ring withtheir loud trumpetings and we saw several pairs of them walk-ing about with stately tread in the wet meadows or around the saw-grass sloughs on the prairies. The cranes were undoubtedly nestingin or around these wet places but we did not succeed in finding anest. Such is the congenial home of the sandhill crane in this andmany other parts of Florida.Spring.?Referring to its arrival in Manitoba, Ernest T. Seton(Thompson, 1890) sa,js:The first intimatiou that we usually have of the advent of the crane is the loudtrumpeting or croaking that seems to shake the air for miles. But soon we beginto see the birds themselves, usually in pairs, even at this early season. Theirfood now is chiefly rosepips, and as they stalk over the bare plains gathering thismanna of the feathered race, ample opportunity is offered for observation. Atfirst one sees little to note beyond their excessive wariness, but as the warmerweather quickens their feeling, these majestic stalkers, these stately trumpeters,may often be seen so far forgetting their dignity as to wheel about and dance,flapping their wings and shouting as they " honor their partners," and in variousways contrive to exhibit an extraordinary combination of awkwardness andagility. This dance is no doubt one of the courting maneuvers for I have ob-served it only during the pairing season.Stephen S. Visher (1910) wi-ites:The sandhill crane is one of the most conspicuous birds of the prairie region.Every farmer boy knows its call, and on fair days has seen large flocks soaringat great heights, slowly passing northward. Constantly their unsurpassed callsdrift down to earth. When only a slight wind is blowing, these rich, buglelikenotes can be heard farther than the bird can be seen. Several times I haveexamined, for some moments in vain, the horizon before the authors sailed inview. On windy or rainy days, the flocks fly low and swiftly in a direct line,and each individual croaks in turn. Thus slowly the music moves along theundulating, curving line.Courtshi'p.?Mr. Visher (1910) also gives ils the best account ofthe curious courtship dance, as follows
:
The mating habits of this bird are very interesting. In Sanborn County,South Dakota, I have often watched the mating dance; each time with increas-ing interest. In the early spring, just after the break of dawn, the groups thatwere separated widely, for safety, during the night, begin flying toward thechosen dancing ground. These flocks of six or eight fly low and give constantlytheir famous, rolling call. The dancing ground that I knew best was situatedon a large, low hill in the middle of a pasture of a section in extent. From thishill the surface of the ground for half a mile or more in every direction could be
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 243
seen. As soon as two or three groups had reached this hill a curious dance com-menced. Several raise their heads high in the air and walk around and aroundslowly. Suddenly the heads are lowered to the ground and the birds becomegreat bouncing balls. Hopping high in the air, part of the time with raisedwings, and part with dropping, they cross and recross each other's paths. Slowlythe speed and wildness increases, and the hopping over each other, until itbecomes a blurr. The croaking, which commenced only after the dancingbecame violent, has become a noise. The performance continues, increasing inspeed for a few minutes, and then rapidly dies completely out, only to start againupon the arrival of more recruits. By 7 o'clock all have arrived, and then for anhour or so a number are constantly dancing. Occasionally the whole flock of200 or so break into a short spell of crazy skipping and hopping. By 9 o'clockall are tired and the flock begins to break up into groups of from four to eightand these groups slowly feed to the windward, diverging slowly, or fly to somedistance.Nesting.?The only nests of the sandhill crane that I have seen havebeen m Florida. Here the cranes nest in the shallow ponds in theopen flat, pine woods, or on the prairies, though much more commonlyin the prairie ponds. There are two types of ponds which they seemto prefer; these are well illustrated by two nests found on March21, 1925, on the Kissimmee prairie, near Bassenger, in OkeechobeeCounty. The first nest was in a small shallow pond, only about afoot deep, overgrown with an open, scanty growth of "pond cypress,"a small plant with a woody stem and feathery leaves that growsonly a foot or two above the water. The bulky nest was in plainsight from the shore of the pond; the crane had seen us and left it,as we approached. It was a large pile of dead reeds, rushes, tufts ofgrass and entire plants of pond cypress, torn up with the roots; itwas built up 6 or 8 inches above the water and measured 38 by 33inches in diameter.The second nest was out near the middle of a large pond whichwas overgrown with a dense growth of pickerel weed (Pontederia) inwater 2 feet deep or more. It was so well concealed that my guidewalked within 10 or 15 yards of it, to the leeward, without seeing itor flushing the bird; but, as I walked by on the windward side con-siderably farther away from it, she flew off with the usual series ofrolling, guttural croaks; the eggs were on the point of hatching, whichmay have caused her to sit more closely. The nest was a huge pileof dead reeds and rushes, built up 6 or 8 inches above the water, andmeasuring 60 by 45 inches. Ponds of these two types are numerouson the Florida prairies, the pickerel weed ponds being much com-moner; but one must not expect to find a crane's nest in every pond.Much hard framping is necessary which becomes very tiresome inthick vegetation and water knee deep. The most efficient way tohunt the nests is on horseback, which gives one a better outlook andsaves much hard work. One day in Charlotte County we workedall day, seeing no less than 30 cranes, but did not find a single nest.
244 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMF. M. Phelps (1914) writes that the sandhill orane is still rated asa common bird in Lee County, Florida, and observes that:The nesting of this bird is very uncertain. It may begin in late February orit may be deferred to April or May. Mr. Green told me of finding a nest earlyin June, 1912, with fresh eggs. I am inclined to think the amount of water inthe nesting ponds is an important factor. The bird seems to require that itsnesting site be surrounded by water. Twice after heavy rains I found themscratching up nests in grassy ponds which they abandoned without using whenthe ponds began to dry up. Three occupied nests were found, on April 4 and 8,with eggs far advanced in incubation, and on April 12 with fresh eggs. Inthis latter case the birds had scratched up no less than four nests in a small flagpond I could throw a stone across. Why the extra nests, two of which wereonly about half complete, is a question.S. F. Rathbun writes to me:On June 12, 1889, I was working over a very large marsh situated about 8miles southeast of Eden, Manitoba. This marsh was a famous breeding placefor many of the ducks and other water birds. As we were wading waist deep inthe water some distance from the edge of the marsh, a sandhill crane arose someways off and keeping our eyes fixed on the spot which was soon reached, after ashort search the bird's nest was found. This was made of a very large mass ofdead rushes placed on a somewhat elevated spot in an open space of the marsh,and far away from the dry land. The nest was lined with smaller strips of thedead rushes and contained one egg. This I left but on again visiting the spot afew days later, found it had disappeared. This nest was about 4 feet across itsbase and had a height of at least 2 feet. It was very substantial, as on mysecond visit to it I found that it would nearly sustain my weight. In 1889 thesection in which the marsh was located was virgin country, there being hardlya dozen settlers in an area of several hundred square miles.Dr. A. G. Prill (1922) has studied the nesting habits of this cranein Oregon and writes:The region covered in my investigation, covered an area of 36 miles long byfrom 5 to ten miles wide, or about 180 square miles. Ten pairs of sandhill craneswere nesting in this territory, which would mean about one pair of birds to every18 square miles of territory, Warner Valley has some half dozen lakes, sur-rounded by tules and flags, and wild meadow lands, all of which is covered withwater, but here and there small islands were found, which were always abovehigh water. The places selected for the nest of this crane were generally severalmiles out in the marshes, and the nests located were all on the tops of largemasses of dried ttiles and flags, and grass, which had undoubtedly been piled upin this manner the year previous in harvesting the hay crop. These masseswere generally 5 feet in diameter and at least 12 inches above high water mark,and in the center a slight depression is made upon which the two eggs or youngare found.A Colorado nest is described by Edward R. Warren (1904) asfollows
:
In the western part of Gunnison County, Colo., between the slope of RaggedMountain and Muddy Creek, is a high, rolling plateau, of an elevation of 8,000feet or more. In amongst the hollows of this plateau are many little lakes orponds, varying in size from 50 to 60 feet in diameter to 100 yards or more.During the past three seasons I have been about this country very much, survey-
NOBTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 245ing, and every season have seen sandhill cranes {Grus mexicana) flying overheadand heard their melodious(?) notes, but did not find a nest until June 5, 1903,when, while chopping out a line across the top of a little knoll just south of asmall pond, my assistant disturbed a crane. This kept flying about and croakingso anxiously as to make him think there was a nest there, and going to see hefound it, with two eggs. When I came along he showed it to me. Out about 20feet from the shore was the nest, on a bare space among some tussocks of grasswhich lay more or less in a line. The water was not very deep but the mudwas and I could not get to the nest as thero was nothing of which to make abridge, so I had to content myself with a careful examination from the shore.The nest was irregular in shape, about 2 feet across and made of dead marshgrass. On this platform, such as it was practically, lay the two large eggs, look-ing, my man said, something like turkey eggs.Eggs.?The sandhill crane usually lays two eggs, sometimes onlyone, and very rarely three. The shape varies from ovate to elongateovate. The shell is smooth, with little or no gloss, but there are gen-erally a few pimples on it and sometimes it is finely pitted. The eggsaverage much lighter in color than those of the other two cranes;and they are marked more sparingly with smaller blotches and spots.The markings are sometimes quite evenly distributed, but are oftenmassed at the larger end. The underlying markings are in shades of
"drab-gray," "ecru drab" or "pale vinaceous drab." These are over-laid with spots of "Isabella color," "Saccardo's umber," "snuffbrown," and "brownish drab."The measurements of 43 eggs average 96.2 by 61.4 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 109.5 by 60.5, 98.2 by 66.3,84 by 55 millimeters.Young.?Nothing seems to be known about the period of incuba-tion of any of the North American cranes; but we do know that bothsexes incubate. Young cranes belong to the precocial class, but theyprobably remain in the nest for a day or so after they are hatched,])erhaps for only a few hours liowever. Dr. Henry Bryant (1861)says
:
The young remain with their parents until fully grown, and are fed for a longtime by regurgitation. They do not fly until they are as large as their parents,but run with great speed, and hide like a young partridge.Mr. Moore says in his notes:No one here, and I have questioned many, has seen the young in the nest;many have, however, seen the young not much larger in the body than a turkeya week old, walking about with their parents; which seem to remain with themtill they are several months, probably a year, old, as two pairs are often seenin coiTipany from April and May till January. The young are often seen, andsometimes caught by a person giving chase, on foot, and overtaking them, afterthey are quite large, but still unable to flj'. At such times the parents remainat a safe distance, deserting their captive ofi'spring, but expressing their anxietyby uttering their peculiar notes loudly, and walking hither and thither over theground. They never attack the persons at such times.92642?26t 17
246 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThe following interesting incident is related by George H. Mackay(1893):Mr. Horace Thomson of St. Paul, slightly wounded with a rifle ball at longrange an immature sandhill crane {Grus mexicana) which with several otherswas resting on the prairie. At the report they all flew away except the woundedbird and one other which apparently was its parent. The wounded bird, after anumber of unsuccessful attempts to fly (assisting itself by first running, accom-panied by the parent which kept beside it), finally succeeded in rising some 10 or15 feet from the ground, but it evidently could not long sustain itself in theair. The parent bird, perceiving this, deliberately placed itself underneath thewounded one, allowing it to rest its feet on her back, both birds flapping awayall the while. In this position she actually succeeded in bearing it off beforeour eyes for quite a distance to a place of safety, where we would not follow it.It was one of the most touching examples of parental affection in a bird thahas ever come under my observation.Plumages.?The downy young of the sandhill crane, its sequenceof plumages to maturity and its subsequent molts and plumages areall, apparently, exactly like those of the little brown crane, fromwhich it is, probably, only subspecifically distinct.Food.?Mr. Moore's excellent notes contain the following infoima-tion as to the feeding habits of the sandhill crane in Florida:They feed in ponds, in water 4 inches deep; along their wide margins tliat aredrier, where only a little grass is seen, on the highest grounds, among the lowestpalmettoes and grasses, and also over the lands that are blackened by the sweep-ing fires where no green thing is seen. In six stomachs, opened by me at vary-ing times of the year, I was unable to designate any portion of the contents,but in no one did I discover any sign of animal food. In some instances intwo birds, which were killed while feeding together in about 3 inches of water,I detected a mass so nearly entire and having a peculiar bulb attached to afiber now and then, that, on proceeding to the spot where they fell, I was en-abled to discover and identify it; I found it to be the roots of a small species ofSagittaria. Another one contained 10 or more seeds of an unknown plant, aslarge as that of coffee. All contained much sand, small white quartz, andlarger brown pebbles. I have now the sand and pebbles taken from one, whichweighed after drying 2 oimces, together with the 10 seeds just mentioned.Wright and Harper (1913) found these cranes in OkofinokeevSwamp, in southern Georgia, where "they are said to breed in theprairies, but at other times seem to prefer the pine woods with theirgrowth of saw palmetto and ericaceous plants. Here they find vastquantities of huckleberries, and are doubtless attracted also to poolswhere killi-fishes and tadpoles have entered at high water. "The varied bill of fare of the sandhill crane, as reported by variousobservers in different parts of the country, includes much animal foodsuch as rats and mice, frogs, lizards and snakes, worms, grasshoppers,crickets, beetles, and other insects. Dr. Amos W. Butler (1897) saysthat in Indiana this crane is very fond of white potatoes and sweetpotatoes. On the fall migration it lives largely on grains, notablycorn, wheat, and barley, which it gleans from the stubble fields. Here
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 247
it becomes very fat and is much esteemed as a game bird. Hamil-ton M. Laing (1915) gives us a very good account of its feedingmethods and its scouting tactics, as follows
:
Judging by the time he takes to a meal, one might be led to think that theqviantity of grain he can store away at a sitting is prodigious. His regular hourson the field are from 7 to 11 a.m., and from 2 or 3 p.m. till dark. But he is aslow eater; he has not learned to chew and guzzle a whole wheat head at a time,as the geese do, but must pick it to pieces with his dagger bill. Yet before heleaves for the South he gets enough grain below his gray coat to round and plumphis angvilarity, and 15-pou?d "turkeys"?as they are usually called by the plainsfolk?arc not uncommon. The main moves in his system are simple. Night isspent usually in the shallows of marsh or grassy pond hole, morning and eve-ning upon the grain fields, noon and early afternoon aloft or at a pond hole or onthe prairie. His plan is the reverse of that of the geese. The goose is a waterbird that comes to the uplands and fields to feed; the crane is a land bird thatgoes to the water merely to drink and secure a safe night roost. But, thoughsimple, these movements have been modified in so many ways that the tyrohunter who attempts to solve the combination and outguess his quarry findsthat he has tackled a knotty problem. First to the feedmg ground at dawn gothe scouts, the wise ones?it may be a ground used the previous evening, or itmay be an entirely new one?-the others follow when the coast has been declaredsafe. In feeding, the several units scatter widely; every unit has one or morescouts on high-headed guard; eyes are pointed at every angle, and approach bya foe is almost impossible.Behavior.?Referring to tlie flight of this species Doctor Coues (1874)writes
:
Thousands of sandhill cranes repair each year to the Colorado River VaUej',flock succeeding flock along the course of the great stream, from their arrival inSeptember until their departure the following spring. Such ponderous bodies,moving with slowly-beating wings, give a great idea of momentum from mereweight?of force of motion without swiftness; for they plod along heavily, seem-ing to need every inch of their ample wings to sustain themselves. One wouldthink they must soon alight fatigued with such exertion, but the raucous criescontinue, and the birds fly on for miles along the tortuous stream, in Indian file,under some trusty leader, who croaks his hoarse orders, implicitly obeyed. Eachbird keeps his place in the ranks; the advancing column now rises higher oversome suspected spot, now falls along an open, sandy reach, swaying meanwhileto the right or left. As it passes on, the individual birds are blended in the hazydistance, till, just before lost to view, the lino becomes like an immense serpentgliding mysteriously through the air.Its powers of locomotion on foot ov awing ar?' well ilcscribed byMr. Laing (1915), as follows:Mounted on his long, strong shanks, he covers the ground easily and thinksnothing of a little jaunt of a mile from water iiole to feeding ground, or vice versa.He is as ready to walk away from lurking danger as he is to fly from it. Hisstride is like that of a man, and when he runs hard it is a fleet foot that over-takes him. Though his shanks are trim, his thighs are thick and powerful; theyhave the resiliency of steel, and the owner can spring and bounce 10 feet in airwhen he takes to dancing or reconnoitcring. But if he is strong and able afoot,on the wing he is superb. Though apparently slow in flight, it is necessary only
248 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMto time him over a mile or see him fan by at close range to realize that his hugewing-planes, though slow in action, really propel him forward at a goodly speed.Owing to his far-extended frame he has not the same aerial fighting powers asthe more solidly built gray goose, and thus can not combat a gale so sturdily.Nevertheless it is in the wind that one sees him at his best?a display of aerialskill surpassed by but few birds indeed.Like most feathered navigators of the air that hover or circle much, the cranematches one opposition against the other to his own profit. Gravity tends todrag his huge bulk down; the strong air current, striking the under side of hisupward-slanting planes and body, tends to lift him kitelike. Thus matcliir.gone force against the other enables him to hang almost suspended in midair.His long rudder-legs trail far astern, his slender neck is far outthrust ahead (notcrooked back after the manner of the heron or the stork) ; so he rocks back andforth, changing the angle of his planes to suit the air current and performs prod-igies of flight. In swinging spirals, with scarce a wing motion to indicate thepower of his flight muscles, he ascends or descends airii}', easily. He is the origi-nal aeroplane; the man-made product, in spite of its motor, is an infringement.Almost equally wondrous are his sky-chasing flights on calm days. Daily inAugust and early September, when his clans are gathering, it is his custom, if theday is hot and clear, to rise about noon and circle dizzily at a vast height?sohigh that often his figure is lost to view, and even his trumpet croak faint to theear. On the spiralled ascent he swings around and around, after the manner ofthe hawks, apparently getting power from some mysterious source; on the descenthe arches his wings downward and sweeps back and forth in short circles.As to its powers of vison, the same writer says:His great stature gives him the range almost of that of a man; his eye is won-drously keen, telescopically so; it is so near the top of his head that he can peerover the crest of a ktioU and see without being seen, and its clear amber yellowsuggests an owUike vision at night. Though he is big and tall, he is really noteasily seen, for his coat is one of nature's triumphs of protective coloration. Blue-gray in tone, it is obscure always; it fades into the gray -green of the prairie evenin the brightest sunlight; it melts into the dusk of twilight or is swallowed in theblue dome of the heavens at midday. A sentry on the alert at all times, histrumpet throat gives warning of dariger to his kind far and near and all instantlypay heed.The voice of the sandhill crane is most remarkable; its loud, ring-ing, and sometimes musical trumpetings have great carrying powerand often can be heard long before the bird can be seen. For a goodaccount of its vocal performance [ must again quote from Mr. Laing(1915):It is a hoarse, unnatural croak that rips from the throat, a vibrant putteringthat seems to suggest something prehistoric?such a call as one might expect thatour far-gone ancestors heard in the days when pterodactyls and their kind flewabout the marshes. His vocabulary is limited to a code of signals, but it is allsufficient for his needs. A few of his more common calls might be syllablizedas:" Gar-oo-oo-oo-oo! Gar-oo-oo-oo! '?the fair-weather, sky-scraping call utteredin the heavens.
"Hur-roo-oo-roo-roo!"?a broken, three-word call of inquiry when one flock onthe wing seeks another far below.
"Kit-cr-roo-oo-oo!"?"Danger! Look out for yourself!"
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 240
" A-rook-crook-crook! A-rook-crook-crook!"?"Come on; safe feeding h?re"
?
tlie invitation call uttered in stentorian tones on the field in the morning.Then also there are short guttural croakings and putterings, conversationalexchanges while the birds are feeding; and, in addition, the youngsters have aplaintive, absurd little whistle.FaU.~-According to Setoii (Tliompsoii 1890)
:
The young cranes are apparently strong on the wing in August, for at thistime small bands of the species may be seen sailing high over the prairie, appar-ently strengthening their wings before they are compelled to journey southward forthe season. As Septeraljor draws nigh their numbers are increased, and the longarray of the grand birds present a most imposing spectacle as in serpentine linesthey float away after the sun.W. Leon Dawson (1909) writes:Prior to leaving the breeding grounds for the winter season, the cranes areaid to assemble for a stately promenade, which is the "swell" function of theyear. When the clan is fully assembled, and after much preliminary sociability,the great company takes to wing and rises in majestic circles. These spirals arecontinued until a considerable height is attained with a great ado of sonorouscroaking, a solemn leave taking of the happy scenes of youth, after which thebirds move southward.Doctor Coues (1S74) says:Late in September and early in October immbers of this species and G. amer-icana together were migrating through the same region; they appeared to jour-ney chiefly by night. Often, as we lay encamped on the Mouse River, the still-ness of midnight would be broken by the hoarse, rattling croaks of cranescoming overhead, the noise finally dying in the distance, to be succeeded bythe shrill pipe of numberless waders, the honking of geese, and the whistle of thepinions of myriads of wild fowl that shot past, sounding to sleepy ears like therushing sound of a far away locomotive.The sandhill cranes that breed in Florida are permanently resident
t hero and to what extent their numbers are increased in winter bymigrants from the North is an open question. Now that this specieshas been so thoroughly extirpated in the eastern prairie regions, thebirds which breed in the Northwest may all migrate to Louisiana
,
Texas, and Mexico, rather than to Florida. Mr. Moore says in hisnotes:
I do not believe the migrators ever ext(^:id their southern sojourn so far southas this bay (Sarasota), as no increase in numbers occurs during that time amongthose seen here, and no movement is observed among them to excite such a pre-sumption. These birds are never seen to soar high in the air in flocks, at anytime of the year, as the migrators may be seen frequently to do in their south-ern winter home in Louisiana, Texas, and other States; one or a pair only have Iever seen moving thus, not intent on travel, but simply circling for "an airing,"as it were.Game.?The sandhill crane combines many of the qualities of afine game bird. There is pleasure to be derived in the pursuit ofwhat is difhcult to obtain, and certainly the cranes give plenty of
250 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
oppoilunities to practice patience, skill, and ingenuity in outwittingthem. In the open places where they live they can exercise to thebest advantage their keen eyesight and acute sense of hearing. Theyare constantly on the alert to detect the slighest movement or soundand are suspicious of everything new or strange. In proportion totheir size their flight is slow and steady; so they are not difficult tohit; but it is a real problem to get them to come near enough toshoot. For a good account of the difficulties to be encountered Iwould refer the reader to Mr. Laing's (1915) interesting paper, re-ferred to above, relating his adventures while hunting cranes with acamera, in which he was finally successful.The best places for hunting cranes are the big grain fields of theprairie regions, after the crops have been harvested in the fall, towhich the cranes resort at certain hours during the day, early morning,and late afternoon, to feed on the fallen grain, wheat, barley, or cornamong the stubble. Sometimes a pit is dug in the ground, such as isused for goose shooting, but this must be artfully concealed to es-cape detection. Better success can be had by utilizing, as a blind,one of the numerous corn shocks left standing in some corn fieldwhich the cranes are frequenting. The hunter must be well concealedin his blind long before daylight and wait quietly and patientlyfor his best chance, for he is not likely to have more than one. Thecrafty, old scouts are sure to inspect the field critically before report-ing that it is safe for the main flight to come in. Their system ofsentinels and patrols is most complete and very efficient. If the huntersucceeds in outwitting them all and brings to bag one or two of thebig birds, fattened on ripe grain, he will be rewarded with a feastworthy of his efforts. DISTRIBUTIONThe ranges of the two forms proposed by Mr. Peters (1925) aregiven separately below, under the new names used by him. Bothare here treated as subspecies of the little brown crane, which isprobably correct. MEGALORNIS CANADENSIS MEXICANUS
^an^fg.?Southern Canada, the United States, and Mexico.Breeding range.?North to British Columbia (158-mile House andLac la Ilache) ; Alberta (Innisfail) ; Saskatchewan (Big Quill Lake,Balgonie and Kutanajan Lake) ; Manitoba (Shell River, Oak Point,Crescent Lake, and Ossawo) ; Minnesota (Herman, Elk River, andprobably Lake Minnetonka) ; Wisconsin (Plover, Marquette, andPeshtigo); Michigan (Taquamenou River. Vans Harbor, SheldrakeLake, Morrice, and Petersburg) ; and Ontario (Rond Eau). East toOntario (Rond Kau); and Ohio (near Toledo). South to Nebraska
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 251(Akla and Omega) ; Colorado (Loveland, Middle Park, Gunnison, andSan Juan County); Arizona (Mormon Lake); Nevada (IndependenceValley and Carson); and California (Fort Crook). West to Califor-nia (Fort Crook and Tulo Lake); Oregon (Fort Klamath, MalheurLake, and Camp Harney); Washington (Fort Simcoe, Fort Steila-coom, Coulee City, and near the Strait of Juan de Fuca) ; and BritishColumbia (New Westminister, Lac la Hache, and 158-mile House).The above outline indicates the former breeding range of this spe-cies for at the present time its habitat is greatly restricted. It isnow known to breed in only southern Canada, Minnesota, and thewestern and Rocky Mountain States south to northern Colorado.Winter range.?North to California (Modesto, Fresno, and SanJacinto Lake) ; Arizona (near Avondale) ; and Texas (Eagle Pass andFredericksburg). East to Texas (Fredericksburg, Corpus Christi,and Brownsville); and probably Yucatan (Tizimin). South to prob-ably Yucatan (Tizimin); San Louis Potosi (Angostura); Guanajuato;Jalisco (La Barca); Sinaloa (Mazatlan); and Lower California (Colo-rado River delta). West to Lower California (Colorado Riverdelta) ; and California (Pilot Knob, San Jacinto Lake, Pasadena,Fresno, Salton Sea, and Modesto). Accidental in winter at themouth of the Columbia River, Oregon (January 2, 1806), and atAlda, Nebraska.Spring migration.?The sandhill cranes usually leave the vicinityof San Antonio, Texas, by February 21, the last birds passing Fred-ericksburg by April 10.Early dates of arrival are: x\rkansas. Delight, March 12, 1911, andNewport, March 19, 1884; Kentuckj-, Eubank, March 8, 1894; Mis-souri, Gilman City, February 28, 1911, St. Louis, March 4, 1882, Bol-ton, March 5, 1895, Fayette, March 19, 1888, and La Clede, March20, 1889; Illinois, Odin, February 19, 1890, Mount Carmel, March 1,Tampico, March 8, 1887; Floricla, March 19, 18S8, and Griggsville,March 24, 1884; Indiana, Rochester, March 4, 1891, and Bicknell,March 18, 1906; Ohio, Alliance, March 23, 1886; Michigan, Locke,February 19, 1857, Petersburg, March 9, 1898, and Ann Arbor, March24, 1911; Iowa, Jefferson, March 8, 1889, Wall Lake, March 8, 1907,Boone, March 10, 1887, Grinnell, March 11, 1890, and Storm Lake,March 12, 1887; Wisconsin, Milford, March 13, 1851, Wcstfield,March 24, 1914, Elkhorn, March 25, 1910, North Freedom, March25, 1902, and Delavan, March 30, 1896; Minnesota, Waverly, March22, 1889, Elk River, March 22, 18S7, Fairmont, March 24, 1916, WhiteEarth, March 27, 1881, Lake Wilson, March 28, 1910, Minneapolis,March 29, 1880, and Wilder, March 30, 1895; Texas, Grapevine,March 1, 1916, and Gainesville, Marcli 2, 1887; Oklahoma. Caddo.
252 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMFebruary 26, 1884; Kansas, Onaga, February 14, 1896, Girard, March8, 1911, Richmond, March 11, 1885, North Topeka, March 16, 1891,BuckUn, March 21, 1907, Oswego, March 28, 1889, and Lawrence,April 2, 1906; Nebraska, Pulhnan, February 22, 1916, Long Pine,March 5, 1896, Gibbon, March 9, 1902, Turhngton, March 12, 1898,Alda, March 14, 1884, Red Cloud, March 20, 1916, and Nenzel, March23, 1920; South Dakota, Forestbui-g, March 12, 1913, Pitpodie, March13, 1889, Harrison, March 26, 1890, Sioux Falls, March 29, 1908,Vermihon, March 31, 1912, Spencer, April 1, 1916, Lacreek, April 2,1914, and White, April 3, 1888; North Dakota, Marstonmoor, March21, 1910, Bathgate, April 5, 1894, Valley City, April 8, 1887, Argus-ville, April 8, 1895, Devils Lake, April 11, 1903, Chase Lake, April12, 1913, Larimore, April 12, 1890, and Antler, April 12, 1907;Manitoba, Pilot Mound, March 23, 1905, Alexander, March 2G,1895, Margaret, April 2, 1918, Aweme, April 6, 1905, Reaburn,April 7, 1894, Killarney, April 7, 1912, Shell River, April 14, 1891,Oak Point, April 15, 1885, Neepawa, April 17, 1896, and Portage laPrairie, April 21, 1884; Saskatchewan, Indian Head, April 5, 1912,and South Qu'Applle, April 5, 1913; New Mexico, State College,March 11, 1915; Arizona, Tombstone, February 13, 1910; Colo-rado, Springfield, February 13, 1908, Monte Vista, March 16, 1889,Coventry, March 20, 1908, Durango, March 21, 1917, and nearDenver, April 21, 1907; Idaho, Neeley, March 5, 1914, and Meridian,March 16, 1916; Montana, Fort Shaw, February 28, 1868, GreatFalls, March 12, 1905, Big Sandy, April 6, 1905, BilUngs, April 8,1918, and Deer Lodge, April 16, 1911 ; Alberta, Veteran, April 8, 1918,Alliance, April 9, 1918, Flagstaff, April 10, 1916, and Fort Vermihon,May 2, 1911; Oregon, Forest Grove, February 23, 1886, MalheurLake, March 8, 1916, Narrows, March 9, 1914, and Klamath Falls,March 14, 1910; Washington, Puyallup, March 31, 1915, and NorthYakima, April 7, 1915; and British Columbia, Okanagan Landing,March 30, 1907, Oso^-oos Lake, April 19, 1908, Vaseaux Lake, April26, 1917, and Metlakatla, April 30, 1907.Fall migration.?Late dates of dcparature are : Minnesota, Wilder,November 1, 1894, Lake Andrews, November 8, 1890, and HeronLake, November 9, 1885; Wisconsin, Delavan, October 23, 1892;Iowa, Washta, October 14, 1913, Emmetsburg, October 24, 1922,Fairfield, November 7, 1892, and Grinnoll, November 22, 1887; Mich-igan, Unadilla, October 25, 1900, and Manchester, November 24, 1896:Ohio, Canton, November 5, 1911, Chardon, November 7, 1888, andMedina, November 8, 1920; Indiana, Waterloo, September 7, 1904.and Bicknell, October 27, 1894; lUinois, Bureau, October 27, 1906, andRantoul, October 29, 1917; Missouri, Fayette, October 20, 1885, Wav-erly, October 25, 1890, Cape Girardeau, November 18, 1820; Saskatche-wan, Eastend, October 11, 1910, and South Qu'Appelle, October 21,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 2531907; Manitoba, Killarney, October 8, 1913, Margaret, October 18,1912, Aweme, October 31, 1900, and Alexander, November 5, 1894;North Dakota, Argusville, October 2, 1885, Antler, October 10, 1908,Keene, October 14, 1913, Westhope, October 16, 1910, Chase Lake,October 22, 1913, and Marstonmoor, October 25, 1909; South Dakota,Huron, October 11, 1887, Wall Lake, October 12, 1908, Sioux Falls,October 22, 1908, Forestburg, October 23, 1905, Harrison, November3, 1891, and White, November 7, 1889: Nebraska, Long Pine, October,10, 1898, Whitman, October 15, 1915, Red Cloud, October 20, 1903,Valentine, October 22, 1914, Lincoln, October 27, 1899, and Belvidere,November 3, 1891; Kansas, North Topeka, October 24, 1890, Onaga,October 30, 1897, Lawi-ence, October 31, 1905, and Richmond,November 3, 1885; Oklahoma, Caddo, November 11, 1884; Brit-ish Columbia, Okanagan Landing, November 12, 1918; Oregon,Arlington, October 25, 1919, Klamath Falls, October 20, 1912, andKlamath Lake, November 8, 1914; Alberta, Veteran, October 16,1918; Montana, Terry, November 10, 1903; Idaho, Meridian, Novem-ber 1, 1914, and Rupert, November 11, 1911; Colorado, Beloit,October 9, 1889, Beulah, October 19, 1904, and West Mountain Val-ley, November 15, 1899, and New Mexico, near Socorro, December16, 1846.Casual records.?There is a record of the occm'rence of the sandhillcrane in the District of Columbia, sometime prior to 1861; one nearWaynesburg, Pennsylvania, in May, 1 902 ; one near Cohoes, New York,in October, 1892; one at Natic, Rhode Island, October 1, 1889; one atBuzzards Bay, MassachiLsetts, in October 1890; one at Lunenburg,Vermont; one at Wakefield, Now Hampshire, in 1896 or 1897; and atGuelph and Beaumauris, Ontario.Egg dates.?Manitoba and Saskatchewan: 14 records. May 5 toJune 12; 7 records, May 27 to June 2. Iowa: 5 records, Ma^^ 2 to27. Oregon: 8 records, April 14 to May 30.MEGALORNIS CANADENSIS PRATENSISRange.?The Florida sandhill crane is a resident subspecies con-fined to the southeastern United States, probably including thecoastal regions of Alabama and Louisiana.The range extends north to Georgia (Okefinokee Swamp). Easlto Florida (Micanopy, Lake Monroe, Lake Kissimmee, Micco, andFort Pierce) . South and west to Florida (Fort Myers, Charlotte Har-bor, Miakka, Tarpon Springs, and Cedar Keys) ; probably Alabama(Perdido Bay) ; and probably Louisiana (Houma, Calcasieu Pass, andCameron Parish).In winter cranes have been noted at Waverly, Mississippi, MerRouge, Louisiana, and Sabine Pass, Texas.92642?2r+ m
254 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMSandhill cranes formerly in the collections of the Charleston Mu-seum and reported to have been taken on the Waccamau River, SouthCarolina, were probably wanderers of this race.Egg dates.?Florida: 89 records, January 28 to August; 45 records,February 23 to March 21.Family ARAMIDAE, CourlansARAMUS VOCIFERUS VOCIFERUS (Latham)LIMPKINHABITS
''The voice of one crying in the wilderness" is the first impressionone gets of this curious bird in the great inland swamps of Florida.While exploring the intricate channels, half choked with aquaticvegetation, that wound their way among the willow islands in theextensive marshes of the upper St. Johns, we frequently heard andoccasionally caught a glimpse of this big, brown, rail-like bird; itpeered and nodded at us from the shore of some little island, or wentflying off with deliberate wing beats over the tops of the bushes;once one perched on the top of a small willow and looked at us.The limpkin, or crying bird, as it has been called most appro-priately, was once very abundant in Florida, but for the past 40 yearsor more it has been steadily decreasing in numbers. It is so tameand unsuspicious, almost foolishly so, and it flies so slowly, that ithas been an easy mark for the thoughtless gunner who shoots atevery large bird he sees, especially if it is good to eat. The flesh ofthe Umpkin has been much esteemed as food and in many places ithas been hunted as a game bird. It was decidedly scarce when I wasin Florida, in 1902, and had practically disappeared from all regionswithin easy reach of civilization.T. Gilbert Pearson, who has recently been investigating the statusof the limpkin in Florida, writes to me:In May, 1921, 1 left Leesburg, Florida, in a motor boat, crossed Lake Griffin anddescended the Oklawaha River to its confluence with the St. Johns River,During this trip of three days, in which a constant lookout was kept for limp-kins, only 11 individuals were seen and another was heard calling one morningnear our camp. Three of the birds were so tame that it would have been veryeasy to have shot them from the boat with a .22 rifle. In one case we passedwithin 40 feet of a limpkin sitting on a dead limb. The noise of the motor boatdid not even cause it to leave its perch. Natives along the river told me thebird was excellent for food and some years ago it was not an uncommon customto shoot 20 or 30 before breakfast. On March 30, 1923, 1 secured a small boatat the town of Kissimmee and traveled southward through a series of three lakesuntil we entered Kissimmee River. This we followed to its mouth in the watersof Lake Okechobee River. Five days were spent on the trip. Limpkins were inevidence and very noisy. Although weather conditions as well as the surround-ings and methods of our travel were very favorable for seeing the birds along the
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 255
river and canals or streams connecting the lakes, only 41 were discovered. Thebird is so easily killed, so highly esteemed as food, and is found in a State whereso little attention is paid to the enforcement of the bird and game laws, the pros-pects of its long survival are not at all encouraging.Nesting.?Audubon (1840) says of the nesting habits of the limpkin rThe nest of this bird is placed among the larger tufts of the tallest grassesthat grow at short distances from the bayous, many of which are influenced bythe low tides of the Gulf. It is so well fastened to the stems of the plants, inthe sam(; manner as that of Rallus crepitans, as to be generally secure frominundation; and is composed of rank weeds matted together, and forming a largemass, with a depression in the center. The eggs, which rarely exceed five or six,are large for the size of the bird. The young are hatched early in May, andfollow their parents soon after birth.Thomas H. Jackson (1887) gives a somewhat different impression;he writes:For a nesting place this bird chooses a secluded spot where intruders are notlikely to venture, on the bank of a river or a slough, often overhanging thewaters and surrounded by a bottom of mud so deep that only a boat can giveaccess to it. Several pairs often nest close together in the manner of herons,though isolated nests are frequently observed. The nest is composed of piecesof dead vines, dry leaves, and old vegetation of various kinds loosely constructed,and is generally bedded on a mass of vines and from 5 to 8 feet from theground.C. J. Pennock has sent me some extensive notes on his experiencewith the Umpkin, from Avhich I quote as follows:During the latter part of March, 1924, the writer had an opportunity, for thefirst time, to form an interesting acquaintance, lasting but five or six days how-ever, with individuals of this species in a vast marsh in southeastern Florida.We found probably eight or ten pairs of the birds scattered over diflferent sectionsof Vv'hat may be roughly estimated as 25 square miles of the marsh. Four daysof this time, March 22, 24, 25, and 26, were spent traversing this area in a smallboat propelled by poling, as oars were impossible in almost all places on accountof the matted growths of water hyacinths, water lilies, yellow spatter docks, andvarious other forms of aquatic plants usually grouped in name as "bonnets" bynatives of the district. So far as observed the limpkins confined their activities tothe broad open reaches of marsh where we found numerous tracts of saw grassand clumps of myrtle. The nests, of which we found six or seven, were invariablyin the tall saw grass. A bulky platform was lashed securely to the uprightgrowing .stems by interlacing the blades. On this were laid broken leaves andstems to make a secure receptacle which was but slightly depressed like a shallowplate. The whole quite in the form of the more common type of nest of theclapper rail, as I have noted it along the Gulf coast of Florida. All of the nestsseen were in coarser, taller groups of saw grass growing in water 18 inches to 2feet or more in depth and were placed only a step or two back from the openwater. But three of the nests found contained eggs; one held five the othershad four each, all others were about completed. Nesting did not appear to becommunal. No two nests were nearer than a half mile of one another, but thescarcity of the birds might account for such happening. With birds as numerousas different persons related and saw grass in no greater abundance than was seen,the probabilities are that in former years these birds did nest in colonics or at
256 UULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
least several pairs in close proximity. No bird was seei) on the nest Init threewere flushed at difl'erent places as we approached the clumps of saw grass wherewe presentlj' located nests. In one instance we had puslied our boat through anarrow deep channel by the side of great bunches of saw grass 10 to 12 feet inheight and a limpkin flew with raucous calls from 15 to 20 yards back in thepond. Passing that way later we discovered the nest directly alongside of thechannel and so near we could reach into it from the boat. This nest was nearerthe water than any other we saw and was scarcelj^ a platform-built structurebut placed low down among the stems of the saw grass about a foot from thesurface of the water.Frederic H. Konnard has sent me the following notes on a nest hefound, near the north shore of Lake Okeechobee, on April 4, 1914, inan unusual location
:
While coming out of a creek called Limpkin Creek, Tom spied what lookedlike a nest, about 15 feet up, among some vines in a myrtle tree beside the stream.I thought it was no nest until I could see the tail of a bird protruding from theedge of the possible nest. We returned to the place and flushed a limpkin cry-ing from the nest. I climbed to the nest and found it a frail structure of freshtwigs, containing one fresh egg. The female was flying about, crying and perch-ing on neighboring bushes and trees, and evidently in great distress of mind.The nest was about 15 feet or more from the ground, placed in a thick clump ofwhat looked like matrimony vine (I don't know that matrimony vine grows inFlorida) in the crotch of a black gum sapling that was growing right up throughthe myrtle tree, all of which grew at the very top of a high bank bordering thecreek. The vines were so thick and the nest so thin that it made no showing atall, and only the bird's tail revealed it.Oscar E. Baynard, who has prol)al)ly had more experience with thenesting habits of the limpkin than any other living collector, madetwo unsuccessful attempts to show me an occupied nest of this spe-cies in Florida, in the spring of 1925. On March 30 we exploredsome 8 miles of the Wekiva River in Orange County. It is a beau-tiful river of clear spring water, winding its picturesque course througha splendid swampy forest of large cypress, maples, water oaks, hick-ories, ashes, magnolias, and a few cabbage palmettos and pines; thebanks are lined with dense shrubbery and are overgrown with tan-gles of morning glories, cat briars and poison ivy; and the stream ispartially choked with water hyacinths, "bonnets, " and "lettuce."He pointed out several ideal nesting sites for limpkins, but we sawonly one bird and found no nests.On April 10 we explored the Weekiwachee Riv(^r, in HernandoCounty, a similar river, but not so heavily forested and bordered inplaces with open saw-grass marshes. Here we saw only three birdsand found two or three old nests. One of these was placed on anold stump and the others were on low bushes, in dense tangles ofmorning glory vines; large quantities of Spanish moss had been usedin building the nests, which were close to the bank of the stream oron a httle islet in it.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 257Eggs.- The limpkiii lays from I'oiir to eight eggs; the hirger nmn-bers are comparatively rare. The shape is ovate, somewhat rounded,and the shell is smooth with a slight gloss. The ground color variesfrom ' ' deep olive buff " or " cream buff " to " cartridge buff. " Someeggs are splashed, chiefly near the larger end, with longitudinal blotchesof drabs and dull browns, such as " vinaccous drab," "drab-grays,"
''buffy brown," and "wood brown. " Others are more clearly spot-ted with the same colors; and some are boldly spotted or blotchedat the large end with darker browns, "burnt umber, " " warm sepia,
"
or "bone brown." The measurements of 40 eggs average 59.4 by43.8 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 64 by42.8, 62.5 by 47, 57 by 42, 57.5 by 40.5 millimeters.Plumages.?The downy young limpkin is completely covered withlong, thick, soft down; the color of the upper parts varies from "cin-namon brown " to "smiff brown " ; it is paler on the sides of the headiind b{>lly and almost white on the chin. The body plumage is ac-quired first and the wings last; the bird is fully grown before thewings arc half grown. The juvenal plumage is much like that of theadult, in general appearance, except that it is softer and looser intexture and the white markings on the back are smaller and morerestricted. A complete molt during the first spring, when the youngbird is about a year old, producers the adult plumage.Adults have a complete prenuptial molt, from February to April,and a complete post-nuptial molt from August to November, with nogreat seasonal difference in plumage.Food.?The limpkin seems to feed mainly on animal food, wliichit finds in the swamps where it lives, such as various mollusks, crusta-ceans, frogs, lizards, worms, and aquatic insects. Audubon (1840)says:The Everglades abound with a species of large greenish snail, on which theselairds principally feed; and, from the great number of empty shells which arefound at the foot of the nest and around it, it is probable that the sitting birdis supplied with food by her mate.Dr. Henry Byrant (1861) writes:On the St. Johns it feeds principally on a species of Nalica, which is extremelyabundant, and also on the smnll Unios. The large green snail, so common in theEverglades, is not very often met with on the St. Johns. Its manner of feedingis to hold the shell in one of its feet, and then with a few blows of its powerfulbill to detach the animal, which it immediately swallows. All the specimens Ikilled liad the stomach fille<l with more or less digested remains of various mol-iusks?principally Unios.It is easy to detect the presence of limpkins by looking for the de-posits of the empty shells of these snails. The birds have favoritefeeding places where they bring the snails; one can often find a nmu-ber of empty shells around some old log or snag or on an open placeon a bank.
258 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMBehavior.?Under the old name, courlan, which seems much moreappropriate tnan the local nickname, limpkin, Audubon (1840) givesus a good account of the behavior of this species, as follows:The flight of the scolopaceous courlan is heavy and of short duration; theconcavity and shortness of its wings, together with the nature of the placeswhich it inhabits, probably rendering it slow to remove from one spot to another,on wing, it being in a manner confined among tall plants, the roots of which arefrequently under water. When it rises spontaneously it passes through the air,at a short distance above the weeds, with regular beats of the wings, its neckextended to its full length, and its long legs dangling beneath, until it suddenlydrops to the ground. Few birds then excel it in speed, as it proceeds, if pursued,by long strides, quickly repeated, first in a direct course, along paths formed byitself when passing and repassing from one place to another, and afterwardsdiverging so as to ensure its safety even when chased by the best dogs, or othernot less eager enemies inhabiting the half-submerged wilderness which it haschosen for its residence. When accidently surprised, it rises obliquely out of itsrecess, and the neck greatly bent downward, and although its legs dangle forawhile, they are afterwards extended behind in the manner of those of the herontribe. At such times these birds are easily shot; but if they are only wounded,it would be in vain to pursue them. Although of considerable size and weight,they are enabled, by the great length and expansion of their toes, to walk on thebroad leaves of the larger species of Nymphaea found in that country. Theyswim with the same buoyancy as the coots, gallinules, and rails.William Brewster (1881) writes attractively about it, as follows:But if our presence was a matter of indifference to the birds just mentionedwe certainly were not ignored by the vigilant courlans, for any sudden noise,like the splash of a paddle in the water or the rapping of its handle against theboat, was sure to be instantly followed by a piercing "kur-r-ee-ow, kurr-r-ee-ow,kurr-r-ee-ow, kr-ow, kr-ow," from the nearest thicket; or perhaps several wouldcry out at once as rails will do on similar occasions. For the most part thebirds kept closely hidden but at length we discovered one feeding on the shore.His motions were precisely similar to those of a rail, as he skirted the oozy brink,lifting and putting down his feet with careful deliberation. Occasionally hedetected and seized a snail, which was quickly swallowed, the motion being invaria-bly accompanied by a comical side shake of the bill, apparently expressive of satis-faction, though it was.perhaps designed to remove any particles of mud that mayhave adhered to his unique food. Finally he spied us and walked up the inclinedtrunk of a fallen tree to its shattered end where he stood for a moment tiltinghis body and jerking up his tail. Then he uttered a hoarse rattling cry like thegasp of a person being strangled, at the same time shaking his head so violentlythat his neck seemed in imminent danger of dislocation. Just as we were nearlywithin gun range he took wing, with a shriek that might have been heard forhalf a mile. His flight was nearly like a heron's, the wings being moved slowlyand occasionally held motionless during intervals of sailing. Shortly afterwardsanother, his mate probably, was detected under a palmetto leaf near at hand.In the shadow her form was dimly outlined and she stood perfectly motionless,evidently relying upon concealment for protection, but her quick eye took inevery suspicious movement and at length, conscious that she was seen, she ranrapidly for a few paces and launched into the air, following the course taken bythe first. He is perfectly at home in the tops of the tallest trees where he walksamong the twigs with all the ease of a heron or stands motionless on some
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 259horizontal branch with one leg drawn up and the curved bill resting on hisbreast. These elevated perches are generally resorted to at daybreak. Thepeople told us that when the country was first settled the "Limpkins," as theyare called from their peculiar halting gait, were so tame that they could fre-quently be caught on their nests, but incessant persecution has had the usualresult and they are now at all times among the most wary of birds.Dr. Bryant (1861) says of its voice:The common note of this bird is the most disagreeable of any of our nativebirds, and resembles more that of the peacock than that of any other bird I amacquainted with; it is if anything more powerful, and equally harsh and dis-agreeable. It is very fond of uttering it. Besides this, which I presume is thecall note, it makes a number of other sounds, all of the most inharmoniousdescription, but of which I can convey no correct idea.Mr. Pennock says in his notes:Our introduction to the bird was a self-announcement of his presence which camein no uncertain notes from afar across the open stretch. If this bird was locatedwhere the guide pointed out, he was at least three-quarters of a mile distant andat other times, by the same authority, they were heard at even greater distances.At any rate their notes are far-reaching, are strident, and have great volume? aprolonged wail "curr-r-u-ck" perhaps might give an idea of the call as we heardit most frequently, but the guide insisted I have not heard the "sure enuf" cry,nor did I until some days later; then a wounded bird which fell in the water near theboat sent forth repeated and most terriffic clarionlike screams, more prolonged andearpiercing than we had previously heard and which I was informed were the
"sure enuf thing." Several of the birds seen were discovered by their loud callsand were found to be perched aloft in or near the tops of the myrtle clumps,usually so high up as to be seen for a long distance?not infrequently for a halfmile?and several times when a bird was alarmed and flew up from the grasspond it made for such a refuge and gave close attention to our approach, as we cameacross open water in the boat. At times we could pole within 50 yards of oneof these perching birds and again they flew while we were yet 150 yards distant.Always such birds sent forth their shrill, rolling calls from on high whether theywere approached or not, perhaps an indication of nervous apprehension.DISTRIBUTIONBreeding range.?The interior of the peninsula of Florida andsoutheastern Georgia (Okefinokee Swamp) . The breeding birds of theWest Indies and Central America are now considered subspecificallydistinct.Winter range.?The same as the breeding range. This is a non-migratory species.Casual records.?Has wandered in winter to the Florida Keysand the Dry Tortugas; and to South Carolina (Aiken County, Octo-ber 18, 1890). The record for Brownsville, Texas, May 29, 1889, re-fers to the Central American form.Egg dates.??\ov\d&: 80 records, January 3 to August 2; 40 records,March 19 to April 20.
260 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMFamily RALLIDAE, Rails, Gallinules and CootsRALLVS ELEGANS AudubonKING RAILHABITSThis large, handsome rail is an inhabitant of the freshwater marshesof the interior. It is never seen in the salt marshes of thecoast except on migrations or in winter and even then it prefersfresh water. Audubon (1840) has well described its favorite haunts,in the words of his friend Bachman, as follows:Wherever there are extensive marshes by the sides of sluggish streams, wherethe bellowiiigs of the aUigator are heard at intervals, and the pipings of myriadsof frogs fill the air, there is found the fresh-water marsh hen, and there it maybe seen gliding swiftly among the tangled rank grasses and aquatic weeds, orstanding on the broad leaves of the yellow cyamus and fragrant water lily, orforcing its way through the dense foliage of pontederiae and sagittariae. There,during the sickly season, it remains secure from the search of man, and there, onsome hillock or little island of the marsh, it builds its nest. In such places Ihave found so many as 20 pairs breeding within a space having a diameter of30 yards.Arthur T. Wayne (1910) says:This fine species, which is locally known as the fresh water marsh hen, isabundant on abandoned rice plantations and in ponds of fresh water where theres a dense growth of reeds and water plants. It is a permanent resident, butduring protracted droughts is forced to migrate from the ponds in order to procurefood and water. On the freshwater rivers it is most numerous, and breeds innumbers.C. J. Pennock tells me that in Florida, near St. Marks and aboutPunta Gorda, the habitats of the two large rails come together, oreven overlap, in the marshes of the tidal rivers and creeks. Theclapper rails fairly swarm, where the marshes are in wide open areas,even well up the rivers; but, at the first appearance of wooded tractsalong these waterways, the clapper rails disappear and are replacedby the king rails. He found the latter nesting regularly in a smallpond, near one of these creeks, which was usually fresh, but at hightides it became salty.Nesting.?The only nest of a king rail that I have ever seen wasshown to me by Oscar E. Baynard, near Plant City, Florida, onMarch 30, 1925. He had found it while investigating a colony of80 pairs of boat-tailed grackles in an extensive swamp overgrownmainly with pickerel weed (Pontederia) , a scattered growth of small
"ty-ty" bushes and a few flags ( Typhm). The nest was in the midstof the colony of grackles, which had nests in the bushes, and was notfar from a least bittern's nest. It was beautifully concealed in athick growth of pickerel weed, which grew all around and over it.It was well made of the dead, dry stems of pickerel weed, and flags anil
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 261was deeply hollowed ; it measured 8 inches in diameter and the rim wasabout 8 inches above the water, which was about a foot deep. Itcontained nine practically fresh eggs. The rail was heard, but not seen.T. E. McMuUen tells me that in New Jersey it nests in or nearmarshes in grass tussocks, sedge tussocks, or water arum, where thenests are built up from 6 to 18 inches above shallow water.
"William B. Crispin wrote to me in 1913 that it was then a com-mon resident of Salem County, New Jersey-, and that it builds itsnest in the tussocks or the thick grasses of a Iresh water marsh ormeadow; the nest is lined with a few dry grasses, arched over andwell concealed by the green grasses about it.Mr. Wayne (1910) says that, in South Carolina, "numerous nests"that he has "found have been invariabl}^ placed in rushes or button-wood bushes, 8 inches to a foot and a half over water."Referring to the nesting habits of the king rail in Henry County,Illinois, A. C. Murchison (1895) writes:Around the edge of the marsh are a number of large ponds, and on the sideof these where the water was not over a foot or so deep, or any place in a shal-low pond and even in the fields, we found the nests. The nests in the pondswere placed in chimps of coarse rushes or cat-tails, and from 3 to 8 inches abovethe water. Some of the dead rushes were bent down to form a slight platformin the middle of the clump, and on this the nest material of rushes and grass waslaid to a thickness of from 1 to 4 inches, hollowed just enough to hold the oggs.The nosts found on the ground were placed in slight hollows scratched by thebirds in i\ thick clump of grass and lined with dead grass, forming a close matfrom 1 to 3 inches thick. In all cases where the set was complete the rusheswere very neatly interwoven to form a canopy that very often led to the detec-tion of the nest. I think the grass canopy is usually the sign of a full set, as it.is not often found over a small number of fresh eggs.Egrjs.?The kin'^ rail lays from 6 to 15 eggs, from 8 to 11 beingthe commonest numl)ers. They are ovate in shape and the shell issmooth and slightly glossy. The groimd color averages lighter thanin eggs of the clapper rails, but not so light as in those of the Cali-fornia species; it is pale buff, varying from "cream buff" to "paleolive buff." They are sparingly and irregularly spotted, mostly insmall spots, with various shades of "vinucoous drab," "army brown"and "vinaceous brown" and sometimes with a few spots of brighterbrowns. The measurements of 56 eggs averaged 41 ])y 80 millime-ters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 44 by 33. 38.5 by28 millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation does not seem to be known.The hatching process is well described by W. F. IIenninger(1910) asfollows
:
A fourth nest contained two eggs and one young and while looking at thethird egg I noticed a small hole and soon had the chance to see a young railchick's bill pecking away at its inclosure. The chick kept up a constant peck-
262 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMing and calling with a shrill voice "peep, peep," till the one half of the egg, themore pointed end, dropped away. The blackish little creature showed sometraces of blood and seemed to have a hard time to free itself from the membrane,and it took considerable time till it had extricated itself from the other half ofthe egg, the whole process occupying perhaps 16 to 20 minutes. Then it shuffleddown to its brother and laid there gaping from time to time, where I left itafter having seen one of the most interesting phases of wild bird life.Audubon (1840) says:The young, which are at first black, leave the nest as soon as they burst theshell, and follow their mother, who leads them along the borders of the streamsand pools, where they find abundance of food, consisting of grass seeds, insects,tadpoles, leeches, and small crayfish. At this early period, when running amongthe grass, which they do with great activity, they may easily be mistaken formeadow mice.Plumages.?In the king rail the downy young is well covered withshort, thick, black down. The juvenal plumage appears first on theunder parts, then on the back and still later on the head and neck;the wings appear last, when the young bird is nearly grown. Inthis plumage the upper parts are much like the adult, but darker;the upper back is nearly black with brown edgings; the under partsare dull white or buffy white, washed with pinkish buff or "lightpinkish cinnamon " on the neck and sides; many feathers of the breastand belly are tipped with dusky; the wings are much like those ofthe adult, except for a few whitish tips on the median coverts, whichsoon wear away. During September and October progressive changestake place toward maturity, by continuous molt of the contour plum-age. The pinkish buff on the under parts increases in extent andintensity during September; and the barred flanks, in dull tones, are
.acquired in October or a little earlier. By November the young birdis in practically adult plumage, though the colors do not attain theirfull brilliancy until the next molt.Adults have a complete molt in August and September and a par-tial molt of the contour plumage in early spring.Food.?Audubon (1840) says:When grown they feed on a variety of substances, and it has appeared to methat they eat a much greater proportion of seeds and other vegetable mattersthan the salt-water marsh hens. It is true, however, that, in the gizzard of thelatter we find portions of the Sparlina glabra; but when that kind of food is notto be procured, which is the case during three-fourths of the year, they feedprincipally on "fiddlers, " small fish, and mollusra. In the gizzard of the pres-ent species, besides the food already mentioned, I have always found a muchgreater quantity of the seeds of such grasses as grow in the places frequented bythem. On one occasion I found the gizzard crammed with seeds of the cane{Arundo tecla); and that of another contained a large quantity of the seed ofthe common oat, which had evidently been picked up on a newly-sown fieldadjoining to the marsh.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 263W. Leon Dawson (1903) writes:The food of the marsh hen consists of insects, slugs, leeches, tadpoles, andsmall crayfish, besides a goodly proportion of seeds from aquatic and palustralplants. The last are obtained not only from the soft bed of ooze upon whichthey may have fallen, but from the seed pods themselves, since the bird can
-climb quite nimbly. Like all birds of this class, the most active hours are spentjust after sunset and before sunrise. But in a region where they were in littlefear of molestation, I have seen them deploy upon an extensive mud flat in broaddaylight and go prodding about in company with migrant sandpipers, for theworms which riddle the ooze with their burrows. At such times, too, I have seen
^a few standing stock still for a quarter of an hour at a stretch, evidently to catch:a wink of sleep along with their sun bath, and trusting, perhaps, to their morevigilant neighbors to give warning of approaching danger.Behavior.?Audubon (1840) writes:The flight of this rail resembles that of the salt-water kind, but is considerablystronger and more protracted. When suddenly flushed, they rise and go off witha chuck, their legs danghng beneath, and generally proceed in a straight line forsome distance, after which they drop among the thickest grass, and run off withsurprising speed. In several instances they have been known to stand before a
'Careful pointer. They are less apt to take to the water than the Rallus crepitans,^nd are by no means so expert at diving.Col. N. S. Goss (1891) says:Its flights, when not suddenly started, are at dusk and during the night. Itsprings into the air with dangling legs and rapid strokes of its short wings; butif going any distance, its legs, like its neck, are soon stretched out to their fullextent, flying rather slowly and near the ground. Its call note, " Creek, creek,creek, creek," and of flight, " Cark, cark, cark," can often be heard both night and
?day, and at times during the early breeding season they are almost as noisy asthe guinea hens. If it were not for its voice its presence would seldom be known,as it skulks and hides from its pursuers, and when hard pressed runs into thedeeper waters within the reeds and rushes, preferring to swim (and can also dive)to taking wing, knowing well that it is safer within its watery, grassy cover, for
?which it is so well adapted,Mr. Murchison (1895) refers to its notes as follows:One of the very characteristic sounds of bird voices to be heard on the bordersand nearby ponds of the large swamps in Henry County, Illinois, is the "chuck-chuck " of the king rail, or " stage driver," as he is called by the natives, fromthe almost exact imitation of the "chuck " of the plowboy to his plodding team.Enemies.?The king rail is considered a game bird and is pursuedto some extent by sportsmen. Its flesh is said to be tender and juicyand to resemble that of the sora rail, as it is largely a vegetarian.But its flight is so slow and it is so easily killed that it is not much ofa sporting proposition.Audubon (1840) says:These birds are rarely shot by common gunners, on account of the difficultyof raising them, and because they generally confine themselves to places soswampy and covered with briars, smilaxes, and rough weeds, that they arescarcely accessible. But although they are thus safe from men they are not with-
264 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAI. MUSEUM
out numerous enemies. My friend Bachman once killed a large moccasin snake,on opening which he found an old bird of this species, that had evidentl}' beenswallowed but a short time before. Its feathers are frequently found lying onthe banks of rice-fields, ponds, and lagoons, in places where the tracks of themink plainly disclose the plunderer. The barred owl and the great horned owl alsooccasionally succeed in capturing them in the dusk. " On one occasion," says myfriend Bachman, in a note addressed to me, "while placed on a stand for deer, Isaw a wild cat creeping through a marsh that was near to me, evidently follow-ing by stealthy steps something that he was desirous of making his prey. Pres-ently he made a sudden pounce into a bunch of grass, when I immediately heardthe piercing cries of the marsh hen, and shortly after came passing by me thesuccessful murderer with the bird in his mouth."Mr. Wayne (1910) vrrites:In the month of April, 1900, I was observing a nest of this species in a button-wood bush, which was in a pond of water, and, about every other day, I wadedinto the pond to sec liow many eggs were there. About the 8th of May, I judgedthat the full complement of eggs would be completed, and upon visiting the nestin the afternoon which was very cloudy, I saw what I supposed to be the birdincubating. But upon close inspection I was very much surprised to find thatwhat I took for the bird was a huge moccasin {AncUtrodoyi piscivorus) , which Ipromptly shot. This snake liad eaten all the eggs and perhaps caught the birdas the feathers were scattered around the nest.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Eastern United States, Mexico, and southeastern Canada.The Cuban bird has been separated as a new subspecies, Rallus eleganjiramsdeni Rilo}".Breeding range.?North to southern Minnesota (Jackson, Faribault,Waseca, and Minneapolis) ; southern Wisconsin (Madison, Janesville,Jefferson County, and Racine) ; southern Ontario (St. Clair Flats andListowel); northern Ohio (Port Clinton, Middle Bass Island, andCleveland); New York (Buffalo, Branchport, Ithaca, and near NewYork City); and Connecticut (Saybrook). East to Connecticut(Saybrook); New Jersey (Avalon, Summit, Newark, and Repaupo);Pennsylvania (near Philadelphia) ; Maryland (Tolchester); Virginia(Wallops Island); North Carolina (Raleigh and Lake Ellis); SouthCarolina (Waverly Mills, Mount Pleasant, and Frogmore) ; Georgia(Savannah and Blackbeard Island) ; and Florida (Gainesville, Titus-ville, and Fort Myers). South to F'lorida (Titusville, Fort Myers,Tarpon Springs, Tallahassee, and Wliitfield) ; Alabama (Barachias,Autaugaville, Greensboro, and Mobi](>) ; Mississippi (Vicksburg)
;
Louisiana (Calcasieu) ; and (rarely) Texas (Corpus Christi). Westto (rarely) Texas (Corpus Christi); Oklahoma (Wister); northwest-ern Arkansas (Eureka Springs); eastern Kansas (Wichita, StaffordCounty, and Manhattan) ; eastern Nebraska (Falls City, Lincoln, andOmaha) ; western Iowa (Wall Lake and probably Sioux City) ; andsouthwestern Minnesota (Heron Lake).
XUlilH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 205The king rail also has been observed or taken in South Dakota (Ver-milion); North Dakota (Fargo, October 15, 1925); Minnesota (LakeMinnotonka in September 1911, and in Ottertail Comity); Ontario(Toronto, September, 1903, and Ottawa, May 7, 1896) ; Vermont (Ben-nington, May 1910); and Maine (several records in the vicinity ofPortland)
.
Winter range.?Southern part of the breeding range and coastregions of Louisiana and Texas, rarely to east-central Mexico. Northto Texas (Brownsville and Corpus Christi); southern Louisiana (NewOrleans and Mandeville) ; Mississippi (Hancock County) ; Alabama(Greensboro); and South Carolina (Mount Pleasant). East to SouthCarolina (Mount Pleasant, Port Royal, and probably Frogmore)
;
Georgia (Savannah and Blackbeard Island) ; and Florida (Titus-ville). South to Florida (Fort Myers); Louisiana (Octave Pass and
^'ermilion Bay); Texas (Brownsville); and rarely Mexico, VeraCruz (Tiacotalpam).There are also records of winter occurrence north to Virginia (Wal-lops Island, January 9 to February o, 1921); Maryland (PawtuxentRiver, December 16, 1889; Marshall Hall, December 2, 1914 andCecil County, February 15, 1917); Pennsylvania (Philadelphia,December 12, 1909); New York (Greene, January 1891, and Ithaca,November 29, 1901); Connecticut (Meriden, October 14, 1914, Mil-ford, December 15, 1892, andSaybrook, January 14, 1876) ; Massachu-setts, Needham, October 10, 1907, Nahant, November 21, 1875, WestBarnstable, December 30, 1909, Cambridge, December 30, 1896, andEllisville, January 20, 1903) ; Michigan (Port Huron, December 13,1902,Hudson, December 11, 1896, Monroe, December 12, 1908, and Detroit,February 6, 1907, and February 1909); Ontario (Point Pelee, Decem-ber 31,. 1906); and Wisconsin (Beaver Dam, December 19, 190G).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: Pennsylvania, Erie.April 17, 1902, and Berwyn, May 4, 1905; New Jersey, Salem, April26, 1914, Cape May. May 6, 1880, and South Amboy, May 12, 1879;New York, Montauk Light, March 3, 1887, Geneva, April 19, 1908,and Buffalo, May 4, 1914; Arkansas, Brookland, April 29, 1914; Mis-souri, Fayette, April 2, 1887, Corning, April 4, 1913, and St. Louis,April 9; Illinois, Chicago, March 27, Rockford, April 3, 1887, Alton,April 5, 1894, Farina, April 10, 1897, Fernwood, April 10, 1887, Mil-ford, April 13, 1909, Morgan Park, April 14, 1895, and Glen Ellyn,April 19, 1899; Indiana. Richmond, April 1, 1914, Worthington.April 10, 1908, Bicknell. April 7, 1921, Crawfordsville, April 12, 1921,ftnd Indianapolis, April 15, 1916; Ohio, Medina, April 10, 1922, Cir-cleville, April 11, 1917, Huron, April 16, 1912, Montgomery, April18, 1895, Cleveland, April 19, 1880; Michigan, Petersburg, April 20,1886, Vicksburg, April 23, 1911, Detroit, April 28, 1907, and AnnArbor, May 4. 1910; Ontario, Point Pelee, April 22, 1908; andOttawa, May 7, 1896; Iowa, Keokuk, Marcli 27, 1894, Grinnell,
266 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMApril 5, 1889, Sioux City, April 10, 1887, New Hampton, April 14,1921, National, April 15, 1909, and Mount Vernon, April 22, 1907;Wisconsin, Burlington, April 4, 1919, Milwaukee, April 10, 1911,Madison, April 21, 1911, Whitewater, May 1, 1911, Delavan, May 3,1896, Berlin, May 6, 1914, Elkhorn, May 8, 1909, and Racine, May10, 1907; Minnesota, Waseca, April 15, 1893, Heron Lake, April 22,1890, Fairmount, April 23, 1916, Hennepin County, April 27, 1890,Jackson, May 5, 1903, and Lanesboro, Maj^ 12, 1908; Kansas, Em-poria, April 14, 1885, Onaga, April 23, 1891, Paola, April 28, 1918,and Wichita, May 9, 1916; and Nebraska, Falls City, April 13, 1889.Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Nebraska, Ne-braska City, September 20, 1900, Lincoln, September 22, 1890, andGresham, September 24, 1896; Kansas, Lawrence, November 4, 1905;Oklahoma, Caddo, November 1, 1883; Minnesota, Jackson, August25, 1902; Wisconsin, Delavan, October 22, 1894; Iowa, Keokuk,September 26, 1899, and McGregor, November 2, 1890; Ontario,Point Pelee, August 22, 1909; Michigan, Manistee, October 16, 1904,Detroit, October 30, 1904, and Ann Arbor, November 5, 1888; Ohio,Youngstown, October 7, 1916, Cedar Point, October 22, 1906, Oberlin,October 23, 1906, and Lakeside, October 30, 1918; Indiana, Indianap-olis, October 4, 1914, and Richmond, November 11, 1916; Illinois,La Grange, September 28, 1914, Fernwood, October 13, 1885, Can-ton, October 27, 1894, and Warsaw, Novembers, 1899; Connecticut,Portland, September 18, 1913, North Haven, September 26, 1905,and Mcriden, October 4, 1914; New York, Amityville, September7, 1891; New Jersey, Avalon, September 22, 1902, Camden, October17, 1915, and Pennsville, October 20, 1914; and the District of Co-lumbia, Washington, November 7, 1891.Egg dates.?Illinois: 31 records. May 4 to Jujie 26; 16 records,May 15 to June 10. Minnesota and Wisconsin: 8 records, May 21to June 30. RALLUS BELDINGI (Kidgway)BELDING RAILHABITSThis little known species is confined, so far as we know, to thesouthern part of the peninsula of Lower California, from MagdalenaBay southward. It somewhat resembles the king rail, but is consid-erably smaller and is darker and richer in color. It is a very shyand retiring bird, living in the most inaccessible mangrove swampsin a remote region; consequently very little has ev^er been learnedabout its habits and still less has been published.William Brewster (1902a) writes:The type specimen of this rail was taken by Mr. Belding on Espiritu SantoIsland, but Mr. Frazar found the bird only about the shores of the Baj' nearLa Paz, where it inhabits mangrove thickets bordering mud flats or intersected
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 267by small tidal creeks. It is evidently rare here, for Mr. Frazar shot only twospecimens, and saw or heard less than half a dozen in all. R. beldingi is proba-bly resident wherever found, but as yet even this can not be positively asser-ted.Col. John E. Thayer (1909) quotes from some notes sent to himby Wilmot W.Brown, jr., who has probably collected more of theserails than any one else, as follows
:
As for the Belding rail, I found this species a most difficult one to collect onaccount of its retiring habits in the dense mangrove jungle, where the branchesand long roots are interwoven and interlaced. You can not enter a foot withoutcutting with axe and machete. In my search for the nest and eggs of this railI cut trails through various parts of the mangrove tangle, but was unable to findbut an abandoned nest with two eggs which the mice had nearly destroyed.The collecting of this rail is a question of high tides. At low tide this rail cannot be hunted. He keeps in the depths of the mangrove tangle where he feedson small crabs, etc.; but when there is a very high tide the water forces him toseek his food more inland, along the shore outside of the swamp; then by care-ful and patient hunting you can occasionally shoot one, but it is very slow workand requires much time and patience. In fact, for a long time I thought I shouldbe unsuccessful in my search; for although I hunted faithfully for it over amonth I was unable to find one until I thought of the high tide plan.Eggs.?Mr. Brown found two eggs of this rail, badly eaten by mice,in a deserted nest on San Jose Island on June 28, 1908; the eggs arenow in Colonel Thayer's collection. In comparing these eggs withseveral sets of Rallus levipes, Colonel Thayer wrote me that he "couldsee little or no difference." He describes the eggs as "oval, creamywhite, and dotted and spotted sparingly with 'Hay's maroon, and
'pale mauve' markings." They measure 44.6 by 30 and 44 by 2&millimeters. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Cape region of Lower California. The Belding rail is aresident species, occupying both coasts of the southern part of LowerCalifornia, its range extending north (on the west coast) to SantaMargarita Island and (on the east coast) to San Jose Island.Egg date.?Southern Lower California: 1 record, June 28.RALLtS OBSOLETUS RidgwayCALIFORNIA CLAPPER RAILHABITSAs its name implies this bird is a product of the Golden State andit never wanders far from the general vicinity of the Golden Gate.Messrs. Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer (1918) say:No other game bird in California has so limited a distribution as has the Cali-fornia clapper rail. The salt marshes bordering the southern arm of San Fran-cisco Bay and a few smaller nearby areas of the same character alone seem to
268 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
afford the proper kinds of food and shelter necessary for its existence. It isfound in small numbers on the marshes of Monterey Bay near Eikhorn, Mon-terey County, and individuals have been recorded from Tomales Bay and Hum-boldt Bay. The California clapper rail makes its permanent home on the saltmarshes where the vegetation consists chiefly of pickleweed {Salicornia ambigua)and an evergreen shrub {Grindelia cuneifolia) . Here it may easily be found atany time of the year skulking along the banks of the small muddy sloughs whichpenetrate the marsh in every direction.Nesting.?^The same authors refer to the nesting habits of theCalifornia clapper rail, as follows:A high piece of marsh ground, usually on the bank of a slough, is selected fora nesting site. The nest may be concealed in salt grass or pickleweed, or undera small bush. It is a platform built up 3 to 6 inches above the ground, andmeasures about 10 inches across with a cavity in the center 1}/^ inches deep.Orasses or dead and living stems of pickleweed are used for building material.A well-marked trail leading off through the adjacent vegetation is usually discerni-ble. A nest examined by the authors on May 7, 1914, was composed of closelymatted Salicornia stems, some of the stems being bent over from the growingp'ants surrounding it. The structure was well saucered, the cavity containingthe eggs being 5)^ inches across and IJ^ inches deep. The rim was 2}/^ inchesabove the groimd which was still wet from a recent high tide. The nearests'ough was 20 feet away. Like some other rails this one sometimes builds nestswhich it never uses. Three or four new nests, often uncompleted, apparentlypossessing all the advantages of the one used, are occasionally to be found in thenear vicinity of an occupied nest. The female is a very close sitter and willsometimes remain on the nest until the intruder is within 2 feet of her. Shewill then jump from the nest and either fly away, or glide swiftly through thegrass or along the edge of a slough.Dr. Barton W. Evormann has sent me his notes on his experienceswith the nesting habits of this species on Bay Farm Island, AlamedaCounty. His records include observations on some 40 nests foundduring the month of April, which seems to be the height of the nest-ing season; ho found a total of 13 nests with eggs on one day, April9, 191G. In summarizing his notes, he says:The dates given were probably those of the height of the nesting season,without exception the nests were under, or more or less protected by, clumps ofSalicornia or Grindelia, or both. The birds would usually slink away from thenest when one came upon them cautiously. If one came upon the nest hurriedlythey would leave with a rush, sometimes cackling. Bay Farm Island is, or soonwill be, a thing of the past. It is being cut up into truck farms, thus destroyingthe best breeding grounds of this species in the State.Eggs.?The California clapper rail lays from 5 to 14 eggs, but theusual set consists of from 8 to 10. The shape is ovate and the shellis smooth and glossy. The eggs of this and the next species are thelightest colored of any of the eggs in the clapper rail group, lightereven than those of the king rail. The ground color is pale "cartridgebuff" or "ivory yellow." They are sparingly and irregularly markedwith a few small ])lotches and spots, and a larger number of minute
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 269(lots, of di'ab and brown, such as palo shades of ''purple drab," "ecriidrab," or "drab-gray," darker shades of the same colors, and variousshades of dark browns, such as "chocolate" and "Vandyke brown."The measurements of 57 eggs average 44.1 by 31.3 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 47.9 by 32.6, 46.9 by 33.4,41.2 by 31, 43.2 by 29.6 millimeters.Young.?Ernest Adams (1900) says: "I have often seen twobirds about a nest and I am certain that the male assists in incubation."W. Otto Emerson (1885) has published the following interestingnote regarding the young:One nest of seven glossy jet black chicks was found, seemingly just out of theshell, one not quite dr}'. All but this one would hold their long necks out, movingthem from side to side, and calling in a low plaintive tone "pc-ec-ep, pe-ee-ep,"very much like a weak young chicken. Putting these Httle fellows in my basketfor further study at home, no more attention was paid to them until I got to mybuggy, when I found two of them missing, knowing no doubt, the fate awaitingthem. On skinning one I noticed a small claw sticking out from the second jointof each wing, not more than a sixteenth part of an inch long, claw part turningdown, of a light horn color and comparing only to a little kitten's claw; it wasfound on all the chicks.Plumages.?There are not enough specimens of the California clap-per rail, in immature plumages, in eastern collections, to work out thesequence of plumages to maturity; but what material I have seengives no reason to think that the molts and plumages are essentiallydifferent from those of the king rails and clapper rails, all of wiiichare closely related. The downy young is black with a slight greenishgloss on the upper parts. Grinuell, Bryant, and Storer (1918) describethe Juvenal plumage as "similar to that of the adult, but with streak-ing on back duller, less strikingly contrasted, lower surface verymuch lighter, more buffy in tone, and barring on sides and flanksscarcely or not at all in evidence.
"
Food.?According to Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer (1918), the foodof the California clapper rail
?
is made up almost entirely of animal matter?worms, crustaceans, and the like,as afforded on the salt marshes. In the gullet of a bird shot on a salt marsh,near an artesian well, W. E. Bryant (1893) found a good sized frog. Severalstomachs from birds taken at Bay Farm Island, Alameda County, were foundby us to contain only parts of XJrabs {Ilemigrapsus oregonensis).Donald A. Cohen (1895) says:Their chief food is crustaceans, and the craws of those I shot were mostlyempty. One contained l)its of leaf of a plant common to the salt marsh and onebird had swallowed a mud crab the size of a quarter of a dollar and had discardedthe legs and pincers, probably to prevent the crab causing trouble after beingswallowed.Behavior.?Referring to the behavior of the California clapper rail,Grinnell, Br3'ant, and Storer (1918) write:
270 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
Its very long and unwebbed toes make large chicken-like tracks spaced about10 inches apart in the soft mud of the slough banks, and these are very easy torecognize. The voice, too, is characteristic. It is a harsh, mechanical cackling
?
"chuck, chuck, chuck, chuck," or " cheek-a-cheek-a-check"?uttered rapidly forseveral seconds and sounding as if two or more birds rather than a single one wereparticipating in its production. When flushed this rail jumps almost straight upinto the air for 6 or 8 feet and then flies off in a clumsy manner, its short,narrow wings moving at the rate of two or three beats per second. These flightsare usually short, the bird soon dropping down again into the protection of themarsh vegetation.Like all rails, the clapper rail is, when need be, very skillful at keeping out ofsight. Sometimes individuals appear shy, flushing at a distance, or runningtoward the denser vegetation at great speed, with lowered head and elusivemien; at other times they walk out into the open in bottoms of sloughs at closerange and view the intruder seemingly with perfect equanimitj'. They have along running stride, and the body is held close to the ground. The narrowlj'compressed body enables them to slip easily between the rigid upright stems ofa sort of rush which grows in thick beds along the larger salt sloughs. If notthoroughly alarmed, rails will sometimes stop or hesitate on open ground, whenthe peculiar twitching movement of the tail may be clearly seen. This memberis held vertically and the twitching of it is rendered conspicuous because of thewhite color flashed from the undertail coverts. When walking, the head andtail twitch forward in unison with each stride. When thoroughly alarmed thisrail wiU take to water and swim considerable distances, as, in one observedinstance, across a 30-foot slough.Mr. Adams (1900) says:During several seasons of collecting, I have noticed that some days I wouldkill nothing but males of this species, while at another place only females wereshot. Again when two of us were separated on the marsh one would procuremales and the other females only. This would indicate that in fall and winterat least, the sexes resort to different feeding grounds. The birds fly very heavilyand only for short distances, but the fleetness of foot is as remarkable as it isungainly. When wounded they make good use of their legs and claws as wellas their bill. The rail rarely swims for the mere pleasure it affords, but it canoften be seen crossing a large slough, and when injured is very agile in thewater.Game.?I must quote again from Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer(1918), regarding the game qualities of this species, as follows:The California clapper rail has long been considered an excellent bird for thetable, and formerly great numbers were sold on the markets of San Francisco.The weight of an adult bird, freshly taken by the authors, was three-fourths ofa pound (340 grams) ; so that the food value of h clapper rail as regards size isnot inconsiderable. The sport furnished in hunting clapper rails is of a rathertame sort; for the birds are ordinarily not wild, and, owing to their slow, or sluggish,straightaway flight, are easy to hit on the wing. Unlike many other game birds,this one seems to be but slightly endowed with effective means of self-preserva-tion. When pursued, a clapper rail is said to sometimes hide its head, ostrich-like, in a tuft of grass; and it is not an uncommon thing for dogs to catch the birdsalive. For these reasons, as well as for the fact that they are considered bymany to be excellent eating, these rails have been slaughtered in great numbers.Few game birds in this State were more surely on the road to total extinctionthan was this species just previous to the passage of the Federal Migratory Bird
NORTII AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 271Law. The roclahniiig of much of their former breeding grounds was concen-trating them into smaller and smaller areas, where they were still more easilysought out and killed. Ray (llt()2), speaking of the abundance of this bird in8an Mateo County, says: " As late as 1889, I remember sportsmen returning withas man}' as 200 clapper rails, while now one would hnd it exceedingly hard to baga dozen." Mr. Samuel Hubbard, jr., of Oakland, has stated to us that formerlyduring high tides as many as 40 clapper rail could easily be killed along OaklandCreek. None of these birds are to be found in that locality at the present time.Accounts generally agree that the California clapper rail is much less abundantnow than it once was. Even the extended annual close season, in force for a fewyears and now replaced by total protection, was not sufficient to protect thisbird; for its haunts are so readily accessible to the Bay cities that hunting re-mained excessive. In 1913, the Federal Migratory Bird Law was passed, andwithin two years a marked increase was observable locally on the AlamedaCounty marshes?proof that adequate protection long enough continued willrestore the species. The worst enemy of the rail now remaining is the Norwayrat, which infests many parts of the salt marshes, and whose depredations duringthe nesting season have come to our personal notice.The California clapper rail is truly a native of the Golden State, being foundnowhere else in the world. It deserves protection on esthetic grounds, if not on
?economic ones. It is entirely within possibility that at the expiration of thepresent closed term of years, hunting can again be safely allowed?with of course,a small bag limit and short season.Mr Cohen (1895) writes:Rail hunting at flood tide is not the highest sportsmanship, as the rail take re-fuge on high ground, and, when very little of that is exposed your dog is sure toput up a bird almost every few yards. Occasionally these birds will climb into& thick, short bush, common to the salt marsh, or sit contentedly on a pile offlrift or a floating log, and at such times can be hit with an oar, but the birdsto-day, with the exception of one, were flushed before I saw them, and this onewas standing partly concealed among some salt grass in several inches of water,and tipping his body quickly up and down; a common habit. .A^gain, the railis not a swift flyer, flying in a straight line, and when hunters are numerous oneof them will get the bird you miss if it flies his way, or mark it down and flushit again and keep Mr. Rail on the hop-skip-and-jump until he is shot or has presenceof mind to sink into the water and keep his head out by holding to a stem byhis bill. This is a favorite trick of theirs when wounded.Enemies.?Besides the sportsmen and the rats, this poor rail hasother enemies to contend with, of which W. Leon Dawson (1923)says:According to Mr. Chase Littlejohn, still another enemy has arisen to makethe life of this bird miserable?a certain mussel once imported from the East.This thrifty bivalve flourishes and increases enormously in just that range whichhas been from time immemorial the peculiar province of the rail; viz, the mudstrip just below the line of vegetation on the banks of the tide channels. Nowthe bird must seek its living here or change its habits entirely. But the musselis a sensitive, not to mention a supercilious creature, and when our native sonsteps carelessly it closes its doors with a bang?and often seizes the hapless railby the toe. So common is this that many specimens with maimed feet or missingtoes have been taken, and a few have been captured right where they were beingheld captive by the mussels. Others, more fortunate in escaping, are neverthe-less condemned to drag about a hall on the foot, n mass of dried mud and trash
272 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
of which the mussel is the unyielding nucleus. The bivalve apparently neverreleases its hold, and even in death, which must soon occur, does not relax itsdeathly grasp upon its victim. In one instance at least, a bird was seized bythe bill, and although it was able to wrest the bivalve free from its anchorage,the creature had closed upon its beak with such a grip that the bird was un-able to get food, and was found in a famished and attenuated condition. Thisspecimen Mr. Littlejohn has in his collection, a mute reminder of one knows nothow many scores of similar tragedies.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?X nonmigratory species, inhabiting the coast region ofCalifornia from Humboldt Bay south to Monterey Bay. At presentrestricted largely to the region of San Francisco Bay (Potaluma.Tomales Bay, Alameda, Haywards, San Mateo. Redwood City, andMenlo Park) and Monterey Bay (Elkhorn). Accidental on th<^Farallon Islands.Egg dates.?California: 107 records, April 1 to July 13; 54 records.April 10 to 25. RALLUS LEVIPES BangsLIGHT-FOOTED RAILHABITSFor many years the clapper rails of the coastal marshes of Cali-fornia and northern Lower California were all supposed to be onespecies, Rallus obsoletuSj until Outram Bangs (1899) separated thesouthern bird as a distinct species and named it Rallu^s levipes. Itis similiar to obsoletus, but is slightly smaller, the back is darker andmore olive in tone, the breast is a richer tone of cinnamon and thereis a whitish, instead of a rusty stripe from the bill over the eye.Grinnell, Bryant, and Storer (1918) suggest that "it might be consid-ered merel}'- a southern race of ' obsoletus. ' Neither of them is migra-tory, and there is a strip of coast nearly 200 miles in extent betweenthe southern limit of the California clapper rail and the northernmoststation for the light-footed rail." TIk^v also observe that "there are noessential differences in the general habits of the two species. Thelight-footed rail, however, has been found breeding in an inlandbrackish marsh though, to be sure, this was not far from the seacoast."Nesting.?W. Lee Chambers has sent me the following notes:On April 13th 1917, I visited a salt-water marsh near Long Beach, Calif.,and found an island fairly well inhabited by the light-footed rail. This was theonly piece of land not used in cattle grazing, and was probably because of itsbeing so low and not large enough to be of any grazing value. The total areawas approximately five acres and in any kind of a storm it must have been com-pletely covered by water. On this date I noticed three sets with eight eggs ineach, one nest with two eggs and another nest which had just been finished andabout ready for eggs. One fresh egg was found washed up on the beach. Theisland was practically covered with salicornia and the birds would waddle overthis grass in their search for food, forming rcgiilir well-defined trails leading to
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 273the water's edgo. I visited this island during several successive years and foundthat by following up these runways from the water's edge, they would invariablyiead up to a feeding ground or a nest. The nests were generally on the highestpiece of ground in that immediate vicinity that happen to be covered with sali-<;ornia. The bird would evidently waddle under a clump of salicornia and forma nest on the bare ground. A very poor nest was generally the result, for appar-ently the only lining was what happened to be on the gronud at the spot chosenfor the nest, A line of power poles ran across this island, and in digging the holesfor the poles some little piles of dirt were left. On these hillocks the salicorniaseemed to grow very rank and two of these clumps were selected for nesting sites.In summing up the nest sites, it seemed that every available bit of high groundnear the water was occupied by its nest. These nests would be not over 100feet from a body of water, and generally only a few feet. The birds were veryquiet and the on!}' time I saw them was when they would flush from immedi-ately under my feet, and then they immediately took to the water and dove outof sight.A, M. Ingersoll writes to me that the
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nests are generally well hidden on a dry portion of a salt marsh, but are sometimesplaced over water of a foot or more in depth. In one instance a nest was placedagainst the back of a dead hog on a dry sandy beach several hundred feet fromany marsh vegetation, certainly an unusual place for any rail.Harold M. Holland contributes the following notes:Since 1918 I have not been in the marshes around Los Angeles, but understandthe rails have decreased and become rather scarce. On the other hand, havingcollected near San Diego last year (1922), it was my impression that the light-footed rails, in favorable places thereabout, were not especially uncommon. It isrecalled there were a few marshy tracts in which cattle had l)een turned loose,and it was quite noticeable that no rails were therein encountered, although justacross a narrow^ ditch, serving as a barrier to the cattle, they might be found.Occasionally one met with distinct runways from one ditch or channel to another,or a runway, often of surprising length and clearly defined, extending from a ditchto a clump of particularly thick or high salicornia in which would be hidden thenest. I think in some instances the same clump of salicornia is used season afterseason, and the worn appearance of the runways would bear this out. Acrossthe marsh on the way from Los Angeles to Seal Beach, near the latter place, therewas an electric line, and the heavy growths of salicornia at the l)a.scs of the trolleypoles were favorite nest locations from year to year. Then there would be a littlepool, almost round, encircled by a somewhat prominent growth of salicornia, andin this from one season to another a rail nest could be counted upon at almost thesame identical spot. Often the fresh runways could easily be distinguished andwould be raud spattered for a short distance near the ditch. The light-footedrail likes the salicornia in which to hide its nest and doubtless generally uses it,Ijut at times does nest in other marsh vegetation.George Willett (1906) found a nest of this species in a bunch ofreeds growing in about three inches of fresh water, on the edge ofNigger Slough, near Los Angeles, on May 29, lOOG.The nest and eggs, which are now in my collection, are typical of the species.The nest is a very loose affair, the foundation being coinpovsed of decayed talesand reeds and the upper part, containing the cavity, of broken bits of tule stalks.It measures 11 by 7 inches on the outside, with the cavity 5 by J^ inches.
274 BULirETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMA. J. van Rossem writes me that he once
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Found a nearly completed nest, from which the bird was flushed, in a clumpof spear grass {Scirpus) . Because of the dense growth of the stems, the nestwas about 18 inches from the ground. This is the only occasion which has cometo notice where the nest was off the ground.Eggs.?The eggs of the light-footed rail are practically indistinguish-able from those of the California clapper rail. The measurementsof 40 eggs average 44.6 by 31 millimeters; the eggs showing the four-extremes measure 49.1 by 31, 44.9 by 32.3, 41.6 by 30.9, 48 by 29.7millimeters.Young.?A. M. Ingersoll has sent me the following notes:Both sexes incubate. I have seen young when alarmed by my presence seekconcealment by placing their heads in crab holes and cavities on a rather steepmud bank, also under pieces of driftwood and other rubbish. Young light-footedrails are able to swim on the day of birth. On one occasion an old rail withswaying head and quivering wings stood some 25 feet from me, and about thesame distance from a nest with six babies, facing me; a few rapid notes wereuttered, evidently family instructions, for the young scrambled from their nestand five of them slowly made their way over several yards of oozy mud, across-water of a tide stream and up the bank to a patch of weeds. The anxious par-ent did not take wing or apparently cease to look at me until the five young weresafely concealed. One frail baby only got a few inches away from the nest; andtwo of the swimmers were so exhausted that the tidal current carried them somedistance away from their companions.Plumages.?The molts and plumages of the light-footed rail areapparently similar to those of the California clapper rail, to which itis closely related.Behavior.?I also have the following interesting notes from J.Eugene Law
:
The secretiveness of this species renders it hard to find but when the annualhighest tides come it is literally floated up out of its cover and becomes conspic-uous. I collected specimens on such a tide on December 7, 1915. When I ar-rived the water was already over most of the salieornia leaving only thin patchesof cover. Perhaps 50 or more light-footed rails were seen in the course of twohours. As I rowed about they swam frantically toward such cover as was insight, and would "freeze" along side any projecting grass or weed, but theirbodies silhouetted conspicuously on the glassy water. They swam with awkward,chickenlike movements of the head, forward and back, and when pressed too hardrose into the air and flew some distance before dropping heavily into the water.As this rarely happened until the boat was within gun range, they were at themercy of the gunner. They could not swim so fast quite as I could row a smallflat bottomed skis'.The clear water only a foot or so deep over the salieornia aff'orded a splendidopportunity to observe two which were wing-tipped, and which dove when pressedtoo closely. They went straight down, poking their head into the salieornia wherethey apparently held on by means of their beaks, for their bodies were in plainsight with legs and feet sticking up. Here they invariably stayed until uncon-scious, when their hold would relax and they would come to the surface feet first,to lie for a moment before regaining consciousness. One of them got partly
NOKTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 275
under a weed iu one of its dives, and its toes became entangled so that it stuckthere, and I believe would have drowned. When I thought it was drowned Iretrieved it, leaving it on the surface of the water, beak partly submerged, but itgradually regained its faculties and soon started swimming off again at full speed.W. Leon Dawson (1923) describes the vocal performances of thisspecies as follows
:
Eventide, also, is the time for that discursive song whicli won for our hero thename "clapper." In a populous marsh one may hear six or seven birds at onceuttering these peculiar, strident, iterative calls. The tones are very hard tocharacterize. Some one, I suppose, must have likened them to the sound of afence board struck by a stick. To me they sound more like the cheep of a babyblackbird greatly exaggerated. With head and neck stretched vertically, thebird delights to roll out 10 or a dozen of these notes in a series, rallentandosostentuto or rallentando et diminuendo, as the case may be.Enemies.?A. B. Howell, who has had considerable experience withthese rails, writes to me
:
They used to be common on our marshes, and during the unusually high Dec-ember tides, we would collect as many as we wished, rowing about over thesubmerged flats and flushing the rails from almost every little grassy clump, inthe cover of which they would be paddling about. They were thus hunted bylocal pothunters as well, until now they are decidedly rare where they were abund-ant half a dozen years ago. They are certainly less well protected, and much lessnumerous, than the northern bird about San Francisco Bay. In addition, theirrange is being restricted by reclamation of the marshes, and the future of thesubspecies is not at all bright. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?A nonmigratory species, occiiring in the coastal marshesof southern California and the northern part of the western coast ofLower California.In California the light-footed rail is found north to Santa Barbaraand south along the coast to Wilmington, San Pedro Bay, Long Beach,Newport and San Diego. There is one record of a set of eggs takenin the fresh water marsh of Nigger Slough, Los Angeles County(Willett, 1906). In Lower California the species has been observedor taken principally in the region of San Quintin Bay.Egg date.'i.?California: 56 records, March 18 to June 11; 28records, April 9 to May 3.RALLUS YUMANENSIS DickeyYUMA CLAPPER RAH.HABITSTo Donald II. Dickey (1923) belongs the honor of discovering andthe privilege of naming a n(^w rail from a new and unexpected local-ity. He writes that:Field work carried on during the spring of 1921 in the Colorado River Valley,Imperial County, California, by Laurence M. Huey and Mrs. May Canlield, in
276 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMbehalf of the author's collection, resulted in the utterly unexpected capture ofthree individuals of a distinct new species of clapper rail.For the characters on which the species is based he gives thefollowing
:
Nearest in appearance to certain examples of Rallus levipes, but instantlyseparable from typical levipes by duller and more olivaceous outer superior wing-coverts and alula, by paler coloration of underparts and more slender tarsus andbill.The characters are rather slight on which to base a species, espe-cially when ho admits that his
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Own examination of 29 specimens of levipes has disclosed two individuals fromN'ational City, San Diego County, California, which superficially seem to bridgethe gap between these species both in measurements and in general coloration.However, the outer superior wing-coverts and alula, even in these unusual spec-imens, are distinctly brighter than the same areas in the three specimens ofyumanensis examined.It would seem as if a siibspecific designation might have beenwiser, in view of the smaU series examined and our very limitedknowlege of its distribution. He is justified in saying, however, that
'?it is interesting to note that we here have a true clapper rail inhab-iting for the first recorded instance a purely fresh-water environ-ment."Eggs.?Laurence M. Huey has sent me, for description in this work,the only known egg of this rail, which was kindly loaned for thispurpose by Mrs. May Canfield. It was taken from the oviduct of abird, collected on May 27, 1921, by a boy named Edward Heiser,and presented to Mrs. Canfield. The parent is one of the series onwhich Mr. Dicke^^'s description was based. The egg resembles cer-tain eggs of Rallus levipes in a general way. It is ovate in shape,rounded at the small end; the shell is smooth and rather glossy.The ground color is between "pale pinkish buff" and "cartridgebuff"; it is sparingly spotted, chiefly around the larger end, withunderlying drab spots, varying in color from "vinaceous drab" tovery "pale eciu drab," and a few small spots and dots of darkbrowns, "chestnut brown" and "chocolate." It measures 41.8 by28.8 millimeters.Behavior.- -Mr. Huey has sent me a little additional information,as follows
:
On May 18, 1924, Mrs. May Canfield and I were collecting about a mile northof Potholes, Imperial County, California, when suddenly the clacking of clapperrails was heard in three different directions. At the time the Colorado Riverwas commencing to overflow its banks in the annual spring flood, and many low-places were filling from the river and muddy streams were flowing through thewillow bottom in many directions. It was along these streams that the railswere clacking. I pursued a pair of clacking birds whose voices seemed to issuefrom a large pond nearby, while Mrs. Canfield followed another pair nearer the
NORTH AMEBICAN MAKSH BIKDS 277
river. I never again heard my pair of birds, nor did I see them, but Mrs. Can-field had the good fortune of getting within 20 feet of her pair. Both wereswimming in the running water at the time, and appeared by their actions, tobe getting in line. As she has but a single-shot collecting gun, the thoughtstruck her that possibly both rails could be obtained at the same shot. Unfor-tunately the rails observed her before the time to shoot occured, and she gotneither.In regard to the voices of these birds?I had, but a few weeks before, been onthe rail marshes in the vicinity of San Diego Bay and had heard Rallus levipesclacking. I was therefore quite surprised at the thinner, higher note of the voiceof Rallus yumanensis, which is pitched at least three notes higher. However, itdescends the scale as do the voices of other clapper rails of my acquaintance.It is my opinion that the center of abundance of this rail is in the delta of theColorado River, but that, during the flood time, which usually occurs in Mayand June of each year, the lower reaches of the river are made uninhabitablefor the nesting of this bird and they annually come up the river seeking suitablelocalities in which to nest. It so happened in 1921 that the water was unusuallyhigh and hence the rails that formed the type series, now in the Dickey collection,were obtained unusually far up the river. Again, in 1924, the river was abovenormal, and rails were observed in the marshes above Potholes. It appears thatthese birds only come as far from the delta each summer as suitable nestinggrounds are to be found. Hence their occurrence at these northern stationsduring periods of excessively high water. This phenomenon might well beresponsible for the bird's extending its range into the vast tule marshes nowgrowing in Imperial Valley, California, though as yet no definite records of thisspecies have been forthcoming from that region.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?"So far as known, the fresh water riparian strip along theColorado River above Yuma, and adjacent irrigation canals in thevicinity of Laguna Dam" (Dickey 1923).BALLUS LONGIROSTRIS CREPITANS GmelinCLAPPER RAILHABITSIn the salt water marshes of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, fromsouthern New England to Texas, the clapper rail, in its various forms,has been a widely distributed,woll known, and conspicuous feature,though more often heard than seen; its loud clatter is still often heardin many places, but its popularity as a game bird and as an egg pro-ducer has greatly thinned its ranks; it no longer exists anywhere inanything like the astonishing abundance described by the earherwriters. Audubon (1840) boasted of having collected as many as72 dozen eggs in one day. He says further:In the Jerseys, it forms almost a regular occupation to collect the eggs of thisbird, and there I have seen 20 or more persons gathering them by thousandsduring the season; in fact, it is not an uncommon occurrence for an egger tocarry home 100 dozen in a day; and when this havoc is continued upwards of amonth, you may imagine its extent. The abundance of the birds themselves is92642?26t 19
278 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
almost beyond belief; but if you suppose a series of salt marshes 20 miles inlength and a mile in breadth, while at every 8 or 10 steps one or two birds maybe met with, you may calculate their probable number.Nesting.?Clapper rails were still common on the coast of Virginiawhen I was there in 1907, though in nothing like their former abun-dance. On Cobb and Wreck Islands, and on other large islands alongthe coast, the outer shore line is protected by long, high beaches ofbroken shells and sand and by great piles of oyster shells thrown upby the surf; behind these barriers are extensive tracts of low, fiat,salt marshes and meadows, intersected by numerous, winding tidalcreeks. At low tide broad mud flats are exposed to view in theestuaries and along the creeks, where the rails find suitable feedinggrounds. At ordinary high tides the marshes and meadows are moreor less covered with water; and at spring tides they are flooded, sothat only a few of the highest spots are above water and only thetops of the grasses are visible in the low places.During the few days that we spent in these marshes, from June 24to 28, we found a large number of nests of the clapper rail, whichmust have been second layings, for it was late in the season for themand yet most of them were not heavily incubated. Perhaps thespring tides had destroyed many of the first layings. Practically allof the nests that we found were on the higher and drier portionsof the marshes, which are only partially covered at high tide with afew inches of water. The nests were mostly built in the little clumpsof coarse, green, marsh grass, which was then about 18 or 24 incheshigh, growing principally along the banks of the creeks in the soft,wet mud. They varied in height, above the mud, from 8 to 12inches and were evidently intended to be high enough to escape theordinary high tides; but they were not all high enough to avoid thehigh course of spring tides. The nests were usually more or lessarched over, with pretty little canopies of green grass interlacedabove, through which the eggs could be plainly seen, making a verypretty picture; these little canopies were often conspicuous at a longdistance, making it easy to locate the nests. But in many cases thenests were entirely open and uncovered, in plain sight in the shortergrass. The nests were well made of dry sedges and grasses, and werelined with finer and shorter pieces of the same material ; they wereusually well cupped and measured from 7 to 10 inches in outside andfrom 5 to 6 inches in inside diameter. Many of the nests had well-defined runways leading to them and some were provided withpathways or stairways, made of dry grasses, leading up to them.One nest was concealed almost perfectly under a bunch of drift sea-weed, which had lodged on top of a thick clump of coarse, green grass;there was an entrance left open on one side which was the onlypoint from which the eggs were visible. Another nest was hidden
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 279
similarly under a bunch of drifted dead sedges. One nest was foundin a colony of Forster terns, within 3 feet of a tern's nest.Eggs.?The clapper rail lays from G to 14 eggs, but the usual num-bers run from 9 to 12. The shape is ovate and the shell is smoothand more or less glossy. The ground color varies from warm, yel-lowish buff to pale, greenish buff, or from dull, "cream buff" or"pinkish buff" to "ivory yellow" or "pale olive buff." The eggsare irregularly marked with small blotches and spots of variousshades of browns and drabs. Some eggs are richly colored withbold markings, others are finely speckled and some are very spar-ingly spotted. They average darker in color and are usually moreheavily marked than the eggs of the king rail. The measurementsof 50 eggs average 42.5 by 30 millimeters ; the eggs showing the fourextremes measure 48.5 by 31, 44 by 31.5, 37.5 by 28, and 41 by 27.5millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation is said to bo 14 days and it isprobably performed by both sexes. The young are precocial andleave the nest soon after they are hatched, to follow their motherthrough the marshes and learn to procure their own food. Underher guidance they soon learn to swim and to run and hide in thegreat jungle of marsh grass, where they are comparatively safe frommost of their enemies.Plumages.?The downy young clapper rail is wholly covered withsoft, thick, jet black down, glossy above and dull black below.The Juvenal plumage appears first on the sides of the breast, whereit is "mouse gray" or "pale mouse gray" in color; wliitish feathersthen invade the ventral region, a central strip of black down beingthe last to disappear from the breast; the back then becomes feath-ered with "hair bro^vn" and "mouse gray" plumage; the young birdis fully half gro^vn before the head becomes feathered or the wingsstart to grow; the latter are not fully grown until the young bird iscompletely feathered and has reached its full size.In the full Juvenal plumage some of the races can be recognizedby their characteristic colorings. In crepitans, from Virginia, theupper parts are mainly olive drab with broad edgings of "Quakerdrab"; the under parts are mostly dull whitish, washed with palebuff on the neck and variegated with "pale Quaker drab" on thesides. In scotti from Florida, the upper parts are much darker,nearly black with "clove brown" edgings; the sides of the head andflanks are lighter " clove brown"; and the throat and under partsare huffy white with dusky tipped feathers. In saturatus, from Texas
,
the Juvenal plumage is darker and more richly colored than increpitans, but not nearly so dark as in scotti.The Juvenal plumage is short lived, for almost as soon as it is com-pelted a molt of the contour plumage begins to produce the first
280 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
winter plumage, which is practically indistinguishable from that ofthe adult, the barred flanks are acquired in September and thechange is completed in October.Adults have a complete postnuptial molt in August and Septem-ber, the wings being renewed first and the body plumage last; theyapparently have a partial prenuptial molt of the contour plumagein early spring.Food.?Audubon (1840) writes:During ebb, the clapper rail advances toward the edge of the waters as theyrecede, and searches, either among the grasses, or along the deep furrows madeby the ebb and flow of the tides, for its food, which consists principally of smallcrabs, a species of salt-water snail attached to the rushes, the fry of fishes,aquatic insects, and plants. When the tide flows they gradually return, and athigh water they resort to the banks, where they remain concealed until thewaters begin to retreat. This species is by no means exclusively nocturnal, for itmoves about in search of food during the whole of the day, in this respect resem-bling the gallinules.Behavior.?The same gifted author, who evidently studied thehabits of this rail quite thoroughly, describes its various activitiesvery satisfactorily, as follows
:
The salt-water marsh hen swims with considerable ease, though not swiftly orgracefully. While in this act, it extends its neck forward, and strikes the waterwith its feet, as if unwilling to move far at a time, the motion of its neck resem-bling that of the gallinules. It dives well, remains a considerable time underwater, and in this manner dexterously eludes its pursuers, although it certainlydoes not possess the power of holding fast to the bottom, as some persons havealleged. When hard pressed, it often sinks just below the surface, keeping thebill above in order to breathe, and in this position, if not detected, remains for aconsiderable time. If perceived and approached, it instantly dives, and uses itswings to accelerate its progress, but rises as soon as it comes to a place ofsafety.Their m?vements on the ground, or over the partially submersed or floatingbeds of weeds, are extremely rapid, and they run swiftly off before a dog, theutmost exertions of which are required to force them on wing. Such an attemptby man would prove utterly futile, unless he were to come upon them unawares.When not pursued, and feeling secure, they jerk the tail upwards, although by nomeans so frequently as gallinules are wont to do. On the least appearance ofdanger, they lower the head, stretch out the neck, and move off with incompara-ble speed, always in perfect silence. They have thousands of paths among therank herbage, crossing each other so often that they can very easily escapepursuit; and, besides, they have a power of compressing their body to such adegree as frequently to force a passage between two stems so close that onecould hardly believe it possible for them to squeeze themselves through. Whenput up, they fly slowly and generally straight before you, with their legs dangling,so that they are very easily shot by a quick sportsman, as they rarely fly far ata time on such occasions, but prefer pitching down again into the first tuft ofrank grass in their way. When on their migrations, however, they pass lowand swiftly over the marshes, or the water, stretched to their full extent, andwith a constant beat of the wings.From about the beginning of March to that of April, the salt marshes resoundwith the cries of the clapper raU, which resembles the syllables " cac, cac, cac, cac,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 281
ca, caha, caha." The commencement of the cry, which is heard quite as fre-quently during day as by night, is extremely loud and rapid, its terminationlower and protracted. At the report of a gun, when thousands of these birdsinstantaneously burst forth with their cries, you may imagine what an uproarthey make. This bird seems to possess the power of ventriloquism, for, whenseveral hundred yards off, its voice often seems to be issuing from the grasparound you.Game.?The clapper rail has long been pursued as a game birdand countless thousands have been shot by, so-called, sportsmen.But it seems to possess few of the qualities of a good game bird. Itsflight is slow, weak and direct and it is so tame that it usually risesat close range; it is consequently one of the easiest of birds to shoot.When the marshes are covered with water, at high tides, the railsgather in large numbers in the few available high spots where thereis grass enough above water to conceal them; it is then a simplematter to pole a boat up to one of such spots and pot them, as theyfly slowly away in the open. The flesh of this rail will not comparein flavor with that of the sora, especially when the latter has beenfattened on wild rice; it is said to be insipid and sedgy, but is un-doubtedly tender and fairly palatable, as is the flesh of most birds,particularly young birds. Audubon (1840) has given us a graphicaccount of clapper rail shooting, as follows
:
About Charleston, in South Carolina, the shooting of marsh hens takes placefrom September to February, a few days in each month during the springtides.A light skiff or canoe is procured, the latter being much preferable, and paddledby one or two experienced persons, the sportsman standing in the bow, and hisfriend, if he has one with him, taking his station in the stern. At an early hourthey proceed to the marshes, amid many boats containing parties on the sameerrand. There is no lack of shooting grounds, for ever3' creek of salt waterswarms with marsh hens. The sportsman who leads has already dischargedhis barrels, and on either side of his canoe a bird has fallen. As the boat movesswiftly towards them, more are raised, and although he may not be ready, thesafety of the bird is in imminent jeopardy, for now from another bark doublereports are heard in succession. The tide is advancing apace, the boats merelyfloat along, and the birds, driven from place to place, seek in vain for safety.Here, on a lloating mass of tangled weeds, stand a small group side by side.The gunner has marked them, and presently nearly the whole covey is pros-trated. Now, onward to that great bunch of tall grass all the boats are seen tosteer; shot after shot flies in rapid succession; dead and dying lie all around onthe water; the terrified survivors are trying to save their lives by hurried flight;but their efforts are imavailing?one by one they fall, to rise no more. It is asorrowful sight after all; see that poor thing gasping hard in the agonies of death,its legs quivering with convulsive twitches, its bright eyes fading into glazedobscurity. In a few hours, hundreds have ceased to breathe the breath of life;hundreds that erstwhile revelled in the joys of careless existence, but which cannever behold their beloved marshes again. The cruel sportsman, covered withmud and mire, drenched to the skin by the splashing of the paddles, his face andhands besmeared with powder, stands amid the wreck which he has made, exu't-inglj' surveys his slaughtered heaps, and with joyous feelings returns home witha cargo of game more than enough for a family thrice as numerous as his own.
282 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMEnemies.?The gentle rail has many enemies which Audubon (1840)refers to, as follows:Their courage is now and then brought to the test by the sudden approach ofsome of their winged enemies, such as a hawk or an owl, especially the marshhawk, which is often attacked by them while sailing low over the grass in whichthey are commonly concealed. On such occasions, the rail rises a few yards inthe air, strikes at the marauder with bill and claws, screaming aloud all the while,and dives again among the grass, to the astonishment of the bird of prey, whichusually moves off at full speed. They are not so fortunate in their encounterswith such hawks as pounce from on high on their prey, such as the red-tailedand red-shouldered hawks, against which they have no chance of defending them-selves. Minks, racoons, and wild cats destroy a great number of them duringthe night, and many are devoured by turtles and ravenous fishes; but their worstenemy is man. My friend Bachman has shot so many as 60 in the course offour hours, and others have killed double that number in double the time.Wilson (1832) adds:These birds are also subject to another calamity of a more extensive kind:After the greater part of the eggs are laid, there sometimes happen violent north-east tempests that drive a great sea into the bay, covering the whole marshes;so that at such times the rail may be seen in hundreds, floating over the marshin great distress; many escape to the mainland; and vast numbers perish. Onan occasion of this kind I have seen, at one view, thousands in a single meadow,walking about exposed and bewildered, while the dead bodies of the females, whohad perished on or near their nests, were strewed along the shore. This lastcircumstance proves how strong the ties of maternal affection are in these birds;for of the great numbers which I picked up and opened, not one male was to befound among them; all were females. Such as had not yet begun to sit probablyescaped. These disasters do not prevent the survivors from recommencing thework of laying and building anew; and instances have occurred where their eggshave been twice destroyed by the sea; and yet in two weeks the eggs and nestsseemed as nunxerous as ever. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Salt marshes of the Atlantic coast from southeasternMaine to northeastern North Carolina.Breeding range.?The clapper rail breeds north to Connecticut(Saybrook) and south to North Carolina (Pea and Brodie Islands).The oast and west limits of its range are, of course, determined bythe width of the salt-marsh belt.Winter range.?North, casually, to New York (Far Rockaway,L. I.) and south to Georgia (Savannah and St. Marys). The specieshas also occurred in winter in Connecticut (Stamford, February 9,1900).Casual records.?Specimens have been taken or observed in Mass-achusetts (East Orleans, Springfield, Ipswich, Kingston, Boston, andPlymouth) ; New Hampshire (Portsmouth) ; and Maine (PophamBeach and Sabattus Pond).
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 283Egg dates.?Virginia: 46 records, April 16 to July 17; 23 records,May 27 to July 3. New Jersey and Long Island: 21 records, May24 to June 21; 11 records, May 30 to June 5.RALLUS LONGIKOSTRIS SATURATUS RidgwayLOUISIANA CLAPPER RAILHABITSA somewhat more richly colored race of the clapper rail inhabits theGulf coast regions from Alabama westward to Corpus Christi,Texas. It does not differ materially in its habits from the Atlanticcoast races, except that in some places in Texas it is found quite farinland in brackish swamps. We found this rail common on the lowmarshy islands and mud lumps off the coast of Louisiana near thedelta of the Mississippi, where it was doubtless breeding in the longsalt-marsh grass. The coast of Texas, from Bolivar Peninsula,which separates part of Galveston Bay from the Gulf of Mexico, toNeuces Bay at Corpus Christi, is lined with salt marshes and brack-ish meadows, which often extend many miles up the rivers. Manyof the islands arc low and marshy, covered with long grass. Andscattered all over the broad, coastal strip are numerous sloughs andmarshy ponds, overgrown or bordered with rank growths of marshgrass and sedges. Throughout all of this region, which we exploredmore or less hurriedly, we found the Louisiana clapper rail living un-der ideal conditions. These marshes are so extensive that it is ahopeless task to attempt to explore them thoroughly; the rails didnot seem to be particularly abundant anywhere, so we made onlyspasmodic efforts to hunt for nests in a few places and did not suc-ceed in finding any.My companion on the Texas trip, George Finlay Simmons, hasmade quite an extensive study of the history and habits of this railin Texas and has pubhshed two interesting papers (1914 and 1915)on the subject. The following passages, taken from his first paper(1914) will give a good idea of the haunts of this bird:From the timber of the Brazos River bottoms northward and eastward alongthe coast is the low, nearly level coast prairie of Texas. The only vegetation of thisprairie is the tall grass, usually burned brown by the hot summer sun and killedby the cold "northers" which sweep over Texas in winter; here and there ahuisache {VachelUa farnesiana) and an occasional "motte" of three or four scrubbyoaks serve to break the monotony. A few slowly winding bayous cross thisplain, but the water in them rarely ever flows; these bayous are generally skirtedby timber, but many of them contain marshy spots overgrown with tall grass,reeds, and sedge. At the mouths of these bayous the country is usually so flatand low that the water spreads over a considerable area, forming innumerablemarshy flats and salt-water marshes, where tall grass, reeds and sedge grow inabundance. In winter large numbers of ducks and other waterfowls attract thehunter, but in summer these marshes are abandoned to the rails, mottled ducks
284 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand herons. Farther inland from the coast, throughout this strip of coast prai-rie, are numbers of shallow ponds overgrown with reeds and sedge, and spotswhere tall grass and reeds grow over several inches of water.My favorite spot for the Louisana clapper rail is a small red-wing blackbirdcolony about 6 miles south of the courthouse in Houston, being a mere dampspot on the prairie covering about two acres, and overgrown with tall grass andsedge. Two small clumps of persimmon trees grow in this marsh, one at eitherend. Though fully 22 miles from Galveston Bay and 50 miles from the Gulfof Mexico, this salt marsh might be termed a typical salt marsh, for here nesteda pair of Texas seaside sparrows, and not a mile off to the south a nest of themottled duck with 11 eggs was found in another such marsh.Nesting.?Mr. Simmons (1914) gives more or less detailed accountsof a number of nests of the Louisiana clapper rail, found by him andby E. F. Pope, from which it appears that its nesting habits do notdiffer materially from those of its eastern relatives, except that thenests seem to be more widely scattered. His notes on one nest arewell worth quoting, as foUows:On my way home I stopped at the red-wing colony again to try to get a lookat the rail on the nest. Slowly T drew nearer and nearer to the nest, but I couldnot tell whether there was a bird on it or not, so still did she sit and so perfectlydid she blend into the background that I was unable to see her until I was withinabout three feet of the nest.Sitting on one heel while using the opposite knee as an improvised table, Ichecked down a few descriptive notes and sketches in my note book, although Ifeared she would leave the nest while I was doing so. However, she did not, butremained on the nest eyeing me askant, her slightly curved bill nearly sidewiseto me. Dropping my note book and other paraphernalia, I arose until I washalf over the bird on the nest; I could easily have caught her and might havestroked her as she sat on the nest, had I not been so slow. But as I remainedin that position for several minutes without moving, she began to get nervous,and while I stood there watching her she stepped off the nest into a well-definedlittle runway or path leading away from it. So slowly did she go and such timedid she take to lift her feet at each step that I could have counted a second ortwo between each stride. About 12 feet away she stopped and half turned towatch me as I examined the nest and eggs.The nest was 8J^ inches across the top from rim to rim; the cavity was 2*4inches deep, being a gradual slope from rim to rim, with the reeds firmly andsmoothly packed inside. For the most part the nest was composed of reeds andfragments of reeds or marsh grass from 1 inch to over a foot in length; a fewwere somewhat longer, being the standard blades of grass which had been bentflat against the ground and folded back again. The lining was of small frag-ments of the same buffy, broad-bladed marsh grass, and packed flat against thebody of the nest.Eggs.?The eggs of the Louisiana clapper rail are not distinguish-able from those of the other subspecies. The measurements of 40eggs average 42 b}^ 29.3 millimeters; the eggs showing the four ex-tremes measure 46 by 30, 41.2 by 31.6, 39.5 by 28.5, and 40 by 28.4millimeters.Food.?Mr. Simmons (1914) says that the food of these rails "con-sists of small crabs, slugs, snails, aquatic insects, grasshoppers, and
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 285
occasionally a few seeds." He quotes some interesting notes madeby Mr. Pope, as follows:At one point I squatted on my heels and remained stationary for a fewmoments and was rewarded by seeing a rail walk out of the grass into the mudand begin feeding, which it did by thrusting its bill into the soft mud and feelingaround and stirring its food to the top, now and then securing a shrimp or asmall minnow. I was advised by an old fisherman who lives on the bay shoreabout 3 miles from Flake, that he had often seen these birds feeding on youngdiamond-backed terrapin, which were once quite plentiful in this part of the bayand which deposited their eggs in the shell banks along the shore, the eggs hatch-ing and the young taking to the adjacent marsh and bayous, probably to escapetheir numerous enemies in the bay. There they fell before the rails.On warm days the "fiddler" or fighting crabs would crawl out of their holesaround the old schooner and were eagerly devoured by the rails. After catchingone of the crabs they would usually remove the large claw before swallowing thevictim. This was often accomplished with the assistance of a neighbor whowould hold the crab in his beak while the other wrenched off the objectionablelimb; but this method v/as not always satisfactory to the bird that removed theclaw, as the one that held the crab usually proceeded to bolt it while the otherwas left to hold the claw, or rather to drop it. On one occasion when the crabswere not plentiful, a rail found and tackled an unusually large "fiddler," whichit mauled around in the mud for some time without apparent effect. Sud-denly, as if getting an idea, it left the crab and disappeared on the other side ofthe schooner, to return a moment later with a companion, the two soon disarm-ing Mr. Crab. Now, I presume the same rail came back; they are so much alikeit is impossible to tell one from the other under such conditions, but fromthe way the birds went straight to the spot where the crab was left, I did notdoubt the bird in the lead being the one that found the crab. Which one gotthe crab I can not say, as after scuffling over him, they disappeared from mysight in the tall grass.Behavior.?I once saw a good demonstration of the swimming abil-ity of this rail, while collecting off the coast of Louisiana; I flusheda rail from a small grassy island and was surprised to see the bird flyoff and settle on the water about 100 yards offshore, where it swamabout as unconcernedly as a duck.Mr. Simmons (1914) makes the following observ^ations on behavior:Doubtless the reader will be supriscd that the rail has ever been known toperch; indeed, I was more than surprised. On one occasion, in August, 1912, Iwas surprised to see a clapper rail flap up out of the marsh and light on a flat-topped post of the barbed wire fence, where it remained for some few minutes,standing there on the small flat surface as imconcerned as if on its marshy homeground.The voice of the clapper rail is peculiar indeed, its loud, harsh cackling resem-bling that of a Guinea fowl or the sound produced by some automatic toys.This harsh cackling might be likened to the sound of: " ckack-chack-chack-chack-chack-chack-chack-chack," rapidly repeated. This call is usually heard about thebreak of day and again about dusk; sometimes, however, it is heard during thedaytime or at night, though rarely. On Bolivar Peninsula Mr. Pope says that hecould always tell when a " norther" was due by the clatter of the rails, as theyinvariably heralded its approach several hours before its arrival.92642?20t 20
286 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMDuring the mating season in March, at which time they congregate in smallflocks, Mr. Pope says that the birds became very noisy, especially late in the af-ternoon and about dusk. At the start of the nesting season, however, they quieteddown. While I was examining nest No. 2 the parent bird now and thenuttered a note which resembled the "keck" of the red-winged blackbird. Attimes during the early part of the breeding season I have stopped to watch adultrails which appeared very ill at ease. The note uttered under these conditionsis a hoarse grunting noise sounding like "bruck" or " gruck." The newly hatchedyoung have a constant, but very faint twitter, and a note reminding me, as statedbefore, of the "cheap" of a tiny domestic chick.Enemies.?Evidently the clapper rails of Texas are disappearing,owing to the same causes as prevail elsewhere, for Mr. Simmons (1914)writes:Once common, the birds are rapidly becoming scarce. If protection is notafl'orded them at once they will soon be wiped out entirely. Hunters kill num-bers of them during the hunting season. In fact, it is one of the easiest of thewater birds to secure on the wing, and therefore is one of the first to be shot bythe amateur marksman. Mr. Pope observed that numbers of them fell victims tosteel traps which he had set in the pathways of the mink in the marshes nearFlake. These rails caught in the traps were usually devoured by mink if caughtin the night, and most of those caught were taken then. The majority of thenests located by Mr. Pope in the Bolivar marshes in 1912 were usually founddestroyed before the sets of eggs were complete, probably by mink, raccoon,or opossum, as tracks of these animals were in evidence in the immediate vicin-ity of the several nests. The eggs remaining in the nests or on the ground near-by had the appearance of having been sucked.Probably the greatest factor the rails have to contend with in their fight forexistence is the flooding of the marshes, both from high tide and from heavyrains. At such times the birds are much exposed and bewildered and manydrown. In the seaside marshes they build their nests on the banks of thesloughs or bayous instead of the higher parts of the marsh, and in rainy spellsnumbers of nests are destroyed. They are naturally very delicate birds andsensitive to the cold of the more severe winters; many freeze to death wherethey are unable to secure shelter. During November and December 1913 Texaswas visited by one of the most destructive floods of its history, two of the larg-est rivers of the State rising and overflowing miles and miles of the lowlandstowards the coast. During that time numbers of the rails left the marshes andtook to higher ground until the waters receded. One of these birds was caughtin a bewildered condition in Mr. Farley's yard in Port Aransas in October.Winter?Of the winter habits of these rails, he says
:
In the colder weather they haunt drifts of logs or trash in the marshes, wherethey take shelter from the cold north wind and from rains. But as the ther-mometer rarely falls below freezing in this semitropical coast country, the birdsare rarely forced to seek shelter, and their actions and habits then are not notice-ably different from other times of the year. In winter in the marshes on BolivarPeninsula Mr. Pope says that the birds were fully as common in winter as insummer, if not more so. In traveling through the grass the birds had well-beatenpaths about 6 inches wide, and from the way these paths were beaten out in thevicinity of the bayous, it would appear that the birds were much more common.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 287DISTRIBUTIONRange.?The Louisiana clapper rail is confined to the salt marshesof the Gulf coast extending east to Alabama (Perdido Bay) and prob-ably western Florida (Pensacola); and west through Mississippi (Bil-oxi); Louisiana (New Orleans, Grand Island, and Vermilion Bay);and Texas (Galveston, Port Lavaca, Corpus Christi, and Browns-ville). So far as is known it is nonmigratory.Egg dates.?Mississippi to Texas: 15 records, April 13 to June 28;8 records, April 30 to June 8.RALLUS LONGIROSTRIS SCOTTI SennettFLORIDA CLAPPER RAILHABITSThis is the dark colored race of the clapper rail which is found onthe Gulf coast of Florida, from Charlotte Harbor to the mouth of theSuwanee River and perhaps beyond both points, where it seems to beconfined to the salt-water marshes, particularly about the mouths ofrivers. At the mouth of the Suwanee River, Messrs. Brewster andChapman (1891) found these rails to be "the most common and charac-teristic birds"; they say of their haunts:The marshes and small islands at the mouth of the river were covered with atall grass, each blade of which ended in a very sharp point or spine. Beneaththe upright grass there was a mat of dead grass representing probably the growthof previous years. This formed a dense mass?a foot or more in thickness
?
and raised 15 or 20 inches above the ground. Beneath this mat the rails hadtheir runways from which it was almost impossible to dislodge them. At inter-vals of 15 or 20 minutes one would call out when another would answer, and thenstill another, until the call was taken up by dozens of birds in succession. Wedid not observe that these outcries were at all stimulated or excited by any sud-den noise, such as the report of a gun, as in the case with the Carolina rail. Aftera vain attempt to flush these birds by wading in the marshes, we were obligedto resort to firing the islands in order to obtain specimens.Dr. Louis B. Bishop (1904) describes a similar haunt, as follows:At the mouth of the Anclote River stretches a wide marsh overgrown with acylindrical, sharp-pointed rush, stiff and sharp enough to bring blood after pass-ing through several thicknesses of cloth. As these rushes die and bend overnew ones take their place, resulting in a breast-high tangle through which it isdifficult to force one's way, and even dangerous on account of one inhabitantof this marsh with which I became acquainted. Channels of varying widthintersect the reeds, becoming at low water small stretches of sand flat. This isthe home of Scott's rail, and he cHngs closely to it, not flying unless driven tocross some narrow opening, and then burying himself rapidly in the tangle beyond.Even these open spaces he prefers, under ordinary circumstances, to cross byrunning.Courtship.?W. E. D. Scott (1889) says:They begin to mate in February, and the breeding season is at its height bythe 1st of April. During the mating season the male birds are very pugnacious
288 BULLETIN 136, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand resent any intrusions from others of the species. At such times I have seenthem have pitched battles, and finally, one giving in and taking to flight, thevictor would pursue the vanquished on the wing for several hundred feet andthen return to the neighborhood of the particular tuft of grass that sheltered thenest. At such times, on alighting, the peculiar rattUng notes so characteristic ofthe bird are indulged in with more than ordinary vigor.C. J. Pennock has sent me the following notes on the courtshipof this rail:Regarding the mating of Scott's rail, I have found these birds at St. Marks andalso about Punta Gorda quite silent throughout the winter season. Only whenconsiderably alarmed, at that period will they utter more than a hasty alarm. Asnesting time approaches or by early March, they may be heard even with littleor no cause, so far as the observer can determine. When mating is at the flood,one and not rarely two birds may be seen making short flights above the tops ofthe reeds. Only once did I hear one of these flying birds call out, and then twobirds were in close company. On April 16, 1923, as I stood in a much-traveledroadway bordered on either side by a tidal ditch and small marshes and but 75yards from the bay shore, what proved to be two males and a female Scott's railcame in sight. One and then quickly a second bird crossed the roadway anddisappeared into a small clump of scrub palmettos. The smaller, the female,promptly came out onto the open sand near the ditch, walking slowly and fre-quently stopping, the characteristic jerking of body and tail much exagger-a,ted; two other birds now appeared near the palmettos and for two or threeminutes they were in full chase in and out of difl'erent small covers. Whenthis encounter ceased, with the running off of one bird, the other came towardthe yet visible female and approached her by short runs, with turns and ges-tures of body and wings, at times half open; the female meanwhile moved slowlytoward a small patch of reeds, and finally dropped with body quite flat and headstretched well forward, but not quite to the ground, when the male came to herand the mating was complete.Nesting.?Doctor Bishop (1904) describes a nest of this rail, asfollows
:
Although I looked for nests of Scott's rail on each trip that we made to thisand other marshes, as it was evident they were laying, it was not until March 31that I found my first and only nest. This was on a small mangrove island inthe Anclote River near its mouth. Surrounding the mangroves was a narrowbelt of the same rushes that composed the marsh, and the nest was situated onthe ground in the rushes about 10 feet from shore, where they jutted into themangroves, one of which shaded the nest. The nest was a mass about 1 foot inheight composed of small pieces of dead rushes carelessly piled together, linedwith fragments of the same, and only slightly hollowed. There were seven eggsin the nest and the same number on April 2, when I collected them, so, althoughfresh, they were doubtless a full set. On neither occasion did I see or hear theparent, but there can be little doubt of the identification, as Scott's is the onlylarge rail I found near Anclote.Eggs.?Except for the fact that they average slightly smaller, theeggs of this rail are not distinguishable from the eggs of the othereastern clapper rails. The measurements of 13 eggs average 40.4 by29.9; the eggs showing the four extremes measured 43.6 by 31.4; and37 bv 27.7 miUimeters.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 289Behavior.?Mr. Scott (1889) writes:They are confined, so far as I am aware, to the salt-water marshes, and aboutTarpon Springs are abundant the year around. They do not app>ear to be asretiring in their habits as are their congeners, aad are frequently to be seen feed-ing at low tide on the exposed banks of mud and sand. At such times they are verytame and unsuspicious, and may be approached within a few feet. If alarmedthey run to the neighboring shelter of coarse grass of the salt water marsh bntpresently return to feed, even though the intruder remains close at hand. Nowand then one or two may be seen swimming some narrow arm of the bayou, andseveral times I have found pairs at least 300 or 400 feet from shore, swimmingabout and apparently feeding on some small fish or Crustacea.N. B. Moore says in his notes:I once measured the footprints of the clapper rail, made on a smooth and nakedsand bar, over which it had passed at night. I found the interval between themfor several steps to be 19 inches. It would be fair to suppose that these wereimpressed when the bird ran at its utmost speed. Even then this extent ofreach is suprising when the shortness of the tarsus is called to mind, it being inthe largest birds only 2% inches; besides, I do not think this species uses its wingsin running, as some birds are known to do.This length of stride is rather remarkable for so small a bird; Mr.Moore found that the longest stride of a sandhill crane measured 193^inches and the average was about 15 inches; and the longest stephe could find of the great blue heron was only 19J^ inches.During the winter and spring of 1924 and 1925 we found theserails very common in all the numerous salt-water marshes that wevisited on the Gulf coast of Florida from Tarpon Springs to TampaBay, living in the localities so well described above. They were moreoften heard than seen, but occasionally one would show itself on theopen mud flats near the edge of the reeds, or, more rarely, one couldbe flushed from the dense tangles of sharp pointed reeds. I believethat they live, at certain seasons, among the red mangroves, whereon several occasions I saw them feeding on the muddy shores of smallponds, far from any reedy marshes. I never succeeded in finding anoccupied nest, though I spent considerable time in exploring suitablemarshes.Mr. Pennock writes to me:Along the St. Marks River, for 7 miles up its length, to the confluence withWakulla River, l}/^ miles below the little village of St. Marks, such conditionsof marsh, as are above described, do prevail and continue along the main streamclose up to the fish houses. On both sides of these two rivers the open marshesmaintain from one-half to over a mile in width, with numerous wide drainingcreeks which under ordinary weather conditions have wide, bare mud flats oneither shore at low tide. In such localities the " salt-water " rail can be observedmost readily. The brooding bird, from late March until June or later, hurriesalong the border of the reeds or scurries out toward the water's edge, peckinghere and there for a tidbit or tarrying long enough to probe successfully for aburrowing fiddler crab and then hustling along for further repast, all quite in themanner of a barnyard "setting hen." Later the brood of sable chicks tag along
290 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMbehind the adult, their numbers usually lessening rapidly as days go by, fromtoll levied by their numerous predatory neighbors, which include fish crows, someof the smaller hawks, snakes, and turtles. While the old bird at this time issolicitous for her charge, she is not hurried in her actions. At other seasons ofthe year and under normal feral conditions the movements of the adult bird arestately, graceful, and attractive.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?'^onrmgT&toTy. The range of the Florida clapper railextends from extreme southeastern Alabama (Perdido Bay), alongthe Gulf coast of Florida (St. Marks, mouth of the Suwanee River,Cedar Keys, Anclote Keys, Tarpon Springs, Clearwater, TampaBay, Charlotte Harbor to near Fort Myers). It probably breedsthroughout this range although the occurrence in Alabama is basedupon a single specimen (Howell) and was possibly a wanderer.Egg (Za^es.?Florida: 18 records, April 18 to July 30; 9 records,May 6 to 26. RALLUS LONGIROSTRIS WAYNEI BrewsterWAYNE CLAPPER RAILHABITSThe clapper rails of the Atlantic coast, from North Carolina toFlorida, have been designated as a subspecies under the above name.This subspecies seems to be of doubtful value; the characters onwhich it is separated are a generally darker color, more ashy underparts and under tail-coverts with fewer markings; at best it seemsto be only intermediate between crepitans and scotti; and if we areto recognize intermediate races in nomenclature there will be no endof splitting.Dr. Louis B. Bishop (1904) describes the haunts of this rail, as fol-lows:With this bird I have become well acquainted at Pea Island on the coast ofNorth Carolina. Pamlico Sound is separated from the Atlantic by a belt of drift-ing sand and mud flats, that broadens in places sufficiently to support trees andbushes, and narrows in others to but the ocean beach backed by a mile of sandyflats, where may frequently, be seen in position the stumps of trees that grew therein past centuries. The sound side of this belt is bordered here and there bymeadows of salt marsh, some of these quite similar to the wetter marshes of theNew England coast, and covered like them with a coarse grass or sedge, whileothers are densely grown with rushes evidently closely related to those thatcompose the salt marshes of western Florida. These marshes are the home ofWayne's rail, and at evening or in cloudy weather you will hear their harshcackle, and occasionally see one of the birds walking along the margin of an inlet,ready to run quickly to the grass at the slightest sign of danger. In winterapparently the great majority go farther south, the true clapper rail occurring atthis season in about equal numbers; but in May the marshes are filled with thesebirds and the clapper rail is rare.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 291C. J. Maynard (1896) writes?The coasts of South Carolina and Georgia are low, and many sounds make into the land, which receive the contents of numerous rivers. Between thesesounds, are islands, back of which are creeks of varying widths, in which the tiderises and falls; while between these bodies of water and the mainland, are ex-tensive marshes, many miles in width. These level tracts are scarcely elevatedabove low water mark, consequently are overflowed by every flood tide, and dur-ing the extreme high water that occurs at the full of the moon even the grasstops of all but some of the more elevated spots are submerged. As remarked,these marshes are widely spread, extending from the islands to the westward, asfar as eye can reach, and stretching from the extreme northern confines of theState of South Carolina, quite to Florida. Many aquatic birds find a home inthis lonely reach of country, but by far the most abundant, at all seasons are theclapper rails, and their harsh voices may be heard at all hours of the day andnight, as they skulk through the grass or run along the margins of the creeks insearch of food. Like all the members of this genus, these rails are difficult totart, and the only way in which they can be secured in numbers, is to watch theoccurrence of a spring tide which, overflowing nearly everything, forces the birdsto take refuge in the few clumps of grass left uncovered, or they will sit upon thefloating debris and quietly await the falling of the water.Nesting.?The nesting habits of this subspecies do not differ mate-rially from those of its more northern representative, as the followingaccount by Doctor Bishop (1904) will illustrate:Although I have taken incubated eggs by May 2, the greater number of railsdo not begin to lay until about this date, and some postpone this duty until thelatter half of the month. The nests are scattered everywhere over the marshes,the bases of some resting in the water, and of others on dry ground. In therushes a spot is selected under a thick mass of semiprostrate stems; in the coarsemarsh grass as thick a clump as possible is chosen, and the tips of the grass seemto be bent over as a canopy to the nest. This bending over of the tops of thegrass is sometimes sufficiently evident to draw one's attention to the spot. Thenest is a slightly hollowed heap of small pieces of dead rush or grass stem.Troup D. Perry writes to me that this rail does not always breedin wet places, as he has found it nesting in Beaufort County, SouthCarolina, on high, dry land, where the nest was a slight hollow in theground, lined with bits of dry grass, and 30 or 40 feet from a creek.He once found a nest on the top of a sand dune 15 feet high andabout 200 feet from any water; the nest was a slight hollow, linedwith dry grass, among the lavender bushes that covered the sand dune.Eggs.?The eggs of this subspecies are indistinguishable from thoseof the other clapper rails. The measurements of 40 eggs average41.5 by 29.1 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure46.2 by 28.8, 41.3 by 30.6, 36.6 by 27.9, 37.8 by 27.8 millimeters.Behavior.?Doctor Bishop (1904) says of this bird;At all times Wayne's rail is a shy and secretive bird, never flying if it can helpit, but an adept at running, dodging and hiding, and can seldom be forced fromthe grass without the aid of a dog. Against the wind it can not fly, and evenwith the wind its progress is slow and seldom sustained for more than 100 yards.With a fresh breeze blowing I have seen a rail roll over and over when it attemptedto alight on the hard sand.
292 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMEnemies.?Mr. Arthur T. Wayne (1910), for whom this bird wasnamed, writes:This bird is well known to all the inhabitants along the coast, and during thespring tides in September, October, and November, countless thousands areannually killed, yet there is no diminution in its numbers, as the birds are vigor-ous and very prolific, and two broods are annually raised, each pair being ableto raise 24 young under favorable circumstances. These birds, however, haveinnumerable enemies to contend with during the breeding season, as crows taketheir eggs at every opportunity, crabs catch the young, and the mink is ever onthe alert; while spring tides often wash away the nest and eggs. Yet with allthese vicissitudes there is absolutely no diminution of their numbers. From thelast of February until November the notes of this bird can be daily heard, andI have often heard it shriek when the marsh hawk (Circus hudsonius) wasattacking it. These birds are generally very quiet at high water, but as soon asthe tide begins to recede, their notes can be heard all through the marshes.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Atlantic coast of the United State from southeastern NorthCarolina to the central part of the east coast of Florida. The breed-ing range extends north to North Carolina (Beaufort) and south alongthe coast to South Carolina (Mount Pleasant and Frogmore) ; Geor-gia (Savannah, St. Katherine's Island, Blackbeard Island, Darien,St. Simons Island, Cumberland, and St. Marys); and Florida (Fer-nandina, Pilot Town, Matanzas Inlet, Sea Breeze, and MosquitoInlet). In winter it is found somewhat farther south (near the headof Indian River, Florida).Egg dates.?South Carolina: 18 records, March 9, to June 24; 9records. May 6 to 16. Georgia: 23 records, March 23 to June 25;12 records, May 3 to June 3. Florida: 12 records. May 19 to July25; 6 records, May 24 to 28.RALLUS VIRGINIANUS LinnaeusVIRGINIA RAILHABITSContributed by Charles Wendell TownsendThe Virginia rail, hke most of its family, is rarely seen except bythose who know its ways, and, even when heard, its strange noisesare often attributed to frogs or other creatures. One who has seenonly the usual short and feeble flights of this bird would receive withastonishment, if not with incredulity, the statement that someindividuals migrate annually many hundreds of miles. Suoh, how-ever, must be the case, for the Virginia rail winters but sparselynorth of North Carolina and it breeds as far north a*; Quebec andeven Manitoba.Spring.?Audubon (1840) describes the arrival of this bird asfollows
:
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 293The males usually arrive at the breeding places a week or 10 days before thefemales. They travel silently and by night, as I have ascertained by observingthem proceed singly and in a direct course, at a height of only a few feet, overour broad rivers, or over level land, when their speed is such as is never mani-fested by them under ordinary circumstances. Their movements can be easilytraced for 50 yards or so during nights of brilliant moonshine, when you seethem passing with a constant beat of the wings, in the manner of a green-wingedteal.This low flight in migration accounts for the fact that their deadbodies are sometimes found under telegraph lines or under wire fences.Courtship.?Audubon (1840) was fortunate in witnessing the court-ship dance of the Virginia rail, and thus describes it:The notes of the rail came loudly on my ear, and on moving toward the spotwhence they proceeded, I observed the bird exhibiting the full ardor of his pas-sion. Now with open wings raised over its body, it ran around its beloved,opening and flirting its tail with singular speed. Each time it passed before her,it would pause for a m(unent, raise itself to the full stretch of its body and legs,and bow to her with all the grace of a well-bred suitor of our own species. Thefemale also bowed in recognition, and at last, as the male came nearer and nearerin his circuits, yielded to his wishes, on which the pair flew off in the mannerof house pigeons, sailing and balancing their bodies on open wings until out ofsight. During this exhibition, the male emitted a mellow note, resembling thesyllables "cuckoe, cuckoe," to which the female responded with the kind of lispingsound uttered by young birds of the species when newly hatched.The courtship song of the Virginia rail suggests at a distance thesounds made by striking an anvil with a hammer which rebounds.If the bird is near at hand the sound suggests the clicking of a tele-graph instrument. The song has a peculiar vibrant, metalHc qualityand may bo written down "Jcid-iclc, Tcid-ick, Jcid-icJc,"oT again "cut, cut,cvi-ah, cut-ah." It is sometimes repeated many times and may beheard at night as well as by day, for this bird, although largely diur-nal in its habits, is often abroad during the night hours.Nesting.?-The nest of the Virginia rail is cunningly concealed andis almost always built in a fresh-watermarsh or near fresh water. Occa-sionally, however, it is found in the upper reaches of salt marshes thatare sometimes overflowed by storm tides. Although it usually selectsa dryer place in the marsh than the sora, yet it not infrequentlybuilds its nest over water. One such nest I found in an extensivegrowth of cat-tails in water 6 inches deep on the edge of a pond.The nest was slung a foot from the water, was S inches in diameterand was composed of coarse grasses and cat-tails. Often, even inwater, the nest rests on the mud and is composed of a great mass ofgrasses and reeds, forming sometimes a towerlike structure 7 or 8inches high. J. A. Weber (1909) describes such a nest that was
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in the center of a circular bunch of growing cat-tails. It consisted of a mass ofcat-tail blades and stems, placed layer upon layer, the foundation resting on the
294 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMmud, so that the rim of the nest was 7 inches above the surface of the water.The inside of the nest was rather shallow, 4^4 by 43^ inches in diameter, andlined with cat-tail blade chips J^ to 2 inches in length.F. S. Hersey in his notes describes a nest that
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was built up in a tussock of grass in a rather dry spot bordering a cat-tail marsh.One end of the nest was somewhat depressed?in fact, so much that the eggsrolled dangerously near the edge?and from the depressed side a narrow runwaysloped down about 2 feet to the level of the ground.P. L. Hatch (1892) noticed that when the first egg was laid therewas only a slight depression in the nest and he thinks that this be-comes deeper as egg laying and incubation progress. He supposesthat the male continues to build up the structure around the female,in which work she assists, and he also thinks that the weight of herbody helps to deepen the excavation.Eggs,?[Author's note: The Virginia rail lays from 7 to 12 eggs;I have never heard of any larger sets. The eggs are easily distin-guished from those of the sora rail, which often breeds in the samemarshes, as they are Hghter colored, less heavily marked, and lessglossy. In shape they vary from ovate to elongate ovate. Theshell is smooth with very little or no gloss. The ground color is palebuff, varying from "pinkish buff" to "cartridge buff" or nearly white.They are sparingly and irregularly spotted, often chiefly around thelarger end, with "hazel," "russet," "cinnamon-brown" and "armybrown"; some specimens have a few spots of light shades of "drab-gray." The measurements of 73 eggs average 32 by 24.5 miUimeters;the eggs showing the four extremes measure 36 by 24, 34 by 25.6, 29by 22.6 millimeters.]Young.?The exact length of incubation has not been recorded,but it is known to be not less than 15 days. The young come outof the egg with their eyes open and are so active that they leave thenest even before the coal-black down in which they are clad is dry.The first chicks often leave the nest before the rest of the eggs arehatched. In a few days, at the latest, the nest is deserted, in allcases observed, although it is possible that when undisturbed byvisitors, human or other, the young may remain in the nest a littlelonger. As the female begins incubation before all the eggs are laid,several days may elapse between the hatching of the first and thelast egg. Bowdish (1891) says that the young are conducted awayby one parent as fast as hatched, while the other parent continuesto incubate.From the beginning, the downy young are good swimmers anddivers, and are well able to run over the ground and to climb about inthe reeds and grasses, making use of their large feet and claws andof their httle wings, each of which is provided with a tiny claw onthe outer digit.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 295Verdi Burtch's (1917) observations of the young and their parentsare of much interest. He says:On May 11, 1908, the eggs were just beginning to hatch in a nest that I hadfound some few days before, and, as I approached, the female sUpped from thenest and away through the cat-tails. She was quickly followed by the two littleones, although they were but a few hours old. The nest was surrounded bywater so that the birds had to swim, but even then they managed to elude me.Hoping to get a picture of the nest and eggs I set up my camera, and, while focusing,the mother appeared, carrying one of the little ones in her bill, dropped it intothe nest, went on, and settled down to brood.In another nest on
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June 17 the eggs were beginning to hatch, and there were six silky little ones inthe nest. Three of them followed the mother when she left the nest and hid in theflags around its base. The three others were not yet dry and with their bright eyesshining lay kicking and struggling to get out of the nest. Soon the mothercame back calling softly " ka-ka-ka-ka-ka," and the young ones left theirhiding place and ran to her. One of them fell into one of my foot tracks,and the mother came quickly and taking it up, ran off into the flags, carrying itdangling from her bill as a cat carries her kittens. The male now showed himselffor the first time.On the next day all but one were hatched and that one appeareda few minutes later. Whereupon all left the nest and hid. Whenthe mother appeared and called softly ''Mu-kiu-Mu-kiu," endingwith a grunting noise, they all ran to her.Late in July both parents and young will be found on the muddy shore wherethey feed and dodge back into the flags at the least sign of danger. At thistime the young are about half grown and still keep their downy appearance.When feeding, the mother comes out on the mud, a young one following, andwhen she finds a choice morsel it is there to receive it. Back in the flags theother young are following, uttering plaintive peeps. As soon as one is fed itreturns to the flags and another one comes out to take its place.While the parent birds usually slip unseen from the nest beforethe young are hatched, they are much bolder when the chicks areabout. J. A. Weber (1909) relates a case where the female, flushedfrom her nest, remained in the immediate vicinity
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strutting about with her feathers puffed up and wings spread like a turkey cock,giving her a rather formidable appearance; at the same time she uttered a lowgrunting sound which I had never heard from a rail before and quite unliketheir characteristic notes. The male showed his interest by his sharp " keck-keck-keck-keck " calls, evidently trying to lead me away from the nest.Verdi Burtch (1917) was almost attacked by a female bird withwings drooping and feathers ruffled, and when he attempted to photo-graph her, she actually struck the lens of his camera with her bill.J. 11. Bowles (1893) relates a curious and unusual case where afterthe discovery of a Virginia rail's nest with nine eggs, the bird wasseen three minutes later to return to the nest and, standing amongthe eggs, to deUberately spear them with her long bill. The question
296 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMhas been raised whether this destructive bird may not have been arival and not the owner of the nest.Plumages.?[Author's note : The downy young Virginia rail is com-pletely covered with long, thick, rather coarse, black down, glossedbluish on the head and greenish on the back. It can be distinguishedfrom the young sora by the much longer bill, which is yellowish at thebase and tip and crossed by a broad black band in the middle; thereare also no orange bristles on the chin.The down is soon replaced by the juvenal plumage, early in Julyor earlier, as soon as the young bird is fully grown. In this the head,neck, and upper parts are mostly dull black, with brown edgings onthe back; the under parts, particularly on the breast and flanks, aremore or less dull black, in some mostly black, in others onlymottled with black ; the throat is white or grayish white ; the centralbreast and belly are more or less mottled with white and sometimes,particularly in males, suffused with pinkish buff; the wings are muchlike those of the adult, but a httle duller.A partial and gradual molt of the contour plumage, beginningsometimes as early as the middle of August and usually completedin October or November, produces the first winter plumage which ispractically adult, I have been unable to recognize young birds afterthis postjuvenal molt.Adults have a complete postnuptial molt, in July and August, andprobably a partial prenuptial molt in the spring. In fresh fall plu-mage adults are rather darker and more richly colored than in spring.]Food.?With its long curved bill the Virginia rail probes the mudand extracts many a fat earth worm and the larvae of insects. Italso eats slugs and snails, small fish, caterpillars, beetles, and otherinsects, and it is said to eat occasionally the seeds of grasses.Alvin R. Cahn (1915) tried some interesting feeding experimentson a Virginia rail that was captured when exhausted by an earlysnowstorm in October in Madison, Wisconsin. The bird recoveredand became remarkably tame and developed an insatiable appetite,but at the same time, showed great discrimination in its feedinghabits. These were strictly carnivorous. It refused to swallow riceor corn or bread. Even finely chopped liver was refused. Sunfish,sticklebacks, bullheads, and crayiish when captured by this bird wereat once removed from the water of its tank and taken as far from itas the limits of its cage would permit before they were eaten, aproceeding evidently intended to eliminate the possibility of theirescape. Crayfish were pecked and shaken until all their legs fell offand the creature rendered helpless before they were eaten. The legswere afterwards sought out and swallowed. Amphipods and othersmall aquatic forms were captured with great skill and eaten on the
NOBTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 297
spot. Caterpillars were taken to the water and their bristles softenedand broken before they were eaten, while frogs were pounded intoinsensibility in the water. Small snakes were eaten with avidity.The largest snake given this bird was a garter snake 12 inches long.It was attacked at once with vigorous thrusts of the bill, and, afterhalf an hour's efforts, the bird began to swallow it head first. Thesnake, however, soon looped its body about the bird and was hastilyunswallowed. Renewed thrusts with the bill and further unsuccess-ful swallowing trials ensued and not until the end of two strenuoushours was the reptile finally disposed of. After an hour's sleep, therail was ready for new worlds to conquer.Behavior.?It sometimes happens that in walking through a marshone almost steps on a Virginia rail that springs into the air and, withdangling legs, flies on feeble wings for 5 or 10 yards and drops, appar-ently exhausted, to the grass. If one runs at once to the spot, thebird seems to have vanished-?it can not be flushed again. It hasrun swiftly through the grass, its thin body enabling it to pass amongthickset reeds, while its muscular legs soon carry it beyond our reach.In these tactics it can generally escape from a dog. That it wasflushed in the first place was a rare happening. In the migrationsor when on long flights, the Virginia rail extends its legs horizontallybehind like all water birds, and wings its way with considerable speedand power.While the Virginia rail is able to run with agility through the grassand over the mud and even on the broad leaves of the water liliesfloating on the water, it is also able to cling to the grass stalksand rushes or to the ascending branches of bushes and to climb totheir summits. It also swims gracefully.The best way to observe these shy birds is to take up one's stationnear a pond or marsh frequented by them and watch patiently,silently, and immobile, and in so doing the watcher is often wellrewarded. In pursuance of this plan I once concealed myself in thelow branches of a willow and made the following observations(Townsend, 1920)
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I heard an ear-piercing "Spee" or "tSee" from near at hand and saw a Virginiarail threading its way in and out among the rushes, thrusting continually its longcurved bill into the water and mud. It ran within 10 feet of me up onto the bank,so near that I could see its dark red eyes, and, as it disappeared in the cat-tails,another one appeared. Their frequently emitted notes were as sharp as those of& red squirrel, at time suggestive of the squeak made by the grass-blade stretchedbetween the thumbs, at times a low guttural chattering or grunting or moaning;now a mild "cut-ta, cut-ta", then a loud and disdainful "eh-eh". The one that hadpassed me soon popped out of the cat-tails with a long worm hanging from itsbill, but, disturbed by my presence, turned back to reappear a little farther ofiFAnd returned to the rushes as before. It then flew out over the pond with weak,
298 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfeeble wing beats, legs dangling close to the water, and the worm still in its bill.It landed feebly and awkwardly, sitting down in the water before scrambling toits feet and elevating and depressing its short tail.The courtship song and many of the calls have already been de-scribed, but the vocabulary of this bird is so extensive that it wouldbe impossible to include it all here. Brewster (1902) describes a.common call as a "rapid succession of low yet penetrating grunts notunUke those of a hungry pig," and he states that the grunting is-emitted by both sexes. He also says that, ''The female when anx-ious about her eggs or young also calls 'hi-Jci-M^ and sometimes 'Jciu''like a flicker."W. E. Saunders (1918) says:The tone of the calls of the young resembled the squeaking of a door hingeand the vocal sound was "kee-a" the final syllable being very short, while in thecase of the old birds, the first syllable was so short as to be inaudible at anyconsiderable distance.The small size of this rail, its long curved bill and its rich brownwings and underparts make its recognition in the field comparativelysimple.Game.?While the sora is shot in great numbers for sport, the Vir-ginia rail is rarely sought for this purpose. Its flight is so feeble thatno skill is required to kill it, although a few are occasionally pickedoff by snipe shooters. In former days this bird was sometimes to beseen exposed for sale in the markets.In their southern migrations in the autumn with ranks recruitedby the summer's broods, the Virginia rails are more easily seen thanin the spring and their course is a more leisurely one. At this timeof the year I have occasionally found them in the salt marshes of thecoast. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Southern Canada, the United States, and Central Americasouth to Guatemala.Breeding range.?North to British Columbia (Beaver Creek, ChilU-wack, probably 158-mile House and Okanagan); Montana (ColumbiaFalls and Great Falls); Saskatchewan (Indian Head); Manitoba(Shoal Lake, Chemawawin, Reaburn, and Winnipeg); Minnesota(Leach Lake and Millelacs Lake) ; Wisconsin (Madison, Kelley Brook,and West Depere); Michigan (Douglas Lake, Bay City, Pontiac, andDetroit); Ontario (Wellington and Waterloo Counties, Kingston, andOttawa); Quebec (Montreal and Quebec); New Brunswick (ScotchLake and St. John); and Nova Scotia (Kentville). East to NovaScotia (Kentville) ; Maine (Fryeburg) ; Massachusetts (Boston) ; RhodeIsland (Newport and Quonochontaug); New York (Shelter Islandand New York City); New Jersey (Ocean County and Cape May);
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 299Virginia (Wallops Island); and North Carolina (Gull Shoal). Southto North Carolina (Gull Shoal); Ohio (Lewiston Reservoir); Indiana(Bluffton); Kentucky (Hendereon) ; Illinois (Mount Carmel andVandalia); Missouri (Clark County); Iowa (Newton and Boone);Nebraska (London, Lincoln, and Valentine); Colorado (Clear Creek[near Denver], Fountain, and San Luis Lakes) ; probably New Mexico(Lake Burford); Mexico (Lerma); Lower California (San Ramon);Utah (Salt Lake City); Nevada (Carson City); and California (LonePine and Escondido). West to California (Escondido, Fullerton,Los Angeles, Tulare Lake, Paicines, Haywards, Eagle Lake, and FortCrook); Oregon (Klamath Lake, Newport, and Beaverton); Wash-ington (Tacoma, Waldron Island, and Bellingham Bay); and BritishColumbia (Victoria, Beaver Creek, and probably 158-mile House).The Virginia rail was found at Tizimin, Yucatan, on June 23 (spec-imen in British Museum). It is casual in summer in Newfound-land (Reeks) and there is a record of one in 1891 from Hamilton Inlet,Labrador.Winter range.?North to British Columbia (Chilliwack and Okana-gan) ; Utah (Provo) ; Colorado (Clear Creek [near Denver], and Barr)
;
Arkansas (Stuttgart) ; Illinois (Mount Carmel) ; and North Carolina(Pea Island). East to North Carolina (Pea Island) ; rarely Bermuda;South Carolina (Charleston and Sea Islands) ; Georgia (BlackbeardIsland and Darien) ; Florida (mouth of St. Johns River, Orlando,Titusville, and Fort Myers) ; Cuba (Isle of Pines) ; Mexico, Vera Cruz(Jalapa) ; and Guatemala (Antigua and Duenas). South to Guate-mala (Duenas); State of Mexico (Lerma); Sinaloa (Mazatlan);Lower California (probably San Jose del Cabo and San Quentin)and California (Riverside and Tomales Bay). West to California(Tomales Bay) ; Oregon (Salem) ; Washington (Walla Walla and pro-bably Port Townscnd) ; and British Columbia (Chilliwack).Casual in winter north to Virginia (Virginia Beach, January 6,1912); Maryland (Easton, January 20, 1891) ; New Jersey (at a warmspring near Trenton, during January, 1869) ; New York (Long Island,February 6 to 13, 1885); Massachusetts (Barnstable, December 31,1894, Cape Cod, December, 1892, and Worcester, January 1, 1891);and Montana (Helena, February 22, and March 12, 1911).Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: South Carolina,Charleston, April 1, 1912; North Carolina, Raleigh, March 7, 1891,and Highlands, April 6, 1910; West Virginia, Scott Depot, April24, 1907, and Winfield, April 14, 1908; District of Columbia, April2,1903; Pennsylvania, State College, April 19, 1916; New Jersey;New York, Bear Mountain near Stony Point, March 13,*1920,Brauchport, April 7, 1905, Ithaca, April 11, 1910, Geneva, April 15,
300 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM1911, Bast Otto, April 19, 1888, Lockport, April 22, 1890, Canan-daigua, April 27, 1905, and Shelter Island, April 28, 1887; Connecti-cut, Middleton, April 6, 1912, Portland, April 11, 1913, and Bethel,April 13, 1890; Massachusetts, Dennis, March 14, 1921, Rehoboth,April 17, 1884, Jamaica Plain, April 18, 1891, and Harvard, April20, 1909; Quebec, Montreal, April 25, 1913; Kentucky, BowHngOreen, April 6, 1902; Missouri, Marionville, March 24, 1920, andSt. Louis, March 31, 1887; IlUnois, Englewood, April 3, 1889, Knox-ville, April 9, 1896, Hennepin, April 14, 1885, and Rockford, April 15,1893; Indiana, Vincennes, March 28, 1921, Waterloo, March 31,1907, Frankfort, April 1, 1897, Indianapolis, April 7, 1916, and LaPorte, April 17, 1892; Ohio, Hillsboro, March 13, 1918, Sandusky,March 27, 1902, Lakeside, April 3, 1917, Huron, April 14, 1913,Oberhn, April 14, 1913, and Canton, April 16, 1911 ; Michigan, Albion,April 11, 1899, Vicksburg, April 12, 1905, and Ann Arbor, April 11,1918; Ontario, Dunnville, April 23, 1889, and Toronto, April 30, 1901
;
Iowa, Sioux City, April 22, 1916, and Keokuk, April 14, 1889; Wis-consin, Milwaukee, April 8, 1900, New Cassel, April 16, 1884, Dela-van, April 19, 1896, and Madison, April 19, 1917; Minnesota, ElkRiver, April 25, 1915, Heron Lake, April 27, 1890, and Minneapohs,April 28, 1911; Nebraska, Lincoln, April 28, 1900, and Red Cloud,May 1, 1920; North Dakota, Grafton, May 12, 1916, and GrandForks, May 14, 1903; Manitoba, Margaret, May 7, 1910; Saskatche-wan, Dinsmore, May 10, 1911, and Indian Head, May 19, 1910; andAlberta, Stony Plain, May 24, 1908.Late dates of spring departure are: Lousiana, New Orleans, April7; and Mississippi, Bay St. Louis, April 19, 1902,Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Manitoba, Mar-garet, October 10, 1912; Nebraska, Valentine, October 7, 1893, andLong Pine, October 10, 1898; Minnesota, Hutchinson, October 25,1915; Wisconsin, Delavan, October 16, 1894, and Madison, October21, 1913; Iowa, National, October 17, 1908; Ontario, Ottawa, Octo-ber 14, 1889, and Toronto, November 10, 1906; Michigan, Livonia,September 9, 1894, Charity Island, September 11, 1910, Ann Arbor,October 17, 1918, Manchester, November 2, 1894, and Vicksburg,November 24, 1912; Ohio, Youngstown, October 1, 1914, Oberlin,October 7, 1907, Huron, October 16, 1912, Cleveland, October 18,1915, Chillicothc, October 26, 1904, and Circleville, November 23,1880; Indiana, Waterloo, October 17, 1905; Illinois, Chicago, No-vember 5, 1904; Quebec, Montreal, October 23, 1897; Massachusetts,Boston, October 5, 1909, and Harvard, November 29, 1914; Connect-icut, Portland, October 20, 1890, and New Haven, October 29, 1904;New York, Canandaigua, October 3, 1905, Montauk Point, October30, 1900, and Mayville, November 19, 1903; New Jersey, Atlantic
NORTH AMEBICAN MARSH BIRDS 301City, November 6, 1891, and Dennis Creek, December 30, 1895; andPennsylvania, Erie, October 28, 1893, Chester County, November 7,1879, and Harvey's Lake, November 18, 1911.Early dates of fall arrival are: South Carolina, Mt. Pleasant, Sep-tember 21; and Louisiana, southern part, October 1,Egg dates.?Southern New England and New York: 62 records,May 14, to August 6; 31 records. May 24 to 31. New Jersey andPennsylvania: 12 records. May 17 to July 17; 6 records. May 23 toJune 10. Michigan and Wisconsin: 18 records, May 21 to June 24;9 records. May 30 to June 9. Utah and California: 12 records,April 3 to Jime 22; 6 records. May 20 to June 3. Washington: 6records, April 1 to June 10; average May 1.PORZANA PORZANA (Linnaeus)SPOTTED CRAKEHABITSContributed by Charles Wendell TownsendThe spotted crake, according to Dresser (1871) inhabits Europegenerally during the breeding season, ranging further north in theeastern than in the western part. In the autumn it migrates south-ward, and is found commonly in winter in northern Africa; and inAsia it is met with as far east as eastern Siberia. Its only claim toinclusion here is that it occasionally visits Greenland. Hagerup (1891)says it is "A rare visitor in South Greenland, Benzon's collectioncontains a skin from Julianeshaab, dated 1878."Nesting.?It generally selects a wet place for its nest which is some-times surrounded by water. Dresser (1871) says: "The nest of thespotted crake, resembling that of the water rail, is a careless,bulky structure of flags, dried reeds, and leaves of aquatic plants,hned with finer material.'' Selby (1833) says: "Its nest is builtamongst the thick sedges and reeds of the marshes, and from the foun-dation of it being frequently placed in water, is composed of a largemass of decayed aquatic plants interlaced, with the hollow neatlyformed and comfortably lined."Eggs.?The eggs are from 8 to 12, or even 15 in number and, accord-ing to Dresser, " are oval in shape, the surface of the shell being smoothand rather glossy. In ground color they are warm ochraceous, ordull ochraceous marked with fine dots, with violet-grey shell markingsand reddish brown spots and blotches, which are tolerably regularlyscattered over the surface of the shell." Witherby's Handbook (1920)gives the measurements of 100 eggs as averaging 33.62 by 24.57millimeters ; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 37.5 by 24.8,33 by 26.8, 29.1 by 23 and 32 by 22.2 miUimeters.
302 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMYoung.?The young are clothed in black down and are able to fol-low theu" parents and swim well soon after they are hatched.Plumages.?The sexes are alike, Ramsay (1923) describes theplumage as follows
:
Above olive brown, streaked white and with some black feathers; forehead,sides of crown, throat and chest slaty, spotted white; inner web of inner second-aries reddish brown, outer web like the back; abdomen whitish, flanks, underwing coverts and axillaries brown barred white, under tail coverts bufiF. Irisbrownish red. Bill olive yellow, orange at base below. Legs and feet yellow-ish green.Food.?The food of the spotted crake consists of worms, aquaticinsects, slugs and snails, grass seeds and the tender shoots of waterherbage.Behavior.?Dresser (1871) says:It frequents swampy localities where aquatic herbage is abundant, and whereit can find good shelter; and it is extremely difficult to force it to take wing whenit is in the dense cover of the reeds, through which it creeps and glides with thegreatest ease. When followed by a dog, it invariably seeks to escape by runningand hiding; and it is only when hard pressed that it will take wing, to fly only ashort distance, and again seek shelter amongst the reeds. On the wing it doesnot by any means appear to advantage; for it flies heavily, like a young birdthat has not yet attained to the full use of its wings and its legs hang downclumsily unless it flies to some distance, when they are stretched out behind.* * * Its call-note is a clear loud "kweet," which is seldom heard during thedaytime, but most frequently in the evening or at night. * * * n swimswith grace and ease, jerking its head as it paddles along.Bonhote (1907) calls it "a very skulking species and its only noteis a low ^Icwit, TcwiV , so that it is seldom either seen or heard. " Forthese reasons, probably, the ornithological accounts of this bird aregenerally very brief.Game.?Yarrell (1871) says:In the autumn these birds are considered to be in the best condition for thetable, and, as an article of food, are in great estimation, particularly in France.The flesh is said to be of a fine and delicate flavor.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?The breeding range of the spotted crake is confined mainlyto continental Europe, from Norway and Finland to the Mediter-ranean, and also east to western Siberia and Turkestan. It wintersin India, Africa, Madeira, and the Canary Islands.Its inclusion in the American list of birds rests on several acciden-tal occurrences in Greenland (Frederickshaab, Godthaab, Nenortalik,and Julianshaab)
.
Egg dates.?Central Europe: 12 records, May 10 to June 18; 6records, May 21 to June 15.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 303PORZANA CAROUNA (Linnaeus)SORA RAILHABITSThe sora or Carolina rail is unquestionably the rail of North Amer-ica. It is the most widely distributed and the best known of its tribe.Throughout its wide breeding range its cries are among the most char-acteristic voices of the marshes. During some part of the year it ismore or less common in practically every Province in Canada, everyState in the United States, and in much of Central America and theWest Indies. It is the most popular of the rails among sportsmanand, when one speaks of rail shooting, he generally refers to this spe-cies. Being a prolific breeder, it is astonishingly abundant in favoredlocalities during the fall migration.The sora, like the other rails, is a denizen of the oozy marsh; andfor this reason it has continued to live and breed in the midst of civi-lization long after so many of the wilder and shyer birds have beendriven away. Man clears away the forests, cultivates the prairies,cleans up the bushy hillsides and mows the meadow hay, forcing thebirds that live there to move elsewhere; but he dislikes the quakingbog, which is perhaps too low to drain, and so he leaves it until thelast, when the land becomes valuable enough to fill in for houselots.Many such little swamps and bogs, which had long persisted near theheart of some big city, have been filled in within my memory. Andthe rails, Virginia and sora, have stuck to them to the last; so wellhidden were they in the seclusion of the marsh, that they little caredfor the activities of civilization so close around them; the marsh wastheir world and supplied all their needs.In my college days, in the late eighties, such a bog still existednear the center of Brookline, where a friend and I used to wadearound in the mud up to our waists, collecting rails eggs; then, drip-ping with mud and water, we would retiu^n to his house, jump intothe bath tub with our clothes on and wash off the mud, much to hismother's disgust. In those days the Fresh Fond marshes in Cam-bridge were an oasis of wilderness in a desert of civilization and boththe Virginia and sora rails nested there in abundance. Both of thesemarshes were filled in and obliterated by human "improvements."As late as 1908, Mr. J. A. Weber (1909) found both Virginia andsora rails nesting on the northern portion of the Manhattan Islandin New York City. He writes:The marshes inhabited by the rails are situated at the northern portion ofManhattan Island and extend northward and eastward from the foot of the hillat Fort George (One hundred and ninetieth Street and Amsterdam Avenue).These marshes formerly lined the shore of the Harlem River, but through street-improvements have been separated from the river and cut up into small areas
304 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThe water in these marshes no longer rises and falls with the tide and the onlyconnection with the river is through drain pipes under the streets; consequentlythe water is more or less fresh.I discovered another nest of the Virginia rail on June 6, 1908, in a small marshbordering on Dyckman Street, with two baseball fields adjoining it on the east andsouth. The nest was placed within 20 feet of the street where hundreds ofpeople as well as vehicles pass daily and large crowds often assemble to witnessthe speedway trotting races or the baseball games. Yet the little mother railquietly sat on her 10 eggs, apparently unconcerned about the civilization aroundher. Within an hour after finding the above nest, I discovered a nest of thesora {Porzana Carolina), containing 14 eggs. The marsh in which this nest wasbuilt is situated on the south side of Two hundred and seventh Street betweenthe foot of the new bridge across the Harlem River at this point and the Twohundred and seventh Street subway station. The marsh is so close to the sub-way station that some of the passengers noticed and watched me from the sta-tion platform while I was floundering about among the rushes. Yet strangelyenough the noise of the numerous passing trains did not deter these shy birdsfrom nesting in such close proximity.Spring.?Audubon (1S40) throws some light on the spring migrationof the sora rail, which he describes in some detail, as follows
:
This bird, which I think might have been named the Pennsylvanian or Virgin-ian rail, enters the Union from the shores of Mexico, early in March, when manyare to be seen in the markets of New Orleans. Some reach their northern des-tination by ascending along the margins of our western streams, or by crossingthe country directly, in the manner of the woodcock; while those which proceedalong the coast shorten their journey as much as possible by flying across theheadlands of the numerous inlets or bays of our southern districts, retiring oradvancing more slowly according to the state of the weather. Thus, those whichcross the peninsula of Florida, through the marshes and lagoons that lead to theheadwaters of the St. Johns River, instead of traveling around the shores ofGeorgia and South Carolina, fly directly across toward Cape Lookout. It isnevertheless true, that a certain number of these birds follow the sinuositiesof the shores, for I found some in the markets of Charleston, in the month ofApril, that had been killed in the immediate neighborhood of that city, and Iobtained others in various parts; but the number of these is very small comparedwith that of those which cross at once. When their passage takes place, eitherduring calm weather or with a favorable wind, the fortunate travelers pursuetheir journey by entering Pimlico Sound, and following the inner margins of theoutward banks of this part of the coast until they reach Cape Henry. Fromthence some ascend the Chesapeake, while others make for the mouth of theDelaware, and these perhaps again meet on the borders of Lake Ontario,or the waters of the St. Lawrence, after which they soon enter those portionsof the country in which they breed, and spend a short but agreeable season.Nesting.?The nests that wo used to find in the FreshPond marshes,and in other places in Massachusetts, were usually well hidden in thedense growth of cat-tail flags ( Typha latifolia) where the water andmud was quite deep, were generally well-made baskets of dead flags^built up a few inches above the water and supported by the sur-rounding and growing flags, A nest found on Martha's Vineyard onMay 27, 1900, illustrates a more open type of nesting. It was near
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 305the edge of a marshy island in a muddy pond, much overgrown withcat-tail flags. We had to push our boat a long way into the low,dead flags to find water shallow enough to wade in, but did not dis-cover the nest until we returned later and happened to see it withina foot of the boat. The nest contained 12 handsome eggs and wasplaced in a little hummock among low, open, dead flags, where thewater was about knee-deep; it was built of dead flags, arranged in asolid mass and dry on top; it was raised about 4 inches above thewater, and measured about 6 inches in diameter; the inner cav-ity was about 3 inches wide by 2 inches deep. It was a typical cat-tail nest in which some of the eggs were arranged in a second layer,as they almost always are in a large set, so that the small body ofthe bird can cover them all.In the prairie regions of North Dakota, Manitoba, and vSaskatch-ewan we found numerous nests of both Virginia and sora rails,around the borders of the sloughs or in wet, grassy meadows. Thenests of the sora were generally in deeper water and were more sub-stantially built than those of the Virginia rail. They were sometimesfound in meadows where the grass was not very tall, but more oftenthey were better concealed in clumps of bulrushes (Scirpus laciiHris)or flags. The nests were built up from 3 to 6 inches above the waterand were made of dead flags, bulrushes and dry grasses.A nest found by F. Sejmiour Hersey near Lake Winnipegosis,Manitoba, on July 2, 1913, was placed in a clump of grass in a grassymarsh; it was made entirely of green grass, with which the center ofthe clump was entirely filled, and the rim of the nest was 10 inchesabove the wet ground; it appeared to have been built upon theremains of an old nest. The nest of the sora is usually more or lessconcealed by a canopy of grass, reeds, or flags arched over it, espe-cially if it is in an open situation, and there is often a runway, madeof the nesting material, leading up to it.Eggs.?The sora rail lays from 6 to 18 eggs, the extremes beingvery unusual and the average numbers running from 10 to 12. Theshape is ovate and the shell is smooth and glossy. The eggs are morerichly colored, more heavily spotted and more glossy than those ofthe Virginia rail, with which this species is often associated. Theground color is a rich buff, varying from "chamois" or "cinnamonbuff" to "cream buff," "ivory yellow," or even "pale olive buff."They are irregularly spotted with browns and drabs, "auburn,"
"chestnut brown," "russet," "snuff brown" and shades of "cinna-mon-drab" and "ecru drab." The measurements of 90 eggs average31.5 by 22.5 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure34.6 by 23.5, 31 by 24.6, 28 by 22, and 30 by 20.6 millimeters.Young.?The period of incubation is said to be 14 days; it is sharedby both sexes and is nearly continuous from the time that the first
306 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMfew eggs are laid, as is shown by the protracted period of hatching
;
nests often contain young birds just hatched, others hatching, andeggs in various stages of development. The birds stick to their nestsvery closely and hatch the eggs even when they are partially sub-merged. It is inconceivable how so small a bird can successfullycover and hatch such large numbers of eggs, even when they arearranged in two layers, as is generally the case ; but it is accomplishedsomehow, probably by frequently shifting the eggs and by close sit-ting. One seldom sees a rail leave its nest, but always finds warmeggs ; the bird slips quietly off and disappears.The young rails are very precocious. They leave the nest soonafter they are hatched, or immediately if necessary. W. Leon Daw-son (1903) says:I once came upon a nestful in a secluded spot at the critical time. Hearingmy distant footsteps most of the brood had taken to their new-found heels^leaving two luckless wights in ovo. At my approach one more prison door flewopen. The absurd fluff ball rolled out, shook itself, grasped the situation^promptly tumbled over the side of the nest, and started to swim across a 6-footpool to safety.Dr. Morris Gibbs (1899) writes:It is but natural to suppose that the male Carolina rail assists in the care ofthe young as the mother sets and brings the little fellow out slowly; and this isfound to be true, as I have seen the black animated fluffy bunches of downpatterning after the old man. The young leave the nest about as soon as theyare hatched and run among the grass and rushes. A large number of themmust become prey for their enemies in the marsh, for notwithstanding the largesets of eggs laid by all of the members of this family, none of them appear toincrease to any extent.Edward H. Forbush (1914) observes:The young of this bird have often been mistaken for those of the little blackrail. They are certainly both small and sable. When they once leave the nest,they are constantly in danger. Most of the larger animals and birds of themarshes, from the sandhill crane down to the mink, devour the eggs and youngof rails wherever they find them. In the water, snakes, frogs, fish, and turtleslie constantly in wait to swallow them. They soon become experts in climbingand hiding. They can clamber up and down the water-plants, or run throughthem over the water by clinging to the upright stems. They swim more like achicken than like a duck, nodding their little heads comically as they advance.Necessity soon teaches them to drop into the water and dive like a stone t?safety.In some notes sent to me by Miss Althea R. Sherman she mentionsseeing a brood of young soras in which the birds were of differentages; "one was still covered with black down, one was quite wellfeathered, and one midway between them," indicating that they werehatched at different dates. She says that they "ran about in alively fashion and fed hke the adults from seeds and insects pickedfrom the surface of the water."
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 307Plumages.?The downy young sora is completely covered withthick, glossy, black down, except on the chin, which is ornamentedby a small tuft of stiff, curly hairs of a "deep chrome" color. Thenatal down is replaced, during July and August, by the juvenal plum-age, in which the sexes are alike. In this the upper parts are muchlike the adults, but the browns are paler, more olive, there is lessblack, and there are fewer white spots and edgings ; there is no blackon the head, except a central black stripe on the crown and forehead;the throat is dull white ; the breast and under parts are pale grayishand buffy; and the flanks are barred with brownish black and buffywhite, instead of clear black and white, as in the adult. A nearlycomplete molt of the contour plumage, in varying amounts in differ-ent individuals and at various times between August and December,produces the first winter plumage, in which the sexes begin to differ-entiate. I have seen this molt in progress as early as August 20 andas late as December 24. In this plumage a few black feathers orrestricted black areas are acquired on throat and face, with varyingamounts of slate gray on head and breast. Some birds become muchlike adults, while others remain in a decidedly juvenal plumage allwinter, and even through March. Usually a first prenuptial molt ofthe contour plumage produces, in March or even earlier, a nuptialplumage which is nearly adult. A complete molt, between July andSeptember, makes the young bird indistinguishable from the adult.Adults have an incomplete prenuptial molt, involving only thecontour plumage, between January and March, and a complete post-nuptial molt of all the plumage in summer, between July and Sep-tember. The two seasonal plumages are aUke, except that in springthe black stripe down the throat is broader and unbroken. Thefemale is much like the male, but the black in the head is duller andmore restricted; the mantle is usually more spotted with white; andall the colors are less intense.Food.?Referring to the food of this species Doctor Gibbs (1899)writes
:
The ortolan or sora rail feeds largely upon the small mollusks of the marsh,and at times many of these minute shells may be found in the crops of the birds.Neuropterous insects, those belonging to the order in which the dragon fly isembraced, form a good share of their food. These insects are aquatic, like themosquito, in their earlier forms of development. This rail, like the others,also feeds to a limited extent on vegetable substances, and especially on a par-ticular kind of seed in late summer, which I have been unable to identify. Oneauthority, Cook, in his "Birds of Michigan," gives reptiles as the food of therails. This is undoubtedly incorrect, as I have yet to learn of reliable instanceswhere rails feed on reptiles, and my readers may readily see that the make-upof these birds does not admit of their tearing snakes, frogs, and turtles to pieces.The nearest that these marsh birds come to feeding on reptiles is when anoccasional small tadpole is gobbled up. A captive rail of this species, which I
308 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
once owned, fed greedily on hashed meat and earthworms. The bird came readilyat my approach and after three days in confinement exhibited no signs of fear
,
and quickly learned to feed from my hand.The foregoing remarks refer to the food of these rails on theirbreeding grounds or during the spring and early summer. Later inthe summer and early in the fall, when the seeds of various aquaticplants are ripening, their food is more largely vegetable. They areespecially fond of the seeds of wild rice (Zizania) which grows profuselyalong the banks of sluggish streams and in fresh-water marshes. Inthese wild-rice marshes they congregate in enormous numbers inAugust and September, in company with bobolinks, and feast on theseeds of these and other plants until they become very fat. Bothrails and reed birds are then easy marks for the embryo sportsmenand tempting morsels for the table. Probably most of the seeds aregleaned from the surface of the water or mud, where they havefallen, but, as the rails are good climbers, they undoubtedly picksome from the stalks above.Behavior.?When flushed in a marsh the sora usually rises fromalmost underfoot, flutters feebly along just over the tops of the reeds for40 or 50 yards, with a slow and apparently labored flight and withfeet awkwardly dangling, and then, with uplifted wings, suddenlydrops down out of sight again. Perhaps it can be flushed again butit is more Ukely to escape by running. When making a long flightacross a river or pond, its flight is much stronger; its neck and legsare extended and its wings are making strong steady strokes. Aud-ubon (1840) says:The flight of this little bird while migrating is low, and performed with a con-stant beating of the wings, as in the coot and other birds of its kind. Theypass swiftly along in compact flocks of from 5 to 100 or more individuals. Attimes you see them rise in a long curve, as if they had perceived some dangerousobject beneath them; then resume their ordinary direct flight and are soon out ofsight.However weak this rail may appear on the wing, its appearancewhen seen on foot is one of strength and activity. Owing to its shyand retiring habits, it is seldom seen, but, if the observer lies con-cealed near some open place in the bog, he may catch a glimpse ofit as it comes out to feed, stepping daintily over the bog, flirting itsshort tail up and down or spreading it out in display, and noddingits head back and forth with a graceful dovelike motion. Its toesare so long and its body is so light, that it is easily supported on thelily pads or on a few floating reeds. It takes long steps when walk-ing, but when running its tracks may be a foot apart. If alarmedby a sudden movement or sound, it runs to cover with loweredhead and outstretched neck and with wings and plumage closelypressed against the narrowed body, as it sUps out of sight in the nar-
NORTH AMEBICAN MARSH BIRDS 309row aisles between the reeds. Robert J. Sim (1911), who kept a sorarail in captivity until it became quite tame, says
:
A rail which is quite at ease is very different in appearance from one that isfrightened or at all nervous. Most birds of this kind to be seen in taxidermalcollections look as if they had been "scared stiff"?a state of things which is,perhaps, consistest enough. But a live, comfortable rail going about his ownbusiness is as graceful a bird as you could find, and plump like a guinea hen ora Hubbard squash. The tail is carried in a horizontal position or droopsslightly. On the other hand, when filled with apprehension the bird is veryslim, the head is lowered and extended, and the tail is cocked up or is twitchedup at every step.The sora, Uke other rails, can swim well or even dive, if necessary.It often swims across narrow strips of water, rather than fly. C. J.Maynard (1896) writes:All the rails swim and dive well but I think the Carolinas rather excel themall in this respect, for they will not only take readily to the water, but will passbeneath it with great facility, and I once saw one run nimbly along the bottomof a brook, the water of which was about a foot deep, by clinging to aquaticplants, and crossing it obliquely, emerged on the other side, thus passing oversome 15 feet while submerged.William Brewster (1902) has described the various notes of thisrail remarkably well, as follows
:
In the more open, grassy stretches of meadow, as well as among the beds ofcat-tail flags but seldom, if ever, in thickets of bushes, we also hear, after themiddle of April, mingling with the notes of Virginia rails and the din of countlessfrogs, the love song of the Carolina rail, a sweet, plaintive "er-e" given with arising inflection and suggesting one of the "scatter calls" of the quail. Such, atleast, is its general effect at distances of from 50 to 200 or 300 yards, but verynear at hand it developes a somewhat harsh or strident quality and sounds morelike "ka-?," while at the extreme limits of ear range one of the syllables is lostand the other might be easily mistaken for the peep of a Pickering's hyla. This
.
note, repeated at short, regular intervals, manj^ times in succession, is one of themost frequent as well as pleasing voices of the marsh in the early morning andjust after sunset. It is also given intermittently at all hours of the day, especiallyin cloudy weather, while it is often continued, practically without cessationthrough the entire night.Equally characteristic of this season and even more attractive in qualitj' is what,has been termed the "whinny" of the Carolina rail. It consists of a dozen or15 short whistles as sweet and clear in tone as a silver bell. The first 8 or 10are uttered very rapidly in an evenly descending scale, the remaining ones moredeliberately and in a uniform key. The whole series is often followed by a vary-ing number of harsher, more drawling notes given at rather wide intervals.Although it is probable that the "whinny" is made by both sexes I have actuallytraced it only to the female. She uses it, apparently, chiefly as a call to hermate, but I have also repeatedly heard her give it just after I had left the imme-diate neighborhood of her nest, seemingly as an expression of triumph or rejoic-ing at the discovery that her eggs had not been molested. When especiallyanxious for their safety and circling close about the human intruder she oftenutters a low whining murmur closely resembling that whicli the muskrat makes92642?26t 21
310 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
while pursuing his mate and sometimes a "cut-cut-cutta" not unlike the song ofthe Virginia rail, but decidedly less loud and vibrant. In addition to all thesenotes both sexes have a variety of short, sharp cries which they give when star-tled by any sudden noise.Rev. J. H. Langille (1884) gives it as " queep-eejj-ip-ip-ip-ip-ip-ip, orquaite, peep, peep, Jcuk, Tcuk, huk?the first two or three syllables inlong-drawn, coaxing tones, and the remaining syllables shorter andmore hurried." I have seen this rail utter a plaintive note, whichsounded like " peet-it-wheet,'" orasharper call note, like " peeJc or pucJcJ'Both soras and Virginia rails often breed in the same marsh andin close proximity, but Miss Sherman's notes indicate that they arenot alwa3^s as friendly as they might be. In a marsh where bothspecies were under daily observation, she saw the soras drive theVirginias before them and frequently, but not always, the latter fledupon the approach of the former.Fall.?During the late summer and early fall, when the seeds ofthe wild rice, wild oats, and other aquatic plants are ripening andfalling, the soras, greatly increased in numbers with their large broodsof young, desert their breeding grounds and gather in great multi-tudes in the more open marshes on the rice-covered borders of tlie lakesand streams, where they feast and fatten on their favorite food. Atsuch times a sudden noise, such as the report of a gun or the splash of apaddle or a stone thrown into the grass, will start a chorus of criesringing from one end of the marsh to the other. In such places theyremain until driven farther south by the first frosts. They are verysensitive to cold and are good weather prophets. After a frostynight, in late September or early October, a marsh, which was teem-ing with rails the day before, may be found entirely deserted, everybird having departed during the night. They have started on theirautumn wanderings, their fall migration.Mr. Forbush (1914) says:The little wings which erstwhile would hardly raise the birds above the grasstops now carry them high and far. Some cross the seas to distant Bermuda,and they occasionally alight on vessels hundreds of miles at sea. They havebeen taken on the western mountains even as higli as 12,500 feet, in the sage-brush of the desert, and on the cliffs of Panama.This really remarkable migration is thus described by Prof. W. W.Cooke (1914):The flight of the sora is slow and labored but some individuals travel moremiles between tlic summer and winter homes than almost any other rails in theWestern Hemisphere. The birds breeding in the Mackenzie Valley do notwinter farther north than the Gulf coast and hence must travel at least 2,500miles during their fall migration. The species passes in winter to about lati-tude 5?S., and as none of these South American birds nest south of latitude:i5? N. the migration route can not possibly be shorter than 3,000 miles andmay be much longer.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 311The autumnal flight to Bormuda is oven more remarkable. Baird,Brewer, and Ridgway (1884) write: "Its movements and the ir-regular character of its visits to Bermuda are interesting features inits history. Maj. J. W. Wedderburn- states that it regularly visitsBermuda, arriving early in September. The first specimen, ob-tained September 3, 1847, was settling on a branch of a mangrove-tree?a very unusual action for this species, as it very rarely alightson a limb, and tliis one was 4 feet from the ground. A few remainedthroughout the winter. In October, 1849, it arrived in immensenumbers, and one was killed January 17, and another April 26. J,L. Hurdis, in some supplementary^ notes [p. 821 added to MajorWedderburn's paper, states that however heavy and sluggish thisbird may appear when distm'bed in its marshy retreat, there can beno doubt that it possesses great strength of wing, and the fact thatit never fails to visit Bermuda in its great southern migrations issuflficient proof of its powers of flight. A single instance was notedof its being met with, as early as August 24. In September it hadbecome rather numerous, but was more abundant in October thanat any other time. In some seasons these birds all disappearedabout the end of October, while in others a few remained to the 25thof November, and some even beyond that time. In 1849 and thethree following years thi< bird visited Bermuda in its spring migra-tions, appearing in the latter part of February, and remainingthrough (he months of March and April. Ten specimens were shotand three taken ahve. During a southwest gale which prevailed onthe 9th of October, 1849, thousands of this bird suddenly appearedin the marshes of Bermuda, and on the 29th of the same month notone of tliis species was to be seen. The whole immense flight haddeparted on some unexplained journey. This dopartiu*e could nothave been occasioned by any want of food, for the marshes wereabundantly supplied, and the prevailing temperature was between70? and 80? Fahrenheit. Mr. Hurdis states that this bird is alsofound in its migrations in the Island of Barbados, and thinks thatthere is little causi; to doubt that the rivers and marshes of SouthAmerica are its southern haunts during the winter months. It isvery fat when it arrives in the Bermudas?evidently a provision ofnature to sustain it in its long and arduous flight from one region tosome distant point, as it probably traverses th'j Atlantic Ocean for 30or 35 degrees of latitude without food."Game.?The sora, or Carolina rail, has always been a populargame bird. It is exceedingly abundant at times in certain places;its flight is so slow and steady that it is easily killed ; and whenfattened on the succulent grains of the marshes its flesh is excellentfood. But, to my mind, it is too small, too tame, and too easily
' Naturalist in Bermuda, p. 45.
312 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMkilled to afford really good sport, in which the bird should have asporting chance for its life. My experience with rail shooting hasbeen limited to one day on the marshes of Essex, Connecticut, asthe guest of Dr. L. C. Sanford. It was the opening day of theseason and we each shot the legal Umit, 35 birds, in a very shorttime. His description of it is so much better than anything I canwrite, that I prefer to quote from Doctor Sanford (1903), as follows:When the wild oats along the tidal rivers of our coast begin to turn yellowwith the first touch of fall, the time for rail has come, and the high tides of Sep-tember give the sportsman his first chance. The Connecticut River, where itbroadens into the Sound, is one of the favorite haunts of these birds. Here Essexis the usual destination. Some 3 miles up the river from Say brook, the little townof Essex, with its one hotel and old-fashioned houses, looks now pretty much asit did a hundred years ago. Rail tides generally come toward the middle of theday, and the pusher is waiting for you at the landing; you stand for a minutelooking up and down the broad expanse of river. Everywhere along the shoreare wavy patches of high grass reaching far out into the water. These are thewild oats, and here live the rail. A strong tide is running in, and you step intoa flat-bottomed skiff, which is rigged with a high stool firmly tied to the frontseat. The only task now is to sit still on this stool and be shoved. A shortrow up the river and you are in the midst of thick wild oats, so high it isdifficult in many places to see over the tops, even from your exalted position.A flutter just ahead, and a rail rises, shot almost before it cleared the grass; afew feathers alone are left to tell the fate of the first bird of the season. Thenext is given a chance to get in range, and the score is two; three or four morestraight exalt a man's idea of his shooting abihty?without reason, though, for noeasier mark ever flew in front of a gun. Now a rail runs among some broken grassahead of the boat, and a whack from the pusher's pole starts him; at the shothalf a dozen teal jump within range, and the last one is feathered but notstopped. Presently several rail start in quick succession; you fire, and load,and fire again?not a miss yet, but all idea of definite direction is lost and thelast bird is the only one marked. Here a clever pusher shows his skill, andafter you have given up all thought of retrieving he picks them up in order.Under these circumstances painted blocks can be used and tossed out to markthe dead birds before the position of the boat is changed. The time of high tideis short, but sufficient; every few seconds a bird rises, its slow flight affording asure mark; generally in front or to the side, occasionally behind, when you arestartled by the pusher's yell "Hi, rail!" in time to try a long shot. Sometimesa larger bird, of the same general appearance and similar flight, starts up.This is a clapper rail, known by many of our gunners as marsh hen. AboutEssex they are rare. Sometimes, too, a mud hen flops out over the tops. Insome instances mud hens are quite common on the rail grounds. The Floridagallinule is also a straggler here. Rail keep fluttering from the grass, less oftennow, though, than an hour ago, but you have some time since reached thelimit?as well, for a falling tide makes the pushing hard and the birds refuse to rise.Most of the birds are soras; occasionally the longer bill and darker coloringmark a Virginia rail. An occasional chattering note tells of the presence of a rail,secure in the high grass, until the next high tide. A lone bittern wings his wayto some safer spot, and this is our last glimpse of the marsh.Before there were any bag Umits on rails, much larger numberswere killed; as many as 195 rails have been killed by one man on a
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 313
single tide, whicli usually includes about two hours before and twohours after high tide. Edwjird H. Forbush (1912) writes:Doctor Lewis gives a record of the bags of Sora rails killed by a few men on theDelaware River, below Philadelphia, in 1846. The 34 records of consecutivedays show an average of about 100 rails per man per day. He states that over1,000 rails were brought into Chester in one day. Doctor Brewer (1884) says thatit is not uncommon for an expert marksman to kill from 100 to 150 rails perday, and such scores were made on the Connecticut River in Connecticut inolden times, when there was no legal limit to the bag. This slaughter has madesome inroads on the number of the birds in Massachusetts. Robert O.Morris writes that it is said that about 1,000 were killed at Longmeadow nearSpringfield, in 1908. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?North America, Central America, the West Indies, andnorthwestern South America. Accidental in Great Britain.Breeding range.?North to British Columbia (southern Cariboodistrict and Vanderhoof) ; Mackenzie (Fort Simpson, Fort E,ae, andFort Resolution); Manitoba (Chemawawin, Fort Churchill, and YorkFactory) ; Ontario (Severn House, Moose Factory [probably] andBracebridgc) ; Quebec (Montreal, Quebec, and Godbout); and PrinceEdward Island. East to Prince Edward Island; New Brunswick(Grand Manan) : Maine (Pittsfield and Norway); New Hampshire(Monadnock); Massachusetts (Boston and Ponkapog) ; Connecticut(Norwich and Westville); New York (Shelter Island); New Jersey(Princeton); and Pennsylvania (Philadelphia). South to Pennsyl-vania (Philadelphia, Carlisle, and Dubois) ; Ohio (Salem and Lewis-ton Reservoir) ; Indiana (Bluffton) ; Illinois (Springfield) ; Missouri(Independence); Kansas (Osawatomie) ; Colorado (Barr, Denver,Blue River, and Lay) ; probably Arizona (Mormon Lake) ; Utah(Provo); Idaho (Rupert) ; Nevada (Quinn River and probably Pyra-mid Lake) ; and California (San Bernardino and Escondido). Westto California (Los Angeles and Em*eka) ; Oregon (Klamath Lake andPortland) ; Washington (Taooma and Seattle); and British Columbia(Chilliwack, Ashcroft, and Cariboo District).Winter range.?North to California (Gilroy and Marysville); Ari-zona (Pocks Lake in the upper Verde Valley) ; Texas (Corpus Christi)
;
Louisiana (Hester and Dimond) ; Mississippi (Biloxi and Bay St.Louis) ; Florida (Royal Palm Hammock, Whitfield, and Amelia Is-land); and Bermuda. East to Bermuda; Florida (Amelia Islandand Titusville) ; Bahama Islands (Little Abaco, New Providence,Watlings Island, and Great Inagua Island) ; Porto Rico; St. Croix;Dominica Island; Santa Lucia Island; Grenada Island; Tobago Is-and and Trinidad. South to Trinidad; Venezuela (Caracas andLake Valencia); Colombia (Medellin); and Peru (Sarayacu andTumbez). West to Peru (Tumbez and Sarayacu) ; Ecuador (Quito)
;
314 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMGuatemala (Lake of Duenas and Lake Atitlan) ; Jalisco (La Barca)
;
Sinaloa (Escuinapa and Mazatlan) ; Lower California (San Jose delCabo, La Paz, and Colnett)^ and California (Escondido, Los Angeles,Santa Barbara, Gilroy, and Marysville).The sora also has occurred in winter at more northern latitudes;Montana (Corvallis, March 30 and 31, 1910); Minnesota (Lanes-boro, November 30, 1893 to January 25, 1894); Illinois (Rantoul)
;
Pennsylvania (Kresgeville) ; New York (Kochester and Flushing)
:
Connecticut (Hartford); and Massachusetts (Salem).Spring migration.?Early dates of spring arrival are: Alabama,Greensboro, March 11, 1893; Georgia, Savannah, February 21, 1912,,Cumberland, March 7, 1902, and Darien, March 24, 1890; SouthCarolina, Mount Pleasant, March 4, 1895, and Columbia, April 9,1909; North Carolina, Raleigh, April 8, 1886, and Weaverville, April30, 1894; Pennsylvania, Coatesville, March 30, 1888, and Swarthmore,March 30, 1914; New York, Buffalo, March 5, 1900, Ithaca, April 14,1908, Branchport, April 17, 1914, Lockport, April 22, 1890, and Can-andaigua, April 27, 1905; Connecticut, Hadlyme, April 2, 1910, Mid-dleton, April 5, 1914, Northford, April 11, 1894, and East Hartford,April IS, 1888; Rhode Island, Quonochontang, March 2, 1900; Mas-sachusetts, Lynn, April 19, 1911, and Cambridge, April 23, 1897;Maine, Pittsfield, May 4, 1899, Quebec, May 27, 1892; Kentucky.Bowling Green, April 5, 1902; Missouri, Jonesburg, March 31, 1917,Kansas City, April 17, 1902, Monteer, April 20, 1909, St. Louis, April22, 1909, and Independence, April 30, 1903; lUinois, Milford, March30, 1909, Chicago, April 1, 1894, Lebanon, April 4, 1876, Carthage,April 7, 1882, Alton, April 10, 1894, Cadinville, April 11, 1890, Rock-ford, April 12, 1893, and Glen EUyn, April 14, 1899; Indiana, Frank-ford, March 6, 1895, Middletown, March 23, 1907, Waterloo, March30, 1907, Bloomington, April 3, 1893, Terre Haute, April 8, 1890,Lyons, April 9, 1915, Worthington, April 14, 1907, and Indianapolis,April 16, 1916; Ohio, Sandusky, March 8, 1910, Franklin County,April 2, 1910, Cleveland, April 9, 1883, Oberlin, April 11, 1914, Can-ton, April 13, 1913, and Huron, April 14, 1913; Michigan, Ganges,April 5, 1893, Vicksburg, April 11, 1904, Ann Arbor, April 13, 1908,Greenville, April 10, 1890, Hillsdale, April 17, 1894, Albion, April 17,1896, and Battle Creek, April 20, 1888; Ontario, Dunnville, April 20,1885, Todmorden, April 23, 1891, Ottawa, April 23, 1908, London,April 26, 1915, and Windsor, April 28, 1898; Iowa, Keokuk, April 1,1893, Dubuque, April 3, 1897, La Porte, April 16, 1884, Iowa City,April 18, 1916, and Sioux City, April 22,1916; Wisconsin, Milwaukee,March 30, 1911, Wauwatosa, April 11, 1889, Madison, April 18, 1904,Delavan, April 20, 1896, North Freedom, April 26, 1902, and StevensPoint, April 28, 1897; Minnesota, Minneapolis, April 11, 1906, HeronLake, April 13, 1894, Elk River, April 24, 1915, Hallock, April 27,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 3151897, and Redwing, April 29, 1907; Kansas, Emporia, April 11, 1885,Onaga, April 29, 1893, and Wichita, May 1, 1917; Nebraska, Peru,May 5, 1889, and Badger, May 7, 1903; South Dakota, BrownCounty, April 17, 1891, Pitrodie, April 25, 1889, and western LymanCounty, April 25, 1907; North Dakota, Antler, May 3, 1908, Cando,May 10, 1890, and Devil's Lake, May 13, 1903; Manitoba, Aweme,April 30, 1902, Margaret, May 9, 1910, and Reaburn, May 12, 1894;Saskatchewan, Indian Head, May 11, 1912; Mackenzie, Fort Simp-son, May 19, 1904; Arizona, Tucson, April 2, 1909; Colorado, Barr,May 2, 1917, Salida, May 8, 1908, and Boulder, May S, 1910; Wyo-ming, Jackson, April 26, 1911; Idaho, Rathdrum, May 11, 1902; Mon-tana, Terry, May 9, 1906; Alberta, Flagstaff, May 1, 1915, Carvel,May 8, 1915, and Onoway, May 14, 1912; Oregon, Fort Klamath,March 28, 1887; and British Columbia, Chilhwack, April 9, 1889,and Okanagan Landing, April 26, 1906.Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Saskatchewan,Indian Head, October 25, 1904; Montana, Terry, September 13, 1901,and Fallon, September 17, 1908; Idaho, Rupert, September 16, 1911;Wyoming, near Hatton, September 14, 1911 ; Colorado, Hillside Lake,Gunnison County, September 23, 1900, and Boulder, October 22, 1910;Manitoba, Reaburn, September 15, 1903, Aweme, October 5, 1914,and Margaret, October 20, 1912; North Dakota, Grafton, October 5,1914, and Antler, October 12, 1908; South Dakota, Sioux Falls, Oc-tober 17, 1909; Nebraska, Grcsham, October 10, 1896, and Badger,October 11 , 1899; Kansas, Osawatomie, October 9, 1897, and Topeka,October 18, 1902; Minnesota, Minneapolis, September 24, 1906, Hal-lock, October 2, 1899, and Lancsboro, October 10, 1887; Wisconsin,Shiocton, October 9, 1883, Madison, October 16, 1910, Delavan, Oc-tober 22, 1896, Milwaukee, October 23, 1886, and North Freedom,November 2, 1903; Iowa, Hills])oro, October 10, 1899, Indianola, Oc-tober 18, 1902,and Keokuk, November 19, 1893; Ontario, Todmorden,October 12, 1891, Point Pelee, October 14, 1909, Toronto, Octo])er29, 1898, and Ottawa, October 30, 1895; Michigan, Palmer, October6, 1894, Detroit, October 18, 1907, Neebish Island, November 9, 1893,and Vicksburg, November 17, 1902; Ohio, October 1, 1914, Waverly,October 2, 1897, South Webster, October 13, 1894, Cedar Point, Oc-tober 17, 1909, Huron, October 19, 1912, and Oberlin, November 11,1890; Indiana, Greensburg, October 1, 1894, and Brookville, October14, 1890; lUinois, Chicago, October 5, 1907, Morgan Park, October13, 1894, Glen EUyn, October 17, 1897, and Oak Point, October 17,1914; Missouri, Kansas Cit}', October 8, 1902, and Monteer, October14, 1908; Arkansas, Pinnacle Mountain SOO feet above Clinton, Sep-tember 18, 1896; Quebec, Godbout, September 14, 1891, and Mon-treal, October 7, 1893; Maine, Pittsfield, October 9, 1895, and West-
316 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMbrook, October 26, 1904; Vermont, Bennington, November 11, 1904;Massachusetts, Monomoy Island, October 2, 1887, Harvard, October19, 1907, and North Trm-o, October 20, 1889; Rhode Island, BlackIsland, November 22, 1912; Connecticut, Middletown, October 18,1914, East Hartford, October 19, 1888, and Portland, November 5,1894; New York, Branchport, October 1, 1905, Canandaigua, Oc-tober 3, 1905, Shelter Island, October 5, 1893, Geneva, October 10,1914, Sing Sing, October 16, 1885, Phoenix, October 17, 1885, andIthaca, November 9, 1907; New Jersey, Pennsville, October 23, 1914;Pennsylvania, Renovo, October 4, 1894, Berwyn, October 16, 1909, andState College, October 25, 1916; Maryland, Patuxtent River, October24, 1916; North Carohna, Raleigh, October 30, 1891; South Carohna,Charleston, October 26, 1911; Georgia, Kirkwood, October 14, 1899;Alabama, Coden, December 2, 1916.The earliest arrivals in Porto Rico were noted on October 8, 1922,and the last to leave in the spring were observed on March 25, 1921.Casual records.?The sora also has been observed or taken atseveral points beyond its normal range. A specimen was found deadat State College, New Mexico, on August 27, 1912; another wasfound on the ice at the terminal moraine of Arapahoe Glacier, Colo-rado, at an altitude of 12,000 feet, in September, 1903; it has occur-red in summer at Massett on the Queen Charlotte Islands, at Anti-costi Island and St. Joachim, Quebec. It has been reported fromNewfoundland and there are several records of occurrence in Green-land, Avigait, September 30 (year?), Sukkertoppen, October 3, 1823,and Umanak. It also has been detected in England, near Newbury,Berkshire, in October, 1866; Wales, Cardiff, in 1888; and in Scotland,Tiree Island, October 25, 1901.Egg dates.?Southern New England and New York: 50 records,May 7 to July 26; 25 records. May 24 to 30. Quebec: 8 records.May 29 to June 26. Michigan and Wisconsin: 27 records. May 16to June 28; 14 records. May 26 to June 6. Manitoba, Saskatchewan,and Alberta: 19 records. May 31 to July 23; 10 records, June 9 to23. California, Utah, and Nevada: 11 records, April 23 to June 25;6 records. May 23 to June 9.COTURNICOPS NOVEBORACENSIS (Gmelln)YELLOW RAILHABITSThis beautiful little rail, perhaps the handsomest of all our rails, isa most elusive bird. Although it has a wide distribution at certainseasons, ranging from Nova Scotia to California, it is seldom seen andis one of the least-known of this elusive group. Most of its life his-
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 317tory is shrouded in mystery and even its voice is not too well known.Probably it is much more abundant than is generally supposed, butits secretive habits cause it to be overlooked.Spring.?The yellow rail is iindoubtedl}^ an abundant migrant, bothspring and fall, throughout the United States, east of the RockyMountains at least. Spring records are not as numerous as fall records,probably because there are fewer men out with guns and dogs at thatseason. It is an early migrant in the spring, one having been takennear Detroit on March 26, 1908, and one caught alive in a snow bankduring an early April blizzard near River Forest, Illinois. On theother hand there are some late records, which may indicate a moresouthern breeding range than is generally supposed. F. B. McKech-nie (1906) reported a female taken in Massachussetts on May 26,1906, in which an egg was found that would probably have been laidin three or four days. S. T. Danforth writes to me that he has seenthe yellow rail in Porto Rico as late as April 1, 1922, and C. J. Pen-nock's notes contain a record of one at St. Marks, Florida, on May22, 1915. Audubon (1840) was firmly convinced that this speciesbred in the Southern States, but no recent positive records have con-firmed this view.Courtshij).?We know little or nothing of the courtship of theyellow rail, except that the clicking or '"kicker" notes form an im-portant part of it. Rev. P. B. Peabody, in his extensive notes sentto me on this species, says:While the chcking which constitutes the nuptial song of the yellow rail maybe fitfully heard at various times of the middle day, both its frequency and itsduration are greatly accentuated as day wears on to its final close. From mid-June observations, the writer has sometimes believed that the nuptial ardor ofthe male may wane after incubation begins, as indicated by the fact that underthis circumstance the clickings are sometimes more irregular and less frequent, insome cases altogether ceasing during the greater part of the day. But thatthis may not be indicative appears to be proven by Mr. Preble's experience.This observer speaks of the calling of the yellow rails as being frequent, andapparently persistent, in the middle of July.Nesting.?No one has had anywhere nearly as much experiencewith the nesting habits of this elusive Uttle rail as this same enthusi-astic observer; therefore I can not do better than to quote fromsome of his writings. Mr. Peabody (1922) has well described itsfamiliar breeding grounds, in the "Big Coulee," in Benson Count}^,North Dakota, as follows
:
One must give reasons why this bed of an ancient river should have beenchosen as a summer home by that rarest of inland water birds, the yellowrail. The winding coulee, deep-set among the hills, is reached by steep ravines.These are clothed with partridge berry, rose, willow, aspen, and the silver-leafedbuffalo berry. Rarely on these ravine sides are found huge boulders of yellowsandstone, under the edges of which at times a turkey vulture may place her92642?261 22
318 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
eggs; and often beside them are the nests of the ferruginous roughleg. Ontop of the morainic buttes are scattered granite boulders of varied colors,all enriched by wonderfully varied lichens. Amid all these boulders, blossomedvetches, conefiowers, and puccoons, in glowing tapestries. Here, in this mostradiant setting, was the paradisic home of the yellow rails. The faunal condi-tions in the coulee itself were rarely fine for the yellow rails. Everyw^here werewide 'areas of salt grass, alive with appetizing snails. There were greatexpanses of soft, fine grass, unburned and unmown year by year. Better stillas will appear later, there were great expanses of soft, fine grass that were annu-ally mown leaving in spots just the sort of matted flotsam that the yellow railso dearly loves for its nesting.One unusual condition has, I am sure, determined the fitness of the Big Couleeas a breeding place for the yellow rail. Far up on the top of a butte, rising outof a boggy spring pool, there flows a tiny stream of clear, sweet water. Downthe slopes the streamlet flows, now losing itself to view amid lush grasses, and,again, pouring itself with noisy babbling over some buried boulder. Across thereach of narrow, coarse-grass meadow it quietly flows among the cowslips andsedges. Onward it meanders into the coulee; here it enlarges by intake; thenspreads wideninglj' and sluggishly into the broader expanses. Now there appearsa stretch or two of clean sand amid the the alluvial muck. Onward, at last, thestiller waters flow, out into one of the lagoons. No one element of that won-derful coulee is more delightsome than this little stream of clear, cool water,and right here, throughout many of the years of my observation, has been thefocal point of the nesting domain of the yellow rail in that famous coulee. No-where else in all that region, during many years, was the yellow rail everfound.After the above excellent account of the breeding haunts of the yel-low rail, he gives us, in the same paper, the following description ofthe nests:The first-found nests of the yellow rail on the Big Coulee were all of themplaced among coarse grasses. In such cover, then, did I first seek. It is amusingto recall how, although repeatedly warned that one should work his way throughthe meadow growth with care, lest he crush precious eggs, I should still, near theclose of the first day's search, and weary with the unusual exertion, have allow-ed my feet to drag a bit. Then, just at the despair point, I happened to see anegg lying on a bare spot. Stooping to pick it up, I saw that it was what I hadbeen seeking. Assured that a nest was near at hand, I faced about, only to findthat the toe of my boot had drawn away the canopy from the cosiest possiblenest of a yellow rail. In this case, it was plain that the nest canopy was inci-dental. It was just a mat of dead and partly prone grass, perhaps somewhatmoulded by the rail as her nest making went on. Of this character were mostof the nest canopies afterward found, in whatsoever sort of matrix the nest propermay have been placed. And yet, the coarse-grass locus is hardly the norm. Oftwo distinctive types of nest matrix appearing (with water of the same depth inboth), I have found the fine-grass type to have been the prevailing one. Mysecond nest, found next morning, was the only one of the entire series in whichthere has been any evidence of a built-in canopy. This nest was in a fine-grassarea, some rods from the former, amid rather scanty- grasses. Water was ofabout the usual depth favored?4 inches. The canopy was very slight and thesurrounding herbage quite thin. Only two other nests that I now recall were sopoorly hidden. In every other case, all nests have been utterly concealed, therebeing no trace whatever of any artificial moulding of the standing or the prone
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 319herbage. Herein lies the supreme cunning of yellow rails. In the majority ofcases noted, then, the nesting sites of this rail have been where the hayrakeof the previous year has dropped a small wisp of hay. This fact has led to suc-cess in the nest finding, when once the trick has been learned. One had only totraverse the cleanmown areas and examine every likely wisp of dead grass; andultimately the nest would be found. Under some one of such, and that, usually,the most unlikely one of a hundred or more, would be the place where has lurk-ed a most neat and elaborate nest. The most wonderful fabricjof all was found,on June, years ago, after both skill and insight had become evolved. Amidcoarse-grass bogs, 100 feet and over from the springstream, there stood one bog,a bit apart from the rest. The water about it was rather deep. On top of thisgrass tussock was a bit of the dead grass of the previous year. This I tore away,finding beneath a nest of unusual perfection. It was of the usual diameter
?
about o inches?-but thicker?an inch and a half. Most wonderful the structureof it. Every blade of the fine grasses that composed it had been brought fromfar, and carried upward, from the side of the tussock into the top, through asmall hole but little larger than a mouse hole. Every yellow-rail nest of myfinding has been of this general character: About 1 inch thick; made of the finestpossible grasses; and between 4 and 5 inches in diameter. The cupping of thenests is never so broad as with other rails; just because, one must presume, fewereggs are to be placed within it.Two nests, out of a dozen, found by Fred Maltby (1915), aresomewhat different; he describes them as foUows:Xest No. 8 which I found on June 24 was out in the Big Coulee. I was cross-ing a little hay meadow from which the hay had been removed in 1899, when Icaught sight of egg shells lying on the ground. Examination showed them tobe those of the yellow rail from which the young had hatched. In anothermoment I spied the nest. There was no dead grass here and the green bladeshad been pulled down and fastened about the nest, thus forming a green screenover it. The nest was a rather thin affair of dead blades, placed on the dampground. I had been under so strong an impression that the nests of these birdswould be found only in places where there was plenty of dead grass to affordconcealment that I hadn't thought of searching the "cleaner" areas.Nest No. II was my lucky find. After I had about given up hope, in theoutskirts of the meadow, outside the damper, soggier portion, I suddenly foundmyself looking down upon a beautiful set of nine eggs. The nest was of coarse,dead blades mostly, and placed upon the ground in a rather thick bunch of grow-ing grass. There was no dead grass about and no canopj' over the nest, the endsof the green blades simply hanging loosely together a foot or more above it.A most sui'prising discovery was the finding of a yellow rail's nestin Long Valley, Mono County, California, on June 6, 1922, by W.Jjeon Dawson (1922); he relates the experieiKJO, as follows:We were dragging a rather thin stretch of marsh grass when a Jack Snipeflushed and I called Stevens to my assistance, leaving Bobby, who was moreremote, standing listlessly by his rope-end. Returning from a fruitless quest wewere about to resume operations when Bobby exclaimed, "Well, look at this!''He had been standing all the while within 3 feet of a low-lying cushion whichheld, in a compact and perfect circle, eight fresh eggs. The cover of marsh grasswas scanty, not over 18 inches high, and the water shallow?an inch or so?yetthere was no trace of a bird about. The eggs were different?no doubt of that;much smaller than those of a sora, which we had, fortunately, just examined; of
320 BULLETIM 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
a dark, old-ivory color, heavily sprinkled almost capped at the larger end, withrich reddish brown spots. The nest itself was noncommittal, a wellrounded andrather deep bowl of coiled grasses, 3J^ inches across by 2 in depth inside, built upto a height of three inches clear of the water. Notably, there was present aleaning and overshadowing wisp of dead grass. I considered the exhibit longand carefully, too sobered, for once, to render snap judgment. The boys becameimpatient and pressed for an expression of opinion. Finally I said, " Well, boys,to the best of my knowledge and belief, these are eggs of the yellow rail {Coturn-icops noveboracensis) , the first breeding record for California, and the first setever taken west of the Rocky Mountains."Eggs.?I quote the following from Mr, Peabody's notes
:
As might be expected noveboracensis parallels jamaicensis in the fewness of theeggs normally laid. Enough nests have been found to establish the norm beyonddispute. My field notes involve 5 sets of 8, 3 of 9, and 3 of 10. No setsnumbering more than 10 have ever been found. The ground color of the eggsof the yellow rail is usually of a rich, warm buff, as rich as the richest-coloredeggs of Asiatic fowl. This color fades, rapidly, with time, even when hidden fromthe light. The dominant shape of these eggs is a decidedh'-pointed ovate.Rounded-ovate specimens are not infrequent. In anj' case, there is a remarkableuniformity in the eggs of any one set, not only in shape but in the markings. Noother eggs of North American birds could be confused with the eggs of this rail.It is rarely, indeed, that an egg bears any marks, however small, below the upper-height of the apex. Of extra-typical character, in this respect, was a nestlessincomplete set of six eggs that were marvelously like eggs oi jamaicensis, exceptfor one fairly-typical specimen. The dominant style of markings is the dense,floriated, or stippled cap. This is borne, often, on the extreme apex. The ordi-nary color type is a pale sepia or bright cinnamon, with a slight tendency towardpale vinaceous. Thus, the eggs of the yellow rail are of very remarkable beauty.Where markings occur on the body of the egg they are very small, often merespecks. If wroathings occur they are usually near the apices; and they aregenerally rather loose. In thi? type, also, spots, and specks predominate. It isapt so very infrequently that one finds an egg capped at the small end. Twosuch did I find in one set. Rarely do more than two or three eggs in a set beara,ny body markings whatever. A single very dark and unusually handsome egg(Maltby), was marked as follows: On a very dark surface was found a loose andstreaky cap, somewhat " bedaubed. " The markings were of light and darkciimamon with little of lilaceous tint. The markings extended well down towardthe middle of the egg. There were a few streaky body spots. Another egg inthe same set bore three cinnamon spots, near the small end. A third egg in thisset was the most peculiar egg of the entire Benson County series, faintly andscattsringiy specked, all over, with a marked tendency toward a capping withthe brighter markings.The measurements of 32 eggs average 28.3 by 20.7 millimeters;the eggs showing the four extremes measure 29.7 by 21.3; 27.2 by22.3; and 26.3 by 19.5 miUimeters.Plumages.?The downy 3^oung of the yellow rail seems to be en-tirely unknown, but it is probably black hke the young of the othersmall rails. The youngest juvenals I have been able to find areOctober birds, which probably represent a first winter rather than aJuvenal plumage. These differ from adults in being more pldnly
XOinil AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 321
colored below, in having a cliiferent color pattern on tlie head andneck and in being lighter colored and more buffy generally. Thieibreiast is ''light ochraceous buff, " unmarked with the dusky tips seenin adults, paling to bulTy white on the throat and to pure white onthe belly; the flanks are as in the adult, but more brownish and lessblackish; the crown, hind neck, and upper back are less blackish,more brownish and buffy, mth a striped effect, each feather beingcentrally dark brown, ''bister" or "warm sepia," broadly edgedlaterally with "light ochraceous buff"; the small white spots, so con-spicuous on the head and neck of the adult, are entirely lacking iathe young bird; the back, scapulars, and rump are much as in theadult, but with rather less of the white, transverse barring and 'withdecidedly more and wider buff edgings, especially on the scapulars;the wing coverts are browner and more buff}'' than in the adult, "snuffbrown" to "sayal brown."This plumage is worn, wdth practically no change, dm'ing the firstwinter and spring; April birds arc like October birds. Apparentlya complete postnuptial molt takes place during the next summer aridfall, wluch produces the adult plumage. Specimens showing thebeginning of this molt are lacking, but several September and Oc-tober birds show the final stages of it.Material is lacking to show the annual molts of adults. Adultsare much darker colored above than young birds, with more whitebars and spots, especially on the forward parts, and the breast ismarked with Uttle dusk}^ crescents, the tips of the feathers. Audubon's(1840) plate illustrates an adult.Food.?Very little is known about the food of this species. Mr.Peabody's notes say:We have seen that the feeding habit which carries the yellow rail out of itsfavored penetralia into the short-grass areas would seem to indicate a fondnessfor insect food. Per.sonally, I am inclined to believe that fresh-water snails con-stitute a large part of this bird's diet. Most of the nests in a colony visited byme for many years, lay not over 100 yards from a sluggish little stream of freshwater that meandered across a meadow largely alkaline, and the bed and mar-gins of this stream v.'ere swarming with little snails. In Jime of 1923, as I passedalong this stream whose margin was narrowly fringed with grasses, left by themower, I twice flushed a yellow rail within a fcAV minutes, one of these dashinginto the water, in his haste to escape me, v/itlial the scanty covert. To corrobo-rate this thesis comes Mr. Wayne (190.5a) to say that the yellow rails dissectedby him all contained snail remains in their stomachs.Behavior.?The flight of the j^ellow rail is said to resemble that ofthe sora. It usually makes rather short, feeble flights just over thetops of the grasses and drops down suddenly with uplifted wings anddangling legs. But, when thoroughly aroused and intent on goingsomewhere, its fUght is strong, direct, and rather swift. It can berecognized easily in flight by the large amount of white in the second-
322 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMdries. But it is seldom seen in flight and most observers agree onits secretive and skulking habits. Audubon (1840) seems to havebeen more fortunate in seeing it than more recent observers, for hesays:In the course of my stay at the Silver Springs in East Florida, I observed agood number of these birds along the margins of the lakes and swampy bayous,and had ample opportunities of assuring myself that this species is far from beingoocturnal, as authors have alleged, at least when in places where they are underno apprehension of danger. In those sultry solitudes I have at times seen themfollowing the margins of the muddy shores, with delicate and measured steps, untilattracted by something worthy of their attention, when they suddenly jerkedtheir tail upwards and for a moment disappeared. Again, they would gracefullyleap upon the slender twig of some low shrub or bush, apparently in search ofsmaU snails or other objects, jerking their tail at every movement. There it wasthat I again saw the extraordinary power of contraction which their body is ableto assume while they are pushing forward between two or more stubborn branches.They were all so gentle that I at times approached within a few yards of them,when they would now and then look cunningly at me, rise more erect for amoment, and then resume their occupations.On the other hand, Mr. Peabody, after his many years of experi-ence with it, says in his notes:But once in 20 years did I ever flush a yellow rail from her nest. I haveseveral times approached a nest previously discovered, with slow caution, mak-ing then a quick run to the spot. Yet never did I succeed in finding the birdat home. Once, after discovering a nest where surrounding herbage was whollybeaten down by horses, making unnoticed escape by skulking fairly impossible, Ileft the spot, after examining the eggs, amid pitiless cold rain. Ten minuteslater I returned, against the wind, and cautiously; no rail appeared; yet the eggswere warm. Never but once, in the 20 odd years, did I ever actually see a yel-low rail come out into the open. In this case, as I approached a small area ofsmoothly beaten-down fine grass, a yellow rail ran out, some feet ahead of me;ran swiftly for about fifteen yards; then stood for just an instant in statuesquepose; and then vanished, in an instant. For all the world like a 10-day, brownleghorn chicken did it look.The voices of the marsh are often veiled in mystery; the vocalistis seldom seen, almost never by the average observer; and amongthe many, varied calls that one hears it is often difficult, if not im-possible, to identify positively the author of any one. Fortunatelyfor us, J. H, Ames (1902) has positively identified the notes of theyellow rail from a bird he had in captivity; he records the notes as
"Hk-Mlc-Tcilc-MJc-queah" ; sometimes the "kik" note was repeatedseven or eight times. His published note on it is entitled "Solutionof the 'Ornithological Mystery,' " assuming that the "Hclcer" notesreferred to by WilUam Brewster (1901), as probably made by theblack rail, were really referable to the yellow rail. I am inclined toagree with Mr. McKechnie (1906) that Mr. Ames has solved themystery and that the yellow rail may yet be found breeding inMassachusetts.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRI>S 323I quote again from Mr. Peabody, as follows
:
Right here one should emphasize the marvelous acoustic of the clicking of theyellow rail. When heard at a fair distance it seems decidedly nonresonant; butwhen one listens only a few feet away, this sound has all of the hollow, throatyquality so characteristic of the Virginia rail. This note may be almost perfectlyimitated by tapping a hollow beef bone with a bit of iron. The usual rhythmicform of the call is, , / , / , , etc. Thus,the ordinary motif is in double time, with triplets in the second measures. Theseiterations are very uniform, though with occasional variations. Now and thena male maj* break into quadruplets toward the end of his half-minute series;while an occasional bird may break the rhythm altogether. But the sound ofthis clicking carries far. More than once, after toiling the meadow reaches untilafter dusk, have I set out for my own roosting place a mile away, only to stop,on renewed occasion, to listen to my yellow rails. With a keen wind blowing inthe opposite direction, I have distinctly heard the calls, not only from the buttecrest, 200 feet above the meadow, but from the prairie, a full quarter-mile away.Fall.?Much more is known about the autumnal migration of theyellow rail than about its movements in the spring, probably becausemore gunners are afield in the fall. Walter H. Rich (1907) says thatit is more common in Maine than the Virginia rail; he writes:Within the last three years I have known of the capture of possibly 50 speci-mens of the yellow rail near Portland, Maine, and have myself taken at leasthalf that number, while of the Virginia rails scarcely 20 have been killed in thesame time. The yellow rail seems to be quite hardy, staying here after the otherspecies have deserted us and the ice has made in the pond holes of the marsh.The writer has shot them when there had been severe cold for November andafter a snowfall of 3 or 4 inches.Robert O. Morris (1905) has taken a number of yellow rails nearSpringfield, Massachusetts. He says:The place where they were found was wet meadow land covered with wildgrass, which in October stood, in places where it had not been harvested, to theheight of 2 or 3 feet and harbored many Virginia rails and soras. The grass uponthe other part of the land v?^as cut in the summer, and by the middle of Octoberthe second growth reached the height of 7 or 8 inches, and in this portion theyellow rails are to be found, they apparently not desiring so thick a cover as dothe common kinds. I have flushed all by the aid of a dog, except one, andthat rose about 20 feet ahead of me, evidently frightened by my approach. Theearliest date in any autumn that I have found them was the 17th of September,and I think that the latest was the 22d of October. In this part of the Con-necticut valley I have been in many meadows of the same character as the onein question, accompanied by a dog educated in such a way that the scent givenout by anj' kind of rail would so attract his attention that he would be likely tomake known the presence of such a bird, if any were there, but in these places Ihave never found a yellow rail, and it seems worthy of note that this speciesshould be a regular autunni visitor to a certain piece of meadow land, containingperhaps three acres, and to be found nowhere else in this vicinity at any time.Winter.?Very little has been published since Audubon's time onthe winter habits of the yellow rail. Arthur T. Wayne (19()5a) onceshowed me a meadow near his home in which he had taken a numberof these birds, of which he writes:
324 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMOn February 3, 1904, while out partridge shooting, I saw my dog pointing in alow, wet piece of open land with a dense growth of short, dead grass, and beingunal)le to flush anything myself, although I trampled the grass down in everydirection, I told her to take it. She at once caught a yellow rail, which was thefirst one I had ever seen alive in South Carolina. I then made her hunt theentire field, and in less than 10 minutes she caught two more. These threeyellow rails were caught near sunset. The next morning, February 4, I againvisited the field, in company with my dog, and in less than five minutes she hadcaught another; while a second specimen was flushed and shot. On February5 and 8, two more were taken, which make seven in all. On November 19, 1904,my dog again captured another one alive. These rails would not flush, althoughin every instance I tried my utmost to make them fly, and the only one thatdid elude the dog by flying, was due to the dog's failure to seize it in a verythick growth. DISTRIBUTIONRange.?United States and Canada north to latitude 60 degrees.Breeding range.?North to Mackenzie (FortResokition, Little Buf-falo River, and Salt River); Manitoba (York Factory); Ontario(Fort Severn); Quebec (Fort George); and Maine (Calais). Eastto Maine (Calais). South to Ohio (Circleville) ; Illinois (Chicagoand Winnebago) ; Wisconsin (Jefferson County and Racine) ; NorthDakota (Devil's Lake and Esmond) ; and Saskatchewan (Fort Qu'-Appelle). West to Saskatchewan (Fort Qu'Appelle); Alberta (RedDeer) ; Mackenzie (Salt River, Little Buffalo River, and Fort Reso-lution); and California (Mono County).Summer occurrences for this species, some of which may possiblyrepresent breeding birds, extend the range southeast to New Hamp-shire (Hampton) ; Massachusetts (Salem, Boston, and Plymouth)
;
Rhode Island (Westerly) ; Connecticut (Now Haven and Milford)and the District of Columbia. South to the District of Columbia;Pennsylvania (Erie) ; Ohio (Hamilton) ; Indiana (Brookville, Bloom-ington, and Vincennes) ; Missouri (St. Louis and Independence)Kansas (Lawrence); and Colorado (Barr).Winter range.?North to California (probably Suisun Marshes)Arizona (Sacaton) ; Louisiana (Belle Isle and New Orleans) ; Missis-sippi (probably Ba^^ St. Louis and Biloxi); Alabama (Barachias andGreensboro); Georgia (Darien); and South Carolina (Mount Pleas-ant). Etist to South Carolina (Mount Pleasant); Georgia (Darien);and Florida (upper wSt. Johns River and probably Cape Sable). Southto Florida (probably Cape Sable); Louisiana (Diamond and BelleIsle); and California (Riverside County). West to California (westcentral counties).Winter occurrences have also been noted from more northernpoints: California (Humboldt Bay) ; Oregon (Scio); northern SouthCarolina (Chester); North CaroUna (Weaverville, Newbern, and
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 325Fort Macon) ; Maryland (Prince Georges County) ; and New York(Seaford and Ithaca). It has also been listed as a probable visitorto Cuba at this season; and two were reported from Bermuda inOctober, 1847.Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are : District of Columbia,Marcii 28, 1S84; Maryland, Patapsco Marsh, April 27, 1893;Pennsylvania, Erie, April 23, 1904; New Jersey, Princeton, April 10,1895; New York, Miu-ray, April 21, 1894, and Long Island, April 27,1887; Connecticut, Gaylordsville, March 24, 1888, and MiKord,April 17, 1880; Missouri, St. Louis, March 27, 1876, and Sand Ridge,Clark County, April 21, 1889; Illinois, Madison County, March 27,1876, Lebanon, April 5, 1877, Odin, April 5. 1892, Normal Park,April 12, 1888, Fernwood, April 14, 1888, and Chicago, April 18,1896; Indiana, Muncie, May 12, 1890; Ohio, Barnesville, April 2, 1916,Cleveland, April 24, 1880, and Oberhn, April 30, 1917; Michigan,Detroit, March 28, 1908; Ontario, Toronto, April 24, 1899; Iowa,CUnton, April 10, 1879, Iowa City, April 18, 1916, and Keokuk,April 22, 1888; Wisconsin, Sumpter, April 23, 1908, Barrow, May 5,1911, Whitewater, May 5, 1911, Madison, May 13, 1911, and Stough-ton. May 18, 1885; Minnesota, Lake Wilson, May 3, 1909; Kansas,Lawi-ence, April 18, 1885; Nebraska, Lincoln, April 30, 1909; andManitoba, Margaret, May 9, 1913. A late spring record is a speci-men from Dedham, Massachusetts, on May 26, 1906.Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Manitoba,Aweme, September 10, 1901; Kansas, Lawrence, October 1, 1885;Minnesota, Lanesboro, September 24, 1891; Wisconsin, Delavan,October 13, 1901; Michigan, Ann Arbor, September 30, 1908, Kala-mazoo, October 19, 1890, and Vicksburg, October 20, 1912; Ontario,Toronto, October 15, 1895, and Ottawa, October 22, 1895; lUinois, Chi-cago, September 20, 1879; Maine, Portland, October 1, 1905; NewHampshire, Seabrook, October 15, 1871; Vermont, Windsor, October20, 1913; Massachusetts, Springfield, October 16, 1894, and ChathamNovember 25, 1911; Rhode Island, South Auburn, October 15,1911 ; Connecticut, New Haven, October 1, 1902, Hadlyme, October 10,1903, Quinnipiac Marshes, October 15, 1894, and Miiford, November10, 1876; New York, central, September 20, 1872, Geneva, September20, 1911, Orient Point, October 4, 1898, and Canandaigua, October 6,1883; New Jersey, Palmyra, October 13, 1886, and Salem, October24, 1908; Pennsylvania, Erie, October 19, 1894, and Carlisle, October16, 1844; Maryland, Dorchester County, November 17, 1920; Dis-trict of Columbia, November 13, 1843; and Virginia, Blacksbm'g,October 19.Egg dates.?North Dakota: 10 records. May 20 to June 18; 5 recordsJune 4 to 8.
326 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMCRECISCUS JAMAICENSIS (Gmelin)BLACK RAILHABITSAlthough the Uttle black rail was discovered in Jamaica in 1760and received its scientific name in 1788, it was not discovered in theUnited States until 1836, when Audubon (1840) described and figuredit from specimens given him by Titian R. Peale. Practically nothingwas known about its distribution and habits in North America for100 years after its discovery in Jamaica. For a full account of theearly history of this species 1 would refer the reader to Dr. J. A.Allen's (1900) interesting paper, in which is told about all that wasknown about it up to that time. Much has been learned about itsince and many of its nests have been found, but its distribution andlife history are still imperfectly known and specimens of the birdare still rare in collections. Owing to its secretive habits, it is seldomseen, and it is probably much commoner and more widely distributedthan is generally supposed. William Brewster's (1901) interestingpaper on the "Kicker" furnishes some food for thought and somesuggestions for solving ' ' an ornithological mystery. ' ' I have no doubtthat the black rail breeds in some of the marshes of southeasternMassachusetts; in fact, a nest is said to have been found in Chatham;but though I have explored many miles of marshes and spent manyhours in the search, I have never seen a trace of this elusive littlebird.Nesting.?Dr. E. W. Nelson (1877) was the fii^t to discover anddescribe a nest of the little black rail in the United States, of whichhe writes:During the spring of 1875 I saw three specimens in the Calumet Marshes.The first was observed early in May. On the 19th of June, the same season,while collecting with me near the Calumet River, Frank DeWitt, of Chicago, wasfortunate enough to discover a nest of this species containing 10 freshly laid eggs.The nest was placed in a deep cup-shaped depression in a perfectly open situationon the border of a marshy spot, and its only concealment was such as a fewstraggling carices afforded. It is composed of soft grass blades loosely interwovenin a circular manner. The nest, in shape and construction, looks much like thatof a meadow lark. The following are its dimensions in inches: Inside depth,2.50; Inside diameter, 3.25; outside depth, 3.50; outside diameter, 4.50.Next came the discovery of two nests in Connecticut, near Say-brook, by Judge John N. Clark (18S4). The first nest was broughtto him by a neighbor, who had decapitated the rail on her nest and9 eggs while mowing in a meadow. Of the second nest he says:On the 6th of June, 1844. 1 made a trip to "Great Island"?atract of salt meadownear the mouth of the Connecticut River, on its eastern shore?in search of nests ofAmmodrami which abound in that locality. During a very successful hunt forthem I observed a tuft of gi-een grass carefully woven and interlaced together
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 327too artificially to be the work of nature. "Merely another Finch's nest," I mused,as I carefully parted the green bower overhanging it. But wasn't there an ex-tra and audible beat to my pulse when before my astonished gaze lay three beau-tiful little black rail's eggs? Recovering from my surprise I carefully replacedthe disarranged curtain that excluded the sun from the precious eggs, fixed somepermanent ranges, and quietly departed to await the completion of the set. Aweek later, on the 13th of June, I again visited the nest and found therein thefull complement of nine eggs. This nest was situated about 40 rods back fromthe shore of the river, on the moist meadow, often overflowed by the spring tides.The particular spot had not been mowed for several years, and the new grass,springing up through the old, dry, accumulated growths of previous years, wasthick, short, and not over 8 or 10 inches in height?a fine place for rails toglide unseen among its intricacies. The nest after the complement of eggswere deposited in it resembled that of the common meadow lark, it consistingof fine meadow grasses loosely put together, with a covering of the standinggrasses woven over it and a passage and entrance at one side. I must add anaccount of my efforts to secure the little black rail with the set. I devotedthe wnole day to this special end, and visited the nest about every half hour throughthe day, approaching it with every possible caution, and having a little tuft of<30tton directy over the nest to indicate the exact spot; but although J tried fromevery quarter with the utmost diUgence and watchfulness, T was never able toobtain the slightest glimpse of the bird?never perceived the slightest quiver of thesurrounding grass to mark her movements as she glided away, and yet I foundthe eggs warm every time, indicating that she had but just left them.Since that Judge Clark has "met with eggs of the species fromfom" different nests," one of which he (1897) describes, as follows:One was found on the salt meadow near the west shore of the ConnecticutRiver near its mouth in Old Saybrook. The situation was on the bank of asmall ditch which was partially grown up with sedges and nearly dry at the timeof the find. The meadow was a tract which had not been mowed in some yearsand on the ditch Vjank was a large growth of old dry blue grass, of previousyears, partially prostrated by winter's ice and snow and held up from the groundby the new growth sparsely working its way through to the light. As I lifteda bulging tuft of it I was startled to find a nest beneath with a beautiful set ofsix eggs of the little black rail. Carefully smoothing back the drooping grassesI left them hoping for an increase which however failed to develop. Four dayslater I again gently lifted the covering and found the bird sitting closely on hertreasures. At a motion on my part she darted from the nest across the ditchand stopped without taking flight in a little tuft of grass within an inch of myboot; at a slight movement on my part she darted into another tuft a few feetbehind me, and as I essayed to turn she darted back to her former position bymy boot. I say darted, for I can think of no other word that so nearly expressesher every movement, which was so swift that the eye could scarcely follow it.I wanted that bird greatly for still I have no representative of the species in mycollection, though it is quite complete of that class found in Connecticut other-wise, but vain was every effort to get a stroke of my staff at it. Its next move-ment was to spring into the air and take flight, dropping into a patch of cat-tailsa few rods away. Its flight was after the manner of the rail family and I couldeasily have shot it on the wing had my gun been with me. This is the onlybird of the species I have ever seen.
328 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMRichard C. Harlow (1913), who has probably found more blackrails' nests than anyone else in North America, thus describes thefirst two nests seen by him in New Jersej', one of which was collectedfor him
?
on the edge of the marshes back of Brigantine, on June 20, 1912. On the 29tbI visited the nest from which the set had been taken. It was built in a lowmarshy meadow, overgrown with salt grass and sedge and very skillfully concealedin a thick mass of mixed green and dead grass, so that it was completely hiddenfrom above. In composition, it was better built and deeper cupped than thenests of the Virginia, sora, king, and clapper rails that I have seen. In size thenest was little larger than the average structure of the robin, but deeper-cuppedand built entirely of the dry, yellowish stalks of the sedges, and there in the lin-ing, clung several black feathers. Thinking that there might be other nests inthe vicinity we began searching everj'^ thick ciump of marsh grass that we saw>and presently came upon another also containing seven eggs. It was placedamong thick clumps of marsh grass and was quite invisible until the grass v/astparted from above. It was an inch above the salt meadow and was interwovenon all sides with the surrounding stalks.On June 10, 1903, a small negro boy showed to Arthur T. Wayne(1905) a nest he had found on the ground in an oat field, near MountPleasant in South Carolina. "The nest contained eight eggs, andwas built among the oats on high ground, and made entirely of thedry oat leaves arranged in a circular manner, but not arched over.'^George H. Stuart, 3d, has sent me the following notes:On July 4, 1919, Julian K. Potter and the writer flushed a small rail in a marshan acre or two in extent beyond the sand dunes immediately back of the oceanbeach on an island below Beach Haven, N. J. Searching for the nest in thebelief that the bird was a little black rail, we were rewarded by finding it placedin the long grass, the tops of v/hich were so drawn over as to almost comx^letelyhide the eggs from view. The nest, which was composed entirely of the samerather fine grass, was placed about one inch from the damp ground and containedeight eggs, very heavily incubated. On returning several times at intervals of10 minutes we had opportunities of observing the female on the nest, her brightred eyes being the most prominent feature. On each occasion when leaving theeggs it darted from the nest into the surroimding grass never raising and withsuch celerity that it was impossible to observe her movement, the action resem-bling more that of a mouse than a bird.Donald J. Nicholson sends me the following notes on the breedingof tliis species in Florida:It was on the 13th of July, 1926, that I discovered the two sets of black rail,on Merritt's Island, in the Dusky Seaside colony. I had just about given uphope of finding any more sparrow nests when I heard a pair singing and thoughtI would take one more last search for them before going home. I got out of thecar and was going over to where they were when, under my feet, a small blackbird rose feebly and flew wabbly and weakly, low over the salicornia, anddropped into the dense growth 20 feet away. At first I thought it was a youngbird of some kind, but the thought struck me that it might be the rare species ofwhich we had no breeding record, so I began a search and almost immediatelyupon parting the grass 7 feet from where it rose I looked upon a cozy small nest
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 329with six fresh eggs of the black rail. I knew the eggs as soon as I saw them, asI had just received a set from Henry W. Davis a few days before, a set of eighttaken in June, 1926, in New Jersey.Tlie nest was made of dead Bermuda grass placed on damp ground among athick growth of the same under a sparse growth of salicornia, or pickleweed, withthe green grass bent over to form an arch, with an entrance on the east side,giving a view to more open growth, with a background of a heavy dense tangledpatch of salicornia growing to the river's edge, 100 yards away. The nest wascompletely and entirely concealed and could be seen only by parting the grass.The bird made no sound and was not seen again.Eggs.?The black rail lays usually from 6 to 10 eggs, but as manyas 13 have been found. They are ovate in shape and the shell issmooth with little or no gloss. The ground color is buffy white orpinkish white and they are spotted rather evenly with fine dots ofbright browns and pale drabs. The measurements of 92 eggs aver-age 25.6 by 19.8 milhmeters; the eggs showing the four extremesmeasure 27.6 by 20.5, 23.5 by 18.5, and 25.5 by 18 millimeters.Plumages.?I have never seen a downy young black rail, but Mr.McMullen tells me that it is black, like all other young rails, butsmaller of course. The young birds referred to below by Mr. Pen-nock, taken on September 11, probably represent the Juvenal plum-age. They resemble adults, but are grayer below and blacker above,with less brown in the wings; the throat is grayish white; there isvery little brown on the back and hind neck; and the white spotsare duller and smaller. This plumage is worn but a short time, asit is replaced during the late fall, November and December, by aplumage which is practically adult. As to the molts and plumtigesof the adults, very little can be learned from the limited mate-rial available. Black rails are difficult to collect at any time, butduring the molting season the}' are more secretive than ever.Food.?Very little is known about the food of the black rail. Itprobably consists largely of insects and other small bits of animallife, with perhaps some seeds of aquatic plants. P. H. Gosse (1847)says that the gizzard of one taken in Jamaica '' contained a few hardseeds." One that Stanley Cobb (1906) had in captivity for afew days showed himself to be insectivorous, "Peeping timidlyabout the ferns, he saw a little insect on the underside of a leaf, andquickly snatched it." He ate earthworms eagerly, but died on thefourth day "after eating several hard bugs."Beliavior.?The black rail is not fond of flying and is seldom seeninflight. Ludlow Griscom (1915), who had a good opportunity toobserve one, says that "the flight is much more feeble than thatof any other rail with which I am familiar; the bird seemed barely tosustain its weight in the air, while its legs dangled down helplesslybehind." But when on the ground it runs swiftly and disappears
330 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMunder the nearest cover as quickly as a mouse. Mr. Cobb (1906)-relates the following interesting experience with a black rail in Mil-ton, Massachusetts: "An extract from my log of May 16, 1904,reads" :As I was standing by the B-s spring to-day, I heard something among thebranches of a small pine near by. On looking up, I saw a small loird come tum-bling down through the soft pine tips, now and then clinging to one for a second.Finally he landed on the ground. Here he stopped for a minute on the wet pineneedles as if to recover his balance and then made for cover. While this wasgoing on I had stood watching the proceedings with interest, but as soon as thebird started to run I saw at once, by his diminutive size and peculiar shape, thathe must be something unusual. I quickly gave chase, and, with the help of myterrier, soon cornered the bird in some underbrush; but, after getting close enoughto touch him with my hand, he escaped to another hiding place. Knowing nowthat he was the rare black rail, I redoubled my zeal, and, at last after an excitingquarter of an hour, I caught the little fellow. The strange thing about the chasewas that he never attempted to fly more than a few yards. If chased into theopen, he would take wing and flutter into the nearest cover, but never oncedid he try a prolonged flight. In running on the ground he was very skillful,and, had it not been for the open character of the piney hillside on which he fell,I never should have seen him an instant after he struck the ground. The onlyexplanation that I can give of the little rail's strange appearance is that, tired outby a long migration and bewildered in the fog, he had lost his way and fallen toearth exhausted. This theory complies well with weather conditions. There wasa northeast breeze driving in a fog from the ocean, and, whenever the fog lifted,hurrying clouds could be seen passing across the sky.T. E. McMullen writes to me that he has seen them fly out ofthe marsh and alight on horizontal limbs of baybcrr}^ bushes andremain there until he was within 6 feet of them, just like sparrows..H. L. Stoddard (1916), who collected a black rail near Chicago, says:The specimen was first flushed in a small cat-tail growth, and flew ratherstrongly at a good height for 5 or 6 rods before dropping back into the scantvegetation, which here stood in a foot or so of water. On going to the spot thebird flushed again, nearly underfoot, and was secured. The flight of this indi-vidual was fully as strong as that of sora and Virginia rails seen a short timepreviously.Mr. Wayne (1905) took special pains to identify the notes of bothsexes, which he explains as follows:As soon as she entered the standing oats she began to call, which notes resem-bled the words " croo-croo-croo-o," and then again almost exactly like the com-mencement of the song of the yellow billed cuckoo. This was answered at onceby the male but his song was very difi'erent and the notes may best be described bythe words, ^'kik, kik, kik, kik," or even "kuk, kuk, kuk, kuk." As the birds wererare, and the field would be plowed as soon as the oats were harvested, I deter-mined to make every effort to capture both parents, after listening to the songof both birds for more than one hour. I walked into the standing oats, andlittle did I dream of ever flushing one of the birds, but to my great surprise oneflushed almost immediately and with a squib charge of dust shot I killed it,which proved by dissection to be the female. I then tried to flush the male'knowing the one I had was the female by the coloration), so as to be positive of
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 331the song of both sexes. After hunting for more than 40 minutes I failed to flushthe mate, so went home and skinned the one which I had secured. At 3 p. m.o'clock I went in search of the male, accompanied by a friend, Lieut. J. D.Cozby, who brought with him his fine pointer dog. Although we heard the notes ofthe bird incessantly, which never changed from "kik, kik, kik, kik" or "kuk, kuk,kiik, kuk," it was absolutely impossible to flush him but once in two hours'careful search when he flew into the oat stubble, but ran like a phantom into thestanding oats. It was nearly 7 o'clock p. m. and I was fast losing hope of obtain-ing the male, when I saw the dog pointing, but the bird ran between Lieut. Cozbyand myself, then flushed as it passed me. I quickly requested my friend toshoot and bj' a fortunate shot he succeeded in killing it. When it is realized thatit required four hours' constant search in order to secure the male it can beunderstood liow secretive the rail is in its environment.The descriptions of the notes of this rail, as given by others, arenot sufficiently different from the above to warrant quoting them.It seems likely that the notes described by Mr. Brewster (1901) ascoming from the mysterious ''kicker," were referable to the blackrail ; but there is a bare possibility that they may have been madeby a yellow rail, which is known to produce similar notes. Mr. T. E.McMullen tells me that the call of the black rail sounds like "did-ee-dunk," three times repeated, with the accent on the last syllable.Winter.?Mr. C. J. Pennock, writing from St. Marks, Florida, hassent me the following notes:The presumption seems probable that they occur here regularly in consider-able numbers during the fall and winter. Being so extremely elusive, and I be-lieve silent while here, their presence is most difhcult to establish unless they areforced from the dense cover of our extensive marshes by an unusually high tide.During such occurrences two birds were taken by hand on September 4, 1915,and six were captured from a boat t)y hand on September 11, 1919. Two ofthese latter birds were birds of the year and showed some down while the pri-maries were but just pushing from the sheaths. The indication being certainthat they had been reared on the marsh where they were found. \ third oneof the six was a bird of the year but older than the two tiny ones.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Eastern United States to Central Ameiica.Breeding range.?North to Kansas (Garden City, Finney County,probably Beloit and Manhattan) ; Iowa (Linn County) ; Minnesota(Hennepin County); Illinois (Chicago); probably southern Ontario(Dundas); Connecticut (Saybrook); and Massachusetts (Chatham).East to Massachusetts (Chatham); Connecticut (Saybrook); NewJersey (Mount Holly, Camden, Brigantine, and Beasley's Point);probably Virginia (Wallops Island); North Carolina (Raleigh) ; SouthCarolina (Mount Pleasant); and Florida (Alachua County andMerritt's Island). South to Florida (Alachua County, Merritt'sIsland and Wakulla County) ; western North Carolina (Statesvilleand Weaverville) ; IlUnois (Pliilo); and Kansas (Princeton). Westto Kansas (Garden City).
332 BUIXETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAI^ MUSEUMThe black rail also has been reported as occurring in summer fromWisconsin (Lake Koshkonong); and Ohio (Grand Reservoir). Aspecimen believed to be tliis species was reported as seen near Tucson,Arizona, on April 23, 1881 (Brewster).Winter range.?The black rail is known to winter in Jamaica andGuatemala (Duenas); and it appears to occur rarely at this seasonnorth to Louisiana (New Orleans) and Florida (the Tortugas Islands,Key West, St. Marks, and Daytona). It has been reported in win-ter from Tybee Island, Georgia (Hoxie),but this case lacks subse-quent confirmation.Spring migration.?Early dates of arrival are: District of Colum-bia, Woodridge, May 14, 1923, and Washington, May 29, 1891; Mas-sachusetts, Boston, May 5, 1913, and Milton, May 16, 1904; Illinois,Canton, April 15, 1895, and Rautoul, May 11, 1914; Ohio, Medina,April 14, 1921, and near Carthage, May 17, 1890; Texas, Houston,April 21; and Kansas, Neosho Falls, March 18, 1886.Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Kansas, Law-rence, September 26, 1885; Illinois, Chicago, October 15, 1903, andCanton, October 27, 1894; Iowa, Iowa City, October 11, 1885; Maine,Scarboro, October 4, 1881; New Jersey, near Camden, September 22,1887; Maryland, Piscataway, September 25, 1877, and Mount Cal-vert, October 19, 1906; District of Columbia, near Washington,September 25, 1877; and South Carolina, Mount Pleasant, November9, 190.6.The typical form of this rail (Creciscus jamaicensis jamaicensis) isnow said to occupy Jamaica, Cuba, and Porto Rico; and the birdfound in the eastern United States has recently been named Creciscusjamaicensis stoddardi Coale, as a distinct subspecies.Egg dates.?New Jersey: 26 records, May 30 to August 12; 13records, June 12 to 23.CRECISCUS COTURNICULUS (Ridjjway)FARALLON RAILHABITSThe above name was given to this rail because the type, an imma-ture bird, happened to be taken on the Farallon Islands, where, ofcourse, it was only a straggler, as there is no suitable habitat for railson these rocky islands. The type specimen was taken on October IS,1859, and remained for many years unique. Mr. Ridgway (1890),who described the bird as a subspecies in 1874, reviews the matterand expresses some doubt as to its status, as follows:Whatever doubt there may be, however, of the present occurrence of the birdon the Farallons, or even of the type specimen having really been obtained there,there can not, I think, be any question as to its distinctness from P. jamaicensis.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 333That it is not an "abnormal specimen " of the latter is almost certain, from thefact that specimens of P. jamaicensis from the mainland of California do not,apparently, present any difference either of size or coloration from those fromthe Atlantic States, the West Indies, or Chili, notwithstanding numerous exampleshave been compared.Some years later William Brewster (1907), who had accmnulateda series of black rails from the mainland of California, called atten-tion to certain characters which convinced him "that the black railof CaUfornia is at least subspecifically distinct from that of the easternUnited States." He treats it, however, as merely a subspecies of theeastern bird, though it now seems to masquerade as a full species.Recent California writers have called it the California black rail,which seems to be a most appropriate name, as its connection withthe Farallones was purely accidental.Nesting.?It was just 50 years after the type specimen was takenon the Farallones that Frank Stephens (1909) gave us the firstinformation as to its only known breeding grounds near San Diego.He writes:Many years ago Mr. H. W. Henshaw told me that he had been informedthat California black rails (Creciscus coturniculus) were sometimes common inthe salt marshes around San Diego Bay. In our conversation Mr. Henshawseemed to be under the impression that these rails were but migrants at SanDiego and that they were most likely to be found very late in the autumn.Last spring the manual training teacher here told me that one of his pupils hadfound the eggs of the California black rail in a marsh near National City. Thisboy gave me considerable information about the habits of these rails which Iwill summarize. He had done much hunting for the nests and thought he waslucky if he found a nest in half a day's steady search. The nest seems to beusually situated in very thick marsh vegetation (Salicorn a, etc.) near the high-est limits of the high tide. He carefully turned over all the upper part of themass of plants foot by foot. He said the nests were always covered, but wereusually from an inch to several inches above the ground. I understood him tosay that he had found several empty nests, some not yet used, and some whichthe young birds had left. He said that he had never found any bird at thenest, which might be expected from the nests being so well hidden and the easewith which the bird could slip off and keep out of sight. He said he found eggsabout the middle of March and about the 20th of April. Five and six seems tobe the usual number but he knew of one set that contained eight eggs. All theeggs he knew of had been found in the last four years in a tract of less than 100acres. He said that he had heard notes that he believed were made by thisrail and described them as a sort of clicking sound. He thinks that at lowtide the rails hide in crab holes, at times.A. M. Ingcrsoll (1909) then published the results of his own ex-perience with the nesting habits of this elusive rail, from which Iquote, as follows:While searching for the undiscovered eggs of the large-billed sparrow. May 4,1908, I took a few high steps to break mj' way through a tangled mass of weedsand was surprised to see rise near my right knee, a California black rail.Examination of a dense growth of Salicornia amhigua brought to light a well
334 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
concealed nest with one whole and three smashed eggs. An egg-smeared bootexplained the unfortunate destruction of what would have proved a valuableaddition to any zoological collection. Incubation had commenced in each egg ofthis small set. This nest as well as an empty one found in a similar location ata distance of a few hundred feet, was placed from 10 to 12 inches above the mud.Having flushed birds directly from two nests, I imagined I should have no diffi-culty in securing a series of specimens if searched for diligently; time has shownthe fallacy of that idea. Extensive field experience throughout this and severalother States, warrants the writer in claiming that there is no bird whose nestis more difficult to find than an occupied nest of this species under considera-tion. Some of our small feathered denizens of the forest effectually concealtheir homes in bewildering foliage of tall trees, but the nesting site can usuallybe located by a sharp-eyed and patient collector watching the birds duringbuilding operations. The California black rails inhabit such dense vegetation,in which an abundance of nesting material is close at hand, that work could becarried on at a distance of feet without one's being aware of the fact. Twenty-five special collecting trips to this colony by the undersigned, has resulted in onlyone bird and three sets of eggs; on each occasion two to six hours was spent ina most painstaking search for specimens. I have seen but 10 birds. Five ofthem were flushed by a young man and his dog; one was captured by the sameparty seizing it with his hand as it endeavored to escape from the dog by running,and the others were flushed by myself. The salt weeds of this marsh are of anevergreen character and perennial, varying little from season to season. Oldclumps of Salicornia become more or less matted down, forming an ideal retreat forthis secretive little bird. A favorite nesting site is one formed bj' an old top-heavyweed falling over a growth of previous years in such a way as to leave a shelf-like space between the layers of stems and foliage. Away from the glaring sunon such a platform, is concealed a flimsy nest of fine dry weed stems. Theseweeds are too brittle to admit of weaving, and fall apart on being lifted from thesustaining platform. Nests that are built on the ground are sometimes as muchas 2 inches thick in the center. Even the best constructed nests partially fall awaj-^on removal from the supporting weeds and earth. To Mr. Park Harris, a formerresident of San Diego, is due the credit of discovering the first eggs of the Cali-fornia black rail. Mr. Frank Stephens killed a California black rail on May 28,1908, and recorded the fact in March-April, 1909, Condor. This is the earliestknown summer record. All previous records are of birds taken out of breedingseason. Most of these birds have been recorded from points 500 miles north ofNational City.Laurence M. Huey (1916) adds the following information:With these birds there is a noticeable lack of uniformity in their nesting dates,as well as a great variation in the nests themselves as constructed by diS'erentpairs of birds. Sometimes the nests are raised well off the ground, but this isunusual. The more typical ground nests are greatly affected by the tides.Some that I have seen were fully 5 inches thick, with as many as three distinctlayers, showing how often reconstruction has been necessary. One thing is inter-esting as a side light on this bird's shyness, a habit that is a constant aggrava-tion to the collector. This is the astonishing ease with which the birds bringthemselves to abandon incomplete sets when they are discovered. Although Ihave found several incomplete sets, I have in no instance succeeded in collectinga full set from the nest at a later date. In everv case the bird had deserted when
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 335
I went back. Of course, with the method of search employed, one is bound tokick into some of the nests and disturb the surrounding; marsh weed before dis-covering them. That a naturally retiring bird should desert under these condi-tions is, of course, not surprising. On at least two occasions, however, I havefound nests containing incomplete sets by a lucky glimpse of the eggs through an
?opening in the protecting growth above them, while I was still at a considerable dis-tance from them. In these cases, I have turned aside without apparently' noticingthe nests, and have left the vegetation absolutely untouched in their vicinity, andyet the result has been tlie same?desertion!An impression has prevailed during recent years that these railshave disappeared from the limited area in which they were known tobreed, the salt marshes of San Diego Bay between National City andChula Vista. But Griffing Bancroft writes to me that he took a setof their eggs there on May 21,1922; so it seems that the rails worenot entirely wiped out by the flood of 1919.Eggs.?The Farallon rail lays from four to eight eggs. They areovate in shape and the shell is smooth and slightly glossy. Theground color is creamy white or nearly pure white. They are spar-ingly marked, chiefly at the larger end, with minute dots of brownsand drabs. The measurements of 54 eggs average 25.1 by 18.9 mil-Umeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 27.6 by 18.5;25.5 by 20.6, and 22.5 by 17.2 milUmeters.Plumages.?The sequence of plumages to maturity and the sea-sonal molts and plumages of adults are apparently the same as in theeastern black rail.Food.?We don't know very much about the food of this rail, butMr. Huey (1916) has published the following:The nature of the food of these birds remained unknown to collectors for manyseasons, until the fall of 1912, when the stomachs of a small series were saved forexamination. On close inspection, I found the remains of a species of small "bug"that lives ver\- abundantly on- the salt marshes where the birds were taken. Ithen gathered a number of these animals and sent them to Joseph Grinnell ofthe Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, to whom I am indebted for forwarding themto the United States National Museum for identification. The reply was as fol-lows: "They are Isopod crustaceans belonging to the species Alloniscus mirabilis(Stuxberg)." Appearances to the contrary notwithstanding, it's really just asmall bug. I believe this to be the chief food of the rails living in the saltmarshes of this region, and as nearly all the tidal sloughs abound with thesesmall creatures, the food problem can not be a serious one for the birds.Behavior.?These little black rails are so secretive in their habitsthat they are seldom seen and we know very little about them. Mr.Stephens (1909) "when passing along a broad tide creek * * *saw one crouched in the mud a few feet from the bank. It stoodperfectly still, with head lowered, as if expecting to be overlooked."Again he says:
336 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMA few days later I hunted a part of the marsh at high tide late in the after?noon. On my way to camp at dusk in a place where the marsh lay at the footof a bluff one flushed almost under my feet and lit a dozen yards away amongthe debris lodged at the foot of the hill and stood there in the open, though notto be seen distinctly, because of the gathering darkness. I fired at it withouteffect. The bird flew out over the water and then turned around the point,where I failed to flush it again. This is the only long flight I have seen and it
? reminded me of the flight of a water ouzel. The other two flights I have seenwere short and raillike. The birds seem to lie very close and must be nearlystepped on before they will flush. I fancy that the species wUl be found fairlycommon in many localities when they are looked for carefully in the right places.Mr. Ingcrsoll (1909) observed a bird in flight, of which he writes:While packing the eggs a tuft of cotton was blown from my fingers; on mak-ing a quick grab, my hand was thrust into a clump of weeds, causing one ofthe elusive birds to rise and fly feebly 30 to 40 feet, then with a sort of boomer-ang flight, hover and return to within 16 feet (actual measurement) of thestarting point. The bird flew so slow it seemed to have difficulty in keeping inthe air; this appeared to be a flight of observation. The bird turned its head andscrutinized me with one of its red eyes while flying off. The legs were hanging;down until the turning point was reached. They were then drawn up to the bodyand dropped as she settled out of sight in a tangled mass of weeds.Mr. Huey (1916) refers to the voice of this rail, as follows:I have spent hours and even days on the rail marshes at all times of the year,,and find that even as early as February, on clear mornings, the "clee-cle-clee-ee"(accent falling on first syllable of last word) may be heard in many places on themarsh. This is particularly true when one has walked about the marsh enoughto disturb the birds. This call is chiefly used during the early mating season,and also as a protest against intruders in their domain. Occasionally, however,.I have heard it even in the late fall.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Pacific coast of the United States.Breeding range.?Imperfectly known. Eggs have been collectedonly from the marshes in the vicinity of San Diego, California, inwhich area the species is resident. Summer occurrence records tak&the Farallon rail north to central California (Suisun, the FarallooIslands, and Martinez), with casual records in Oregon (Malheur Lake)and probably Washington (Tacoma). The range extends south-through coastal California (Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, Ballona,.Hueneme, Riverside, and Orange) to northwestern Lower California(San Quintin).Winter range.? This rail appears to have the curious habit ofwintering north of its principal breeding area, a conclusion that seemswarranted from the numerous winter records from the vicinity ofSan Francisco Bay. It probably also winters on the Farallon Island*and southward to San Diego.Egg dates.?California: 19 records, March 12 to May 23; 10 rec-ords, March 30 to May 12.
NORTfl AMERICAN MARSH BIRD8 337CKEX CKEX (Linnaeus)CORN CRAKEHABITSContributed by Charles Wendell TownsendThe corn crake, or land rail, as it is also called, breeds throughoutlEurope and western Asia. It appears to be an enterprising, wide-ranging bird, extending its migrations on the south to Africa, evento Cape Colony, while on the north its breeding haunts reach nearlyto the Arctic Circle. On this side of the Atlantic it has been recordedas an accidental visitor to Greenland and there is a record for NovaScotia, and one each for Falmouth, Maine; Saybrook, Connecticut;Cranston, Rhode Island; Salem, New Jersey; Cape May, New Jersey,and also from Bermuda. The first part of its name it owes to the factthat it frequents and often nests in fields of grain, called in England
?corn, while the second part of its name is derived from its call which
?sounds like crealc or crake
.
Nesting.?Morris (1903) says that the nest of the corn crake isplaced among long grass or corn, in a furrow or some sHght hollow,and is lined with a few of the leaves and stalks of the neighboringherbage.Eggs.?The eggs are 7 to 10 and occasionally 12, 14, or even 18in number, of a pale reddish-brown or yellowish-white color, spotted,blotched, and speckled mth ashy gray and warm reddish brown.Witherby's Handbook (1920) gives the measurements of 100 eggs asaveraging 37.26 by 26.75 millimeters; the eggs showing the fourextremes measure 41.6 by 25.9, 38.3 by 29, 34 by 25 and 34.3 byS4.1 millimeters.Young.?The duration of incubation, according to Evans (1891),is three weeks. Only one brood is raised unless the first nest isdestroyed. Bonhote (1907) says:The male, who takes no part in the incubation, is very attentive to his mate,bringing her delicate tid-bits and accompanying her when she leaves the nest.* * * When the yovmg are hatched the "craking" ceases, and both parentsbrood and tend the young. These when first hatched are jet black, and becomefully feathered in about a month or five weeks, their wing feathers being thelast to grow. Although they can run and leave the nest as soon as hatched,they do not feed themselves for some days, but take all their food from theirparents' beaks.Plumage.'!.?Bonhote (1907) says:In winter the sexes are practically identical, the upper parts being dark brown,with rufous edges to the feathers; wing coverts chestnut; throat and abdomenwhite, breast pale brown; flanks barred with brown and buff. After the springmolt the male has part of the head, throat and breast gray. The female isgrayer than in winter, but much browner than the male, especially on the breast.The young resemble the adults in winter, but the rufous margins are muchbroader.
338 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMThe downy young are jet black. The adult is about the size ofthe bobwhite.Food.?The food of the corn crake is chiefly animal, consisting ofworms, slugs, snails, small lizards, and insects, but occasionally ofgrain and other seeds.Behavior.?Dresser (1871) says:Owing to its secretive habits, and being at the same time a rather noisy birdthan otherwise, the land rail is much better known by its harsh, grating notethan by anything else. It is essentially a frequenter of cultivated districts andof the lowlands, though seldom of really wet, swampy ground; for it prefersmeadows and cornfields, where the ground is open and there are but few bushesor trees. It does not, however, effect very dry soil, but fields where it is neithervery wet nor yet very dry, and especiallj', it would seem, where a few flowersare intermixed witli other herbage; and it evinces a partiality for clover fields.In most parts of Kurope it is a migrant, or, rather, a summer resident, arrivingin the spring and leaving again for the South in the autumn, migrating, it wouldseem, altogeher at night, and when on passage flying at a considerable altitude.* * * As soon as it arrives in the spring it gives notice of its presence by itswell-known call. It appears to move about at night, and more especially in theearly morning and late evening; and though it is not infrequently seen aboutduring the day, yet it prefers, as a rule, to remain quiet then. Its form enablesit to run about with ease amongst the grass and corn, and it always evinces adislike to taking wing, prefering, if possible, to seek security by running; and adog will sometimes spring on and catch one on the ground, so close will the^ attimes crouch before the dogs. Its cry, resembling the syllables " crek, crek,crek," may be heard at all times of the day, but more especially early in themorning and late in the evening; and it appears to possess considerable poweras a ventriloquist, as it is most difficult to judge where the bird is by its note,which is now loud, now low, as if close or at a considerable distance. Whenuttering its cry the bird usually stands still, the neck rather drawn in; but some-times it calls as it moves leisurely along * * * its movements when notalarmed are graceful and elegant. It moves sedately, lifting its feet rather high,jerking its tail, and moving its head backwards and forwards. When alarmedit stops, crouches, and then starts off with extended neck and body thrownforward, and is soon out of danger.Yarrell (1S71) says the male is the caller and that 'this call-notemay be imitated by passing the edge of the thumb-nail, or a pieceof wood, briskly along the line of the points of the teeth of a smallcomb, and, so similar is the sound, that the bird may be decoyed byit within a very short distance."Game.?Yarrell (1871) says: ''Land rails are considered most deli-cate as articles of food, and in such high estimation, that two landrails are said to be a present for a queen.'' They are occasionallypicked off by snipe shooters.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Europe and Asia, from the Faeroe Islands, Scandinavia,Russia, and western Siberia to the Pyrenees, northern Italy, Macedo-nia, Arabia, northern India, and Africa; accidental in Greenland,North America, and Australia.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 339The corn crake has been taken in Greenland on several occasions;one was obtained in Newfoundland about 1859 and there are the fol-lowing records for the Atlantic coast of the United States and Canada:Nova Scotia (Pictou, October 1874); Maine (Falmouth, October 41889); Rhode Island (Cranston, 1857); Connecticut (Saybrook,October 20, 1871); New York (Amagansett, about August 15, 1885,Montauk Point, November 1, 1888, Green Island, November 6, 1883,Sag Harbor and Oakdale, November 2, 1880); Pennsylvania (Phila-delphia) ; New Jersey (Bridgeton, Salem, fall of 1854 and Dennisville,November 11, 1905); Maryland (Hursley, November 28, 1900); andBermuda, (October 25, 1847).Egg dates.?Great Britain: 16 records, May 5 to July 26; 8 records,June 5 to 24. lONORNIS MARTINICUS (Linnaeus)PURPLE GALLINULEHABITSThe extensive marshes which border the upper waters of the St.Johns River in Florida gave us, among other thrills, om- first glimpseof the purple gallinule in its chosen haunts. Here the marshes wereabout .3 miles wide, through which the river wound a meanderingcourse. Except in the river channel the water was only 2 or 3 feetdeep with a muddy botton of decidedly uncertain depth. Therewere numerous permanent islands, overgrown with willows, whichserved as rookeries for herons, extensive tracts of tall saw grass, almostimpassable and with very imcertain ground beneath, and innumerablesmall floating islands of grass, small shrubs and marsh vegetation,treacherous to walk upon with imminent danger of breaking throughto unknown depths. The, so called, open water through Avhich wehad to pole our skiff, wound in tortuous channels among the islandsand through the saw grass; it was completely filled with a rank andluxuriant growth of yellow pond lilies, or spatter docks (Nymphaeaadverm), locally known as "bonnets," through which we were con-stantly pushing the skiff with two long poles, the pointed prow mak-ing a passageway between the thick, fleshy stalks and great broadleaves. It was still more difficult to push through the patches of
'iettuce," a small floating plant, not unlike a small head of lettucein appearance, which grows in rather deep water and so thickly asto be often impenetrable. Common, white pond lilies were quitenumerous in the open places; and among the "bonnets" they werein full bloom. Water turkeys, wood, and white ibises, and variousherons were seen flying over or found nesting in the willows.Least bitterns, sora rails, and boat-tailed grackles were breeding inthe saw grass and the loud notes of the grackles and redwings wereheard all over the marshes. And in the largoi" open spaces, where the
340 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
''bonnets," "lettuce" and pond lilies grew we saw the purple gallinules,together with their more common relatives the Florida gallinules andcoots. We were thrilled with the striking beauty of this handsomespecies, as we saw for the first time its brilhant colors in its nativehaunts. One can not mistake it as it flies feebly along just over thetops of the "bonnets" with its long yellow legs dangling. And howgracefully and Hghtly it walks over the lily pads, supported by itslong toes, nodding and bowing with a dovelike motion and flirtingthe white flag in its tail.Arthur T. Wayne (1910) says of this species in South CaroUna:This beautiful and graceful summer resident is locally abundant during thebreeding season on abandoned rice plantations, and also on fresh-water riverswhere the wampee (Pontcdcria cordata) grows in profusion. This plant bearspurplish blue flowers which act as a protective coloration to this species. Wherethe plant is growing in profusion the gallinules are always most abundant, butwhere it is absent scarcely more than one or two pairs can be found. The birdsgenerally arrive between April 10 and 17, and are common by the 25th.Nesting.?We failed to find the purple gallinules' nests in the St.Johns marshes because we did not know where to look for them; butin 1925, with the help of Oscar E. Baynard, I learned something ofits nesting habits, for we found it breeding in two places. He taughtme to look for the nests on the floating islands, with a high, densegrowth of herbaceous vegetation rather than in the pickerel weed or
"bonnets." They seem to like to have the nesting site surroundedby deep water. In a marshy pond in Pasco County, while we werewatching some Florida gallinules, we saw a pair of purple galUnulesnear some patches of rank vegetation that looked promising. Thepond looked shallow enough to wade, for it was overgrown withpickerel weed around the borders and covered with "bonnets" in thecenter, with numerous clumps of cat-tails, willows and " ty-ty " bushesscattered over it. But we soon found tnat it was too deep to wade;and so we made another visit to it with a boat on April 25. Weexamined several emptj^ nests on the larger, boggy, or floating islandsof cat-tails, pickerel weed, grasses, and other rank vegetation, one ofwhich was 2 feet above the water in a small bunch of the flags. Andwe finally found a nest containing six nearly fresh eggs ; it was in asmall bunch of isolated cat-tail flags in an open place surroundedby deep water, overgrown with "bonnets" and white pond lilies; thenest was a floating mass of dead flags, soggy and wet below, but dryabove and well hollowed in the center, which was only a few inchesabove the water, exceptionally low for this species; the flags werearched over the top of the nest, which only partially concealed it.The following day, April 26, we found two nests, each with six eggs,in which incubation had begun, in an arm of Lake Apopka, in LakeCounty^. This arm of the lake is about a mile or more long and
NOBTH AMEBICAN MARSH BIRDS 341perliaps half a mile wide; much of it is open water, but around theshores is a broad strip of marsh with a rank growth of flags, pickerelweed, and other aquatic vegetation; and at the upper end of it,farthest from the lake, it is full of boggy or floating islands, surroundedwith water 8 to 10 feet deep, covered in the open spaces with
"bonnets " and white pond Ulies. It is an ideal place for both speciesof gallinules. Our first nest was on one of the floating islands, far tootreacherous to walk on, overgrown mainly with a rank growth of wildparsnip, conspicuous with its white blossoms, together with Pontede-ria, Hydrocotyle, flags and sedges, the whole being tied together witha tangle of morning glory vines. The nest was made of the driedleaves and stems of Pontederi-a, firmly interwoven with the growingplants and well concealed. Its rim was about 20 inches above thewater, it measured 8 by 10 inches in diameter, and was hollowed to adepth of about 3 inches; the whole structure was about S inches indepth. The other nest was similar, but slightly smaller and placed 2inches lower, on a larger and firmer island, but not strong enough towalk on, where the principal growth was Pontederia.Audubon (1840) writes:The nest is generally placed among a kind of rushes that are green at all sea-sons, round, very pithy, rarely more than 5 feet high, and grow more along themargins of ponds than in the water itself. The birds gather many of them, andfasten them at the height of 2 or 3 feet, and there the nest is placed. It is com-posed of the most delicate rushes, whether green or withered, and is quite assubstantial as that of the common gallinule, flattish, having an internal diameterof 8 or 10 inches, while the entire breadth is about 15.A nest found by Herbert W. Brandt, in Bexar County, Texas, onJune 8, 1919, is described in his notes as
?
a shallow platform located among the cat-tails and rushes near the shore inshallow water and in an isolated clump. The cat-tails were bent down andwoven together in the manner of our least bittern and the nest would easily betaken for one. The nest was about 30 inches above the water and a shallowbut well made platform of live flat leaves.Messrs. Quillin and Holleman (1918), referring to the same gen-eral locality, say:Nests of this species are better built than those of the Florida gallinule, and areplaced at a greater elevation from the water. The majority are rarely under 2feet, and in a few cases, where the exceptional growth of the reeds permitted,they were found 4 or 5 feet from the water. Some are placed on the denselymatted boughs in thickets of willows growing in shallow water, but these arealways placed lower than those found in the reeds.Alexander Sprunt, jr., has sent me the following notes on the nest-ing of the purple gallinule in South Carolina:This species is a much handsomer bird than the Florida gallinule, and in myexperience, much shyer. It is a summer resident of South Carolina, and fre-quents the old rice plantations in large numbers. They are very partial to92642?26t 23
342 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMgrowths of wampee {Pontederia cordata) rarely placing their nests anywhereexcept in clumps of this water loving plant. The materials used are decayedleaves, and stalks of the same plant, and the nests securely fastened to stems ofthe growing clumps. Mr. A. T. Wayne in his Birds of South Carolina, mentionsthe fact that there are always three or four half completed nests in the vicinityof the one which holds the eggs. This seems to be an invariable rule, as all thenests I have examined in late years have had others in various degrees of com-pletion scattered about within a radius of several feet.The locations are generally in a more exposed place than those used by theFlorida gallinule; I have found nests placed on top of piles of drift weed, almosttotally exposed to the sun. Mr. Wayne also mentions that he thinks incuba-tion is aided by the decomposition of vegetable matter in the nest. I considerthis highly probable. Crows must do great damage to these exposed nests, asthere are many about the rice fields, and little escapes their ey^s. The highspring tides also cause damage by flooding the nest locations. This last May, Ifound perhaps, 15 nests, in rice fields that showed every indication of having beentorn loose from their lioldings by the high tides, which inundate the fields atthis season.Eggs.?The purple gallinule lays from 5 to 10 eggs; from 6 to 8are the usual numbers and larger sets are uncommon or rare. Theyare ovate in shape and the shell is smooth with little or no gloss.The ground color varies from "pale cinnamon-pink" or " pale pink-ish buff " to " cartridge buff. " They are lightly and unevenly markedwith very small spots and fine dots of bright browns and pale drabs.The measurements of 56 eggs average 39.2 by 28.8; the eggs show-ing the four extremes measure 42.7 by 30.2; 39 by 30.2; and 34.6 by26.2 millimeters.Plumages.?In the downy, young, purple gallinule the head isscantily covered with black down, mixed with silvery white hairs onthe crown, cheeks, and throat; the base of the bill is yellowish, theouter half black, with a white nail; the body is thickly covered withlong black down, glossy on the back and sooty black on the belly.In the Juvenal plumage, in July and August, the head, neck, andbreast are dull brownish, shading from "bister" on the crown to"cinnamon buff" on the neck and breast and to whitish on the chinand central abdomen; the back is glossy olive bronze; the wings areglossy olive green of v^arying shades and reflections; the rump andtail are "Prout's brown" or "mummy brown." This plumage isworn for only two months, or less, when a postjuvenal molt begins.This molt seems to be very variable in its progi'ess, or much pro-longed, for various stages of it can be seen all through the fall andwinter. It involves a complete renewal of all the contour plumageand in some cases the flight feathers also. I have seen birds show-ing a complete molt in February and others which still retained theold, worn wings and tail in April. Generally by February, at thelatest, the juvenal plumage has been replaced on the head and breastb}^ new purple feathers, tipped with whitish on the breast; these
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 343
white tips soon wear away; the new plumage on the back is glossygreen, much as in the adult. Traces of immaturity remain throughthe spring, such as some old brown feathers in the head and neckand some whitish feathers in the throat. The fii'st postnuptial molt,which is complete and probably earlier than in the adult, producesthe adult plumage. Adults have a complete postnuptial molt, inlate summer and fall, and a slight, partial prenuptial molt in earl}''spring.Food.?Very little has been published about the food of the pur-ple gallinule. Mr. Wayne (1910) says that it "feeds largely uponrice during the autumn." It certainly frequents the rice fields atthat season and is said to do much damage to the rice crop, for it notonly picks up grains from the ground but bends down the stalks toreach the seeds. Mr. J. G. Wells (1902) says that, in the West Indies,"they are caught in fish-pots baited with corn" and that "they dodamage to the Indian corn, as they climb up the stalks and eat theears; they also climb and eat plantains and bananas." Probablythey live chiefly on grains, seeds, and other vegetable food, but thereis some evidence that they also eat snails, and perhaps insects. Baird,Brewer, and Ridgway (1884) say:
" Worms, mollusks, and the fruit of various kinds of aquatic plants are itsfood. It gathers seeds and carries them to its beak with its claws, and it alsomakes use of them in clinging to the rushes where the water is very deep."Behavior.?The purple gallinule is easily recognized in life by itsbrilliant colors and by its bright yellow legs, which hang down inflight. Its flight is weak and raillike, slow, and not long protracted;it hovers feebly along, just clearing the tops of the vegetation, andthen suddenly drops down out of sight. It cackles almost constantlywhile flying, the notes sounding much like the cackling of a hen orthe syllables '' Kek, Kek, Kek, Kek.'' Mr. Wayne (1910) says thatit has "very peculiar call notes. One, which is very guttural, is tobe heard incessantly."Audubon (1840) writes:The jerking motions of the tail of this bird, whenever it is disturbed, or attractedby any remarkable object, arc very quick, and so often repeated as to have acurious appearance. It runs with great speed, and dives with equal address, oftenmoving off under water with nothing but the bill above. The lightness and easewith which it walks oji the floating plants are surprising, for in proceeding thej'scarcely produce any perceptible disturbance of the water. When swimming infull security, they move buoyantly and gracefully, throwing the head forward atevery propelling motion of the feet. The flight of this species is loss swift thanthat of the common gallinule, or of the rails, unless when it is traveling far,when it flies high, and advances in a direct course by continued flappings; butwhen it is in its breeding or feeding grounds, its flight is slow and short, seldomexceeding 30 or 40 yards, and with the legs hanging down; and it alights amongthe herbage with its wings spread upwards in the manner of the rails. It oftenalights on the low branches of trees and bushes growing over the water, and walks
344 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMlightly and gracefully over them. The purple gallinule not infrequentlj' alightson ships at sea. While at the Island of Galveston, on the 26th of April, I wasoffered several live individuals by the officers of the Boston frigate, which theyhad caught on board. My friend John Bachman once received three specinaenstliat had been caught 300 miles from land, one of them having come through thecabin window.P. H. Gosse (1847) has drawn a good word picture of this bird,which he calls the sultana, as he has seen it in Jamaica, as follows:I was struck with the remarkable elegance of one that I saw by the roadside,about midway between Savanna le Mar and Bluefields. It was at one of thosepieces of dark water called blueholes, reputed to be unfathomable. The surfacewas covered with the leaves and tangled stems of various water plants, and onthese the sultana was walking, supi)orted by its breadth of foot; so that the leaveson which it trod sank only an inch or two, notwithstanding that the bird, accord-ing to its usual manner, moved with great deliberation, frequently standing still,and looking leisurely on either side. As it walked over to where the water wasless encumbered, it became more immersed, until it seemed to be swimming, yeteven then, from the motion of its legs, it was evidently walking, either on thebottom, or on the yielding plants. At the margin of the pool, it stood sometime in a dark nook overhung by bushes, where its green and purple hues werefinely thrown out by the dark background. I could not help thinking what abeautiful addition it would make to an ornamental water in an English park;and the more so, because its confiding tameness allows of approach svifficientlynear to admire its brilliancy. Nor are its motions void of elegance; the constantjerking of its pied tail is perhaps rather singular than admirable, but the bridlingof its curved and lengthened neck, and the lifting of its feet are certainly graceful.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Southern United States, islands of the Caribbean Sea,Central and South America; casual in southern Canada.Breeding range.?North to Texas (Harris and Orange Counties);Louisiana (Cameron County, Avery Island, and Houma) ; probablyMississippi (Natchez); probably Alabama (Chuckvee Bay, BaldwinCounty); Florida (Tallahassee and Oldtown); and South CaroUna(Yemassee, and probably Charleston). East to South Carolina(Yemassee, Frogmore, and probably Charleston) ; Georgia (probablyOkefinokee Swamp and Savannah); Florida (Oklawaha River, LakeHarris, Lake Okeechobee, and Caloosahatcliie River); Cuba (Isle ofPines) ; Haiti; formerly Porto Rico; the Lesser Antilles (Guadeloupe,Dominica, Santa Lucia, Carriacou, Grenada, Tobago, and. Trinidad);British Guiana (Georgetown) ; French Guiana (Cayenne) ; Brazil(Pernambuco, Baliia, Espiritu Santo, Cantagallo, and San Paulo);and Argentina (Barracas el Sud). South to Argentina (Barracas alSud and Santiago del Estero) ; western Brazil (Caicara) ; and Colombia(Gorgona Island). West to Colombia (Gorgona Island, Medellin,and Lake of Peten); Colima (Rio de Coahua3^ana) ; Tepic (probably
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 345San Bias); Tamaulipas (Matamoras) ; and Texas (Brownsville andHarris County),Winter range.?The purple gallinule is resident thi'oughout most ofits breeding range, withdraNnng at this season, only from the northernportion. At this season it is found north to Florida (Tallahassee,Royal Palm Hammock, and probably Lake Harris); and Texas(Brownsville)
.
Migration.?An early date for their arrival in South Carolina isCharleston, April 21, 1908.Casual records.?The species has on numerous occasions been takenor observed at points far outside of its normal range. Several wererecorded in Bermuda in April 1849, April 1850, and one on May 30,1851, and one on October 22, 1851. Continental North Americanrecords include North CaroUna (Currituck Sound, November 12, 1919,and Raleigh, June 3, 1887) ; Virginia (Cobb Island, May 1891) ; Penn-sylvania, (Cumberland County, February 19, 1895); New Jersey(Cape May, May 10, 1907, and May, 1892, Tuckerton, prior to 1894,Longport, May 23, 1898, and Ventnor, May 1902) ; New York (MiddleIsland, summer of 1879, and near Flatlands); Connecticut (Middle-town about 1855, and again in 1877, Stamford, spring of 1884, andBridgeport, June 26, 1903) ; Rhode Island (Westerly, about 1857, andSeaconnet, June 8, 1900) ; Massachusetts (Randolph, May 24, 1904,near Rockport, April 12, 1875, Boxford, June 1897, Chatham, April1890, Sandwich, April 1902, Worcester, May 30, 1887, Swampscott,April 22, 1852, Plymouth, April 9, 1892, and Cape Cod, April 1870);New Hampshire (Rye, and Dover) ; Maine (Soutli Lewiston, April11, 1897, Winter Harbor, November 7, 1899, Calais, 1869, andBoothbay, September 1877) ; New Brunswick (St. John, April 6, 1881,and Gagetown, September, 1880); Nova Scotia (HaUfex, April, 1889,January 30, 1870, January 19, 1896, February 1870, and May 23,1880); Quebec (near Quebec, about September 15, 1909); Missomi(St. Charles, April 22, 1877); lUinois (opposite St. Louis, April 18,1877, Chicago, May 1866, near Coal City, April 24, 1900, and Wil-mington, April 26, 1909); Indiana (Richmond, March 27, 1918);Ohio (Big Miami River, March 31, 1877, Sandusky Bay, April 28,1896, Cedar Point, September 2, 1894, Lakeside, November 10, 1917,and Circleville, May 10, 1877); Michigan (Ann Arbor, August 12,1879, and St. Clair Flats, about 1883); Ontario (Guelph, about 1894and tlie mouth of the Rouge River, April 8, 1892); Wisconsin (Mil-waukee, about 1860, also at Racine and near Janesvillc); Kansas(Douglas County, April 26, 1896, and April 18, 1909, and Manhattan,April 14, 1893); Arizona (near Tucson, October 20, 1887, and Tomb-stone, June 1904); Colorado (Florence, June 17, 1911); and Utah(Haynes Lake, November 23, 1924).
346 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMEgg daUs.?Florida: 32 records, April 10 to June 26; 16 records,May 6 to 30. Louisiana: 11 records, April 15 to June 2; 6 rec-ords, April 29 to May 19. Texas: 16 records, April 27 to July 6; 8records, May 19 to June 8.GALUNLLA CHLOROPUS CACHINNANS BangsFLORIDA GALUNULEHABITSThe Florida gallinule is unfortunately named, for it is by no meansconfined to Florida, nor is it any more abundant there than else-where; if anything, it is less common there. It enjoys a wide dis-tribution over the American continent, ranging as far west as Cali-fornia and as fa.r north as Minnesota, Ontario, and New England, asa regular breeding bird. Where it can find congenial swampyresorts, it may be found by one who is familiar with its notes or iswilhng to explore such unattractive places; often it continues tofrequent and breed in the last remnants of swampy hollows, close tocivilized centers, until driven out by the fiUing in of such places.William Brewster (1891) describes such a resort in the Fresh Pondmarshes in Cambridge, Massachusetts, as follows:Their chosen haunt was a swamp about five acres in extent, covered with(tense beds of cat-tail flags and thickets of low willows, among which weremany pools and ditches of open water 3 or 4 feet in depth connected by a net-work of muskrat run ways. The only really dry places were the tops of thenumerous large tussocks and scattered houses of the muskrats, for among thewillows and cat-tails the water was everywhere from 6 to 12 inches deep. Theswamp was bordered on one side by a railroad, on the next by a high knoll, onthe third by partially submerged woods of dead or dying maples, while on thefourth side an expanse of marshy ground stretched away for hundreds of yardsto the shores of a pond. The area covered most thickly with flags and willowswas separated from the maple swamp by a ditch, broad, straight, and practicallyfree from all vegetation save duckweed, which formed an emerald carpet on thesurface of the brown, stagnant water.Courtship.?I have seen the courtship display in Florida, in whichthe white undertail coverts perform a conspicuous part; with headheld low, wings partly raised and opened and tail greatly elevatedand spread, Ukc a great white fan, the male swims about in a swan-Uko attitude, uttering his love notes. An open bit of water in themarsh forms the stage and the female watches the performance fromthe seclusion of neighboring reeds.C. J. Pennock has sent me the following notes on the courtship ofthis species, as observed by him in a marsh near Wilmington, Dela-ware, on June 6, 1925:Our attention was attracted to a pair of Florida gallinulcs swimming in one ofthe larger open tracts and we tarried for an inspection. It quickly becameevident that this pair of gallinules were amorously intent; at least while the one
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 347
appeared to the spectators as supremely indifferent to all extraneous affairs andplacidly bobbed about within a quite restricted area the other bird was mostintent on creating a responsive thrill or in convincing his lady love that he alonewas the gayest, handsomest, and most infatuating Lothario in that muddy pondlWhile his movements were never rapid he was ever alert and continually inmotion, paddling to one side of the female and across in front of her, then backand forth, close by, or veering he might get 5 or 6 yards distant, rarely fartheraway; now he would serenely sail toward her with brilliant, flaring figurehead orfrontispiece, the red of shield and scarlet bill making a vivid mark as viewedagainst the dark background of water and reeds; again with quite as much seem-ing aplomb he would reverse his course when within perhaps but a foot or twoof the female, and now it became evident that he considered his greatest charmwas centered in the white feather patches of the undertail coverts, border ofwings, and upper flanks, for these were flashed in display for her benefit in shortor longer intervals, but usually well shown, as he bobbed off from her or tacked,now right, now left, with tail apeak and wings one-third or one-half open. Atsuch times the three tracts showed to the greatest advantage, not quite as asingle white area continuously, but when we had a direct stern view there wasquite as much, probably more, white to be seen than of the dull plumbeous tintof upper wings and body. When swimming toward his mate, the male swamquite erect, head well up, evidently to make the brilliant face and bill most con-spicuous, while on the reverse course, usually, I am not sure it was always so, thehead and neck were inclined well forward and at this time the erected tail wasoften opened and closed, fanlike, which brought the white in greater evidence.Nesting.?Mr. Brewster's (1891) careful description of his Cam-bridge nest is worth quoting in full; he writes:It was in the midst of a low, half-submerged thicket of Spirea salicifolia, inter-mingled with a few wild-rose bushes and alders, 4 or 5 feet in height. The foli-age was scanty, and the tops of the bushes withered. Among their stems thewater was from 12 to 15 inches deep, quite free from grass, flags, tussocks, orany floating vegetation save a thin coating of duckweed over the surface. Theuniform light color of the nest?a pale bleached straw, nearly that of deadgrass?thrown into relief against the background of dark water, rendered it soconspicuous an object that it caught my eye at a distance of fully 25 feet. Obvi-ously the birds had disregarded, either deliberately or unconsciously, all considera-tions of protective coloring, and then, with apparently studied boldness, hadrejected the safe shelter of tangled wild-rose thickets, dense beds of cat-tail flags,and clusters of bushy topped tussocks with which the marsh abounded, to buildtheir home among scattered bushes in the center of a nearly open pond. Withthe exception of a little dry tussock grass which formed a lining, the nest wascomposed wholly of cat-tail flags of last year's growth, all of which must havebeen brought by the gallinules a distance of at least 25 yards, much of the waythrough bushes where the water was too deep for the birds to get any firm foot-ing. As some of the stalks were nearly 2 feet in length, an inch thick at thebase, and very heavy, the labor involved must have been great. About the rimand outer edges of the nest the flags were broken or doubled in lengths of 3 to 6inches, the ends of which, projecting upward and outward, formed a fringe ofblunt but bristling points that prevented the eggs from rolling or being crowdedout. On one side this fringe was wanting for a space of 2 or 3 inches where apathway about 6 inches in length led from the edge of the nest down a gentleincline to the water. This pathway was composed of broad flags from 20 to 23inches long drawn out straight, with the slender tips firmly woven into the nest
348 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMand the heavy water-soaked butts resting some distance away on the bottom.It was evident that these flags had been carefully selected and adjusted to forma sort of "gangplank" by means of which the bird might enter and leave thenest without disarranging or breaking the brittle material which formed its rim.The whole structure was saved from danger of submersion in case of a suddenrise of water by the buoyancy of its materials, but it derived its chief supportfrom the stems of the bushes, among which it was firmly wedged. It certainlydid not rest on the bottom, for I ran my hand under it and found everywhere aclear space of several inches in depth. The measurements of the nest in situwere as follows: Greatest external diameter, 20 inches; least external diameter,13 inches; height of rim above the water, 4 inches; total height about 8 inches.The egg cavity was symmetrical but shallow (2^ inches in depth), and mea.s-ured 7 inches across.Another flourishing colony was well established in the HackensackMeadows, New Jersey, close to civilization, between two large cities,Clinton G. Abbott (1907) and his companions were surprised at thenumbers of the gallinules in this marsh, as they saw at least 50 sep-arate birds in the open, and counted as many as 28 in a single pool.He says:The water in the swamp was found to be about thigh deep, that is to say thewader sank that distance, but fully half the apparent depth was caused by thesoft mud imder the water. Occasionally, one would step into a hole up to hischest, but this was unusual, and for the most part the ground under the mud wassolid and trustworthy. The area searched consisted of a broad tract of open,water containing a few islands, and bordered on one side l)y the railroad trackand on the other by a luxuriant growth of cat-tails into which many armsand bays extended. In addition there were among the cat-tails a number ofisolated ponds unconnected with the main tract. All water, with the exceptionof the center of the open tract, was covered with a solid scum of duckweed sothick that swimming birds left no path in it, as it closed immediately in theirwake. The cat-tails often extended at least 2 feet above the wader's head, sothat in a thick bed it would have been easy to lose one's bearings were it not forthe tall chimney of a bluing factory close by?evidence in itself of the prox-imity of civilization to the marsh birds' haunt. Mr. Hann and I found no lessthan seven inhabited nests the first afternoon and at least three times as manyempty ones. The inhabited nests contained anywhere from 10 eggs to oneyoung bird. The nests themselves, which are composed entirely of dead rusheswith but a shallow cup, are usually placed in an isolated tussock or else at the edgeof a cat-tail bed, so that the bird when leaving may have immediate access toopen water. A notable exception, however, was a nest found in a dense growthof cat-tails, at least 12 feet from open water. In the majority of cases the bedof the nest was 4 to 6 inches from the surface of the water, but several, perhapsbuilt by birds whose first nests had been flooded, were higher. Almost every nesthad a sort of sloping runway to the water's edge by which the bird probably al-ways entered and left the nest. One nest was especially worthy of notice forits unusual height above the water, as we could barely see into it when standingon tiptoe in the mud. It was placed high on a mass of cat-tails tangled by thewind. Occasionally the tips of the rushes were drawn together to form a sort ofarch over a nest, as is done by rails, but this was by no means universal.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 349A similar colony near Philadelphia is described by Richard F.Miller (1910). Dr. Thomas S. Roberts (1879) found several nests ofthis species in a large, reedy slough near Minneapolis.They were placed in patches of old, wild-rice stubble, and were built up on afloating foundation of reed and rice stems, so as to be high enough to keep theinside of the nest dry. Coarse rushes and reeds were used in building, much ofthe material being so long that only one end entered into the constructionof the nest, the remainder hanging in the water.Alexander Sprunt, jr., writes to me that he tinds the Florida galli-nules breeding, about May 1, in two locaUties near Charleston, SouthCarolina.One of these is a large fresh-water reservoir about 17 miles to the northwestof Charleston. A large expanse of about several hundred acres is flooded, andhas a rank growth of various water plants, some of these tracts forming veritablefloating islands, some hundreds of yards in length and width. There are alsonumerous floating logs which have a growth of weeds and grasses springingfrom the exposed sides, and floating almost stationary in the masses of duck-weed which cover the water for large areas. The Florida gallinule aboundshere. I make the trip to this locality each year, and have always been rewardedby the finding of several nests. The large majority are placed very near thewater, sometimes under a growth of weed on the floating islands, or saddledupon one of the semisubmerged logs, usually near one end. This situation israther a favorite one. At times the log may change its position by a distanceof several rods, making the nest a travehng one, to a certain extent. All thenests I have found are composed of dried, half-decayed leaves, and stalks ofaquatic plants, sometimes the bottom of the nest being quite damp, so close isit to the water.A rather unusual type of nest was found on May 2, 1914 in this same res-ervoir. It was placed on the top of a dead stump, about 2 feet from the water,and surrounded by a growth of willows. In the rice field sections this speciesseems fully as partial to wampee (Pontederia cordata) as does the purple galli-nule, and I have found many nests, about 1 foot from the water, made of decayedleaves of wampee, and attached to the stems of the growing clumps of the sameplant. The graceful arrowhead leaves of this plant, the beautiful green color,and the general setting of such a nest makes a wonderful picture. However,other situations are chosen. Sometimes one finds the nests along the banks ofthe rice fields, amid a thick tangle of briars, grasses, and vines, but always withina few feet of the water.Snakes take toll of both the eggs and the young, and are a constant menace.Crows, too, rob the exposed nests at frequent intervals. One thing that alwaysinterested me is the complete indifference with which this species regards an in-vestigation of its nest. Time and again have I had the adults within a few feetof me while photographing the nest, and examining the eggs. This would notbe so strange if it were not for the air of utter unconcern on the part of the bird.Walking about on the decayed vegetation, picking up food here and there, withinf) and 8 feet at times, clucking and chuckling in its peculiar way, they strollabout as if there was no enemy, human or otherwise, within miles.My own experience with the nesting of this species has been ratherlimited. In Texas we found it breeding on some of the deep pondsnear Brownsville, while we were hunting for nests of the Mexicangrebe, on May 23, 1923, wading in water waist deep or more. These92642?26t 24
350 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMponds are more or less overgrown, especially around the borders, withwater huisache bushes and scattered clumps of cat-tail flags. Someof the nests were in the flags and similar in construction to those de-scribed above. One nest, found by Mr. Simmons, was in a low crotchof a huisache bush, close to the water.In Florida we found Florida gallinules breeding in all theponds where we found purple gallinules breeding, rather morenumerous than the latter, but nowhere very abundant. They hadeggs during the last week in April. The ponds frequented by galli-nules have been described under the foregoing species. The Floridagallinules' nests were usually placed in the shallower parts of theponds, around the borders, where the water was often not over oneor two feet deep. They seemed to prefer the extensive tracts ofpickerel weed (Pontederia cordata), but they often nested among the
"bonnets" {Nymphaea advena) mixed with a lower growth of waterpennywort {Hydrocotyle ranunculoides) . The nests were placed justabove the water, or practically floating, and usually they were moreor less wet. They were made of the dead stems and leaves of thepickerel weed. There were generally three or four empty nests inthe vicinity of every occupied one.N. B. Moore says, in his Florida notes, that an interval of one ortwo days often occurs between the layings of eggs. He also statesthat the birds add to the material in the nest during the egg layingperiod, placing new green leaves of Pontederia under, as well as around,the eggs; most of the material was probably within reach, as the birdstood on the nest; and it was probabl}^ added, as the leaves driedand shrunk, to keep the nest high and dry. He ascertained thesefacts by visiting a nest daily from the time nest building began untilthe young left the nest.Verdi Burtch (1917) mentions a case where, after a heavy rain, thebirds raised a nest, eggs and all, at least 10 inches by the addition ofnew green flags.Eggs.?The Florida gaUinule lays from 6 to 17 eggs, both of whichextremes are unusual; probably 10 or a dozen would be nearly theaverage number; the smaller sets are often incomplete. The eggsare ovate in shape and the shell is smooth, with little or no gloss.The groundcolor varies from "cinnamon" or "cinnamon buff " to
"cartridge buff" or "pale olive buff." This is irregularly markedwith spots, mostly fine dots, of various shades of brown, from "Van-dyke brown" to "russet," and occasionally with a few spots of"wood brown" or various shades of drab. The measurements of 105eggs average 44 by 31 millimeters; the eggs showing the fom* extremesmeasure 49.6 by 33, and 39 by 28 milUmeters.Young.?Incubation is said to begin with the lajang of the firstegg, to last for about 21 days and to be shared by both sexes. The
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 351young gallinules are able to leave the nest soon aftei* they are hatchedand are well able to take care of themselves at an early age. Thereis a sharp spur at the bend of the wing, which the young bird usesto assist it in climbing among the reeds and Hly pads. Audubon(1840) gives the best account of the early Ufe of the young birds, asfollows:The females are as assiduous in their attentions to their young as the wildturkey hens; and, although the young take to the water as soon as hatched, themother frequently calls them ashore, when she nurses and dries them under herbody and wings. In this manner she looks after them until they are nearly amonth old, when she abandons them and begins to breed again. The young,which are covered with hairy, shining, black down, swim beautifully, jerking theirheads forward at each movement of their feet. They seem to grow surprisinglyfast, at the age of 6 or 7 weeks are strong, active, and perhaps as well able toelude their enemies as the old birds are. Their food consists of grasses, seeds,water-insects, worms, and snails, along with which they swallow a good deal ofsand or gravel. They walk and run over the broad leaves of water lilies as if onland, dive if necessary, and appear at times to descend into the water in searchof food, although I can not positively assert that they do so. On more than oneoccasion, I have seen a flock of these young birds playing on the surface of thewater like ducks, beating it with their wings, and splashing it about in a curiousmanner, when their gambols would attract a garfish, which at a single dart wouldseize one of them and disappear. The rest affrighted would run as it were withinconceivable velocity on the surface of the water, make for the shore, and therelie concealed and silent for a quarter of an hour or so. In the streams and pondsof the Floridas, this species and some others of similar habits, suffer greatly fromalligators and turtles, as well as from various kinds of fish, although, on accountof their prolific nature, they are yet abundant.Plumages.?The downy young Florida gallinule is nearly bald, thecrown being very scantily covered with black hairlike down ; the skinat the base of the bill is bright red; the black down on the chin andthroat is tipped with curly wliitish hairs ; and the rest of the body iscovered with thick, soft, black down, glossed with greenish above anddull sooty black below.The body plumage is acquired at an early age, but the youngbird is fully half grown before the wings and tail have even startedto grow; these are not fully developed until the bird is fully grown,in September. In the full juvenal plumage, of late summer, thethroat and chin are white, mottled with blackish; the remainder ofthe head and neck varies from "hair brown" above to smoke graybelow; the mantle is much Uke that of the adult, "Front's brown"to "cinnamon brown;" the under parts are "neutral grays," mix?dwith white; and the central belly is all white. This plumage is wornthrough the fall with a gradual progress, by molt, towards maturity.By December the young bird is much like the adult; but traces ofimmaturity, chiefly white in the throat, persist until spring and thefrontal shield remains rudimentary all through the first year. At thefirst postnuptial molt, the following summer, the fully adult plumage
352 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMis assumed. Adults have a complete postnuptial molt in the latesummer and a very limited prenuptial molt in the spring, with nowell-marked seasonal differences in plumage.Food.?Gallinules seek their food among the aquatic vegetationwhere they live. Their long toes enable them to walk with ease overthe lily pads, where they may be seen picking up their food from thesurface; they can also swim and dive, if necessary to secure it, ortravel and cUmb with case among the denser vegetation. Their foodconsists of seeds, roots, and soft parts of succulent water plants, snailsand other small mollusks, grasshoppers, and various other insects andworms. Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1916) found that, in Porto Rico,96.75 per cent of their food was vegetable, grass and rootlets forming90.75 per cent and the other 6 per cent consisting of seeds of grassesand various weeds, much of which must have been picked up on dryland. The remaining 3.25 per cent was made up of insects and a fewsmall mollusks.Behavior.?On its migrations to and from its more northern breedingresorts the Florida gallinule shows greater powers of flight than areapparent at ordinary times; when making such a long flight, or whenflying from one pond to another, it travels at a reasonable heightwith a direct and fairly swift flight the head and feet being extended.But when seen on its breeding grounds, or in the ponds where it feeds,its flight seems weak, labored, and awkward; it flutters along, barelyskimming the surface, half flying and half running on the water, as ifxmable to rise: or, with a feeble, raillike flight, it just clears the topsof the swamp vegetation, into which it suddenly drops again, as ifexhausted.It swims with ease, in spite of its lack of webbed feet, punctuatingits foot strokes with a graceful dovelike motion of its head; whileswimming the forward parts are depressed and the hind quarters areraised, the white under tail coverts serving as a conspicuous signal.It can dive to obtain its food or to escape its enemies, often hidingunder water, with its head or bill concealed among the waterplants.It seems most at ease, however, and its movements are most grace-ful, when walking lightly about over the lily pads, picking up itsfood with quick, nervous strokes, much after the manner of a barn-yard fowl. It is equally at homo on land where most of its food isobtained. If disturbed it runs swiftly to cover and disappears inthe reeds, where it can travel with all the skill of a rail and can evencUmb to the tops of the tall stalks. It can easily be distinguishedfrom the coot by the absence of the white bill, so conspicuous in thatspecies, and by its {more slender form; its color and its green legswill distinguish it from the purple gallinule. The red frontal shield
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 363is conspicuous only at short range and the white under tail coverts arepresent in all three species.Mr. Brewster (1891) heard what he thought was the wooing noteof the male, uttered while in active pursuit of the female; it soundedlike ^' ticket-ticlcet-ticket-ticket (six to eight repetitions each time)."He also writes:The calls of these gallinules were so varied and complex that it seems hopelessto attempt a full description of them. I certainly know of no other bird whichutters so many different sounds. Sometimes they gave four or five loud harshscreams, very like those of a hen in the clutches of a hawk, only slower and atlonger intervals; sometimes a series of sounds closely resembling those made bj'a brooding hen when disturbed, but louder and sharper. Then would succeed anumber of querulous, complaining cries, intermingled with subdued clucking.Again I heard something which sounded like this: "kr-r-r-r-r, kruc-kruc, krar-r; kh-kh-kh-kh-kea-kea," delivered rapidly and falling in pitch toward the end. Shorternotes were a single, abrubt, explosive kup, very like the cry given by a startled frogjust as he jumps into the water, and a low "kloc-kloc or kloc-kloc-kloc." Speak-ing generally, the notes were all loud, harsh, and discordant, and nearly all curi-ously henlike. At intervals of perhaps half an hour during the greater part ofthe day the two birds called to one another from various parts of the swamp,evidently for the purpose of ascertaining each other's whereabouts. They wereoccasionally answered by a pair in a neighboring swamp and these in turn by athird pair further off. In the early morning and late afternoon their calls werefrequent and at times nearly incessant. They ceased almost entirely after night-fall, for the Florida gallinule is apparently much less nocturnal than any of therails, if not so strictly diurnal as most of our birds.Fall.?^The Florida gallinule is a summer resident only in thenorthern portions of its range. Birds which breed in the Northernand Central States migrate south in the fall to the southern tier ofStates and perhaps farther. The species winters regularly as fai-north as South Carolina and southern California, but even there it ismuch less common than in summer. Its flesh is good to eat and itis probably shot to some extent by gunnel's out after other game;but it has never been considered much of a game bird. DoctorWetmore (1916) says that in Porto Rico it ranks as a game bird andthat its eggs are persistently hunted for food.DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Southeastern Canada, the United States, islands of theCaribbean Sea, and South and Central America.Breeding range.?North to California (San Francisco Bay and nearSacramento) ; probably Arizona (Tucson) ; Nebraska (Omaha) ; Min-nesota (Heron Lake and Minneapolis); Wisconsin (Madison, Milton,and Kelley Brook) ; Michigan (Kalamazoo and Detroit) ; southernOntario (Hamilton, Toronto, Pictou, Kingston, and Ottawa) ; Quebec(Montreal) ; Vermont (St. Albans) ; and Massachusetts (Belmont,Provincctown, and Truro). East to Massachusetts (Cambridge andTruro) ; New York (Long Island City) ; Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)
;
354 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMDelaware (Odessa) ; North Carolina (Lake Ellis) ; the BermudaIslands; South Carolina (Charleston and Frogmore) ; Georgia (Savan-nah and probably Blackbeard Island) ; Florida (Fernandina, St. Aug-ustine, Titusville, Kissimmee, and Lake Okeechobee) ; the BahamaIslands (New Providence, Watling Island and Great Inagua) ; PortoRico; St. Croix; the Lesser Antilles (Anguilla, St. Thomas, Guade-loupe, Dominica, Martinique, St. Lucia, formerly Barbados, Grenada,Tobago, and Trinidad) ; Brazil (Caicara, Cantagallo, Piracicaba,?nd Iguape) ; and Argentina (Parana River and Buenos Aires).South to Argentina (Buenos Aires); and Chile (Concepcion). Westto Chile (Concepcion Lake, Aculco, Sacaya, andSitani) ; Peru (Chorillasand Valley of the Tambo) ; the Galapagos Islands; Colombia (Antio-quia); Nicaragua (Los Sabalos); Honduras (Lake Vojoa) ; Guatemala(Lake Duenas and Lake Amatitlan) ; Mexico, Oaxaca (Tehuantepec)
;
Tepic (Tepic) ; and California (Escondido, Los Angeles, Santa Bar-bara, Stockton, and Sacramento).Spring or summer occurrences north of the known breeding rangeare Colorado (Colorado Springs, May 9, 1882) ; South Dakota (Ver-milion, April 15, 1899); Ontario (Beaumauris) ; Quebec (Quebec);and Maine (Calais).Winter range.?The Florida galUnule appears to be resident through-out its breeding range in South and Central America. At this seasonit has been found north to California (Los Angeles) ; probably Arizona(Tucson) ; Texas (Aransas Bay, Lake Surprise, and Port Arthur)Louisiana (VermiUon Bay and New Orleans) ; Florida (St. VincentIslands Tallahassee and Gainesville) ; and South CaroUnia (AshepooRiver and Cooper River).The species has a few curious northern winter records as, Pennsyl-vania (Richmond, February 12, 1913); Massachusetts (Ware, aboutDecember 15, 1909 and Palmer) ; and Minnesota (MinneapoUs, Jan-uary 23, 1915).Syring migration.?Early dates of arrival are; District of Colum-bia, Washington, April 19, 1892; Pennsylvania, Waynesburg, April26, 1894 and Germantown, May 2, 1888; New Jersey, Camden, April25, 1914; New York, Canandaigua, April 12, 1905, Criiger's Island,April 16, 1922, Branchport, April 18, 1914, Phoenix, April 26, 1891and Rochester, April 27, 1919; Massachusetts, Cambridge, April 30,1896; Vermont, Little Otter Creek, April 28, 1879; Quebec, Mon-treal, April 26, 1913; Kentucky, Versailles, April 11, 1905; lUinois;Quinoy, April 3, 1889, Elgin, April 21, 1914 and Morgan Park, April24, 1902; Indiana, Richmond, March 17, 1917, Waterloo, March 30,1907, Greencastle, April 6, 1894, Irvington, April 16, 1888 and Indian-apolis, April 23, 1916; Ohio, Columbus, March 25, 1917, Sandusky,March 28, 1908, Oberhn, April 11, 1921, Lakeside, April 15, 1917,Wooster, April 19, 1890 and Youngstown, April 30, 1917; Michigan,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 355Albion, March 31, 1896, Vicksburg, April 19, 1912, Ann Arbor, April23, 1916 and Bay City, May 2, 1891; Ontario, near Toronto, April8,1892, Todmorden, April 17,1891 and Queensborough, April 19,1906; Iowa, National, April 18, 1909, Hillsboro April 18, 1896 andGrinnell, April 28, 1890; Wisconsin, Milwaukee, April 12, 1914,Whitewater, April 5, 1914 and Madison, April 26, 1908; Minnesota,Goodhue, April 2, 1918; Kansas, Lawrence, April 19, 1907 andNebraska, Dunbar, April 27, 1899.Fall migration.?Lato dates of fall departure are : Minnesota, Hutch-inson, October 25, 1914; Wisconsin, Milwaukee, October 3, 1914, andNovember 25, 1886; Iowa, Marshalltown, October 17, 1914; Ontario,Toronto, October 1, 1898, Point Pelee, October 9, 1906, Ottawa, Oc-tober 19, 1910, and Todmorden, October 10, 1891; Michigan, Detroit,Octodcr 9, 1907, and Vicksburg, November 16, 1910; Ohio, Cleveland,October 4, 1885, Lakeside, November 11, 1916, Oberlin, November11, 1910, and New Bremen, November 16, 1909; Indiana, Richmond,October 15, 1912; Illinois, Calumet, October 23, 1876; Quebec, Mon-treal, October 29, 1895, and November 5, 1898; Maine, Falmouth, Sep-tember 30, 1894, and Portland, October 15, 1907; Vermont, Rutland,September 20, 1915; Massachusetts, near Springfield, October 1, 1884,Sudbury, October 2, 1880, Essex County, October 3, 1903, and Cam-bridge, October 6, 1912; Rhode Island, Point Judith, November 29,1900; Connecticut, New Haven, September 30, 1902, Norwich, Oc-tober 2, 1907, Quinnipiac Marshes, October 10, 1913, and Lyme,October 16, 1897; New York, Rochester, October 4, 1919, Geneva,October 10, 1914, Rhinebeck, October 16, 1921, Shelter Island, Oc-tober 28, 1898, and Sayville, November 28, 1886; Pennsylvania, Erie,October 7, 1891, and CarUsle, October 18, 1841; and Virginia, Surre}'County, October 21, 1915, and Quantico, October 29, 1882.Casual records.?Florida gallinules also have been observed or takenin New Brunswick (St. Johns, September, 1880) ; Nova Scotia (nearKentville, September 20, 1886) ; and Newfoundland (one reported in anewspaper as captured at Colinet in the fall of 1911).[Author's note: The above distribution is for the entire species,formerly known as Gallinula galeata, including all the American forms.Two new forms have been described from the West Indies and othersmay be found there. There are at least three other forms in south-ern and western South America. But apparently the ranges of thedifferent forms can not yet be definitely outlined.]Egg dates.?New York: 23 records. May 9 to July 5; 12 records,May 23 to June 10. Penns3''lvania and New Jersey: 25 records.May 22 to July 19; 13 records. May 30 to June 22. Michigan andWisconsin: 29 records. May 20 to July 4; 15 records. May 30 toJune 12. California: 24 records. May 5 to July 9; 12 records. May22 to June 15. Texas: 8 records, May 16 to July 25.
356 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMFULICA ATRA LinnaeusEUROPEAN COOTHABITSContributed by Charles Wendell TownsendThe European coot is accidental in Greenland. It closely resemblesthe American coot, from which it differs in being slightly larger, inhaving the frontal shield white, and in lacking the white on the cris-sum. From a study of the accounts of its habits by P^uropean orni-thologists, it is evident that in these respects it also closely resemblesour bird.Nesting.?Saunders (1889) says "the nests are strong and compactstructures of dry flags, and are usually raised from 6 to 12 inchesabove the water on foundations of reeds or tufts of rushes, someof them being so firm as to support the weight of a man seated."Dresser (1871) quotes Stevenson as follows:The outside of this ingeniously formed basket usually consists of dried flags,reeds, and other withered plants; but I have occasionally known young reeds andrushes used in part, when the contrast of the fresh green has had a very prettyeffect. The interior is lined with rather finer substances, chiefly with portionsof the dead leaves of the reed. Though not infrequenty placed in dry situations,on the sedgy bank of an island, or the rushy margin of a pond or lake, I havemore commonly found them on the broads, built over the water amongst thereed stems, in shallow spots resting on the weeds at the bottom, in others wellraised over the surface, but so fastened to the reeds themselves as to rise withthe tide, though with but little danger of getting adrift.Cases have been reported where the birds continued to incubateafter the nests had been torn from their moorings by storms.Eggs.?[Author's note: The eggs of the European bird are similarin every way to those of our American coot. According to Witherby'sHandbook (1920), the usual numbers are from "6 to 9, occasionallyup to 13, while still larger numbers, up to 1 7 and 22, have been recorded,probably by two females."The measm-ements of 38 eggs average 53.6 by 37.1 millimeters; theeggs showing the four extremes measure 57.9 by 36.6, 53.6 by 39.3,50.1 by 36.3, and 51.9 by 35.7 miUimeters.]Young.?The incubation period, according to Evans (1891), is from21 to 22 days. Both parents incubate and the young are able toleave the nest and follow their parents soon after they are hatched.Plumages.?[Author's note: The downy young, the sequence ofplumages to matm-ity, and the seasonal molts of adults are apparentlysimilar to those of the American coot, to whicli it is very closelyrelated.]Food.?The food of the European coot consists of aquatic insects,molluscs, slugs, worms and small fish, seeds, buds, and the tender
NORTH AMEMCAN MARSH BIRDS 357shoots of aquatic plants. It also eats meadow grass and berries and,according to Selby (1833), "in a state of confinement it will greedilydevour grain and other farinaceous diet."Behavior.?Dresser (1871) says:It frequents marshes, pools, and lakes which are ov(!rgrowu with or skirted byreeds, sedges, water lilies, or other aquatic plants, amongst which it can securehiding places should danger threaten. It is generally to be seen swimming, if itfeels itself quite safe, out in the open water, or otherwise close to or amongst thereeds, and but seldom coming on shore to open places, though it often wadesabout in wet marshy places which are well covered with aquatic herbage. Onland it is but an awkward-looking bird; for its legs being placed so far aft it iscompelled to walk very erect, and its feet, though excellently adapted for swim-ming, render its progress on land rather clumsy; but it runs almost as well as themoor hen, and with tolerable ease when disturbed and forced to run to shelter.On the water it floats very bouyantlj', and swims with ease, though not veryswiftly, jerking its tail and moving its neck to and fro. It dives extremely well,and when closely pursued will pass along some distance under the water, and thencatching hold of the stem of a stout plant will keep its body immersed, the billand fore part of the head to the eyes only being left above the surface.Saunders (1889) says:The coot may occasionally be seen perched in trees, and it sometimes ascendsthem, leaping from branch to branch with as much ease as a gallinaceous bird.It sometimes roosts in trees, and has been known to repair to them to feed onberries. It generally sleeps on the water * * *. On many sheets of orna-mental water the coot lives in a semidomesticated state, and will allow an ob-server to approach it quite closely; otherwise it is an exceedingly wary bird, everon the alert for danger, and giving the alarm to the other waterfowl with whichit often congregates.And he quotes Hawker, who says, "If a gentleman wishes to haveplenty of wildfowl on his pond, let him preserve the coots, and keepno tame swans."Hudson (1902) quotes Lord Lilford on an interesting habit of thecoot as follows: "I have several times observed the singular mannerin which a flock of these birds defend themselves against the white-tailed eagle. On the appearance over them of one of these birds the}-collect in a dense body, and when the eagle stoops at them they throwup a sheet of water with their feet, and completely baffle theirenemy." A similar habit has been observed in our American coot.The European coot like our own is slow at taking wing, splashingalong the water for some distance before it cian rise in the air. Onmigrations or when going a distance its flight is strong and swift.Of the cry of the coot, Seebohm (1884) says it is "loud and plain-tive, sometimes a single note, but frequently repeated several times.It is a clear, bell-like "A*o," not unlike the cry of the golden plover."Dresser (1871) says "Its call note is a clear, loud, almost trumpet-likecry, uttered abruptly; but hoard at night, when several are calling,it is not unlike the shrill barking of a small dog."
358 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMWhile the American coot displays prominently the white terminalline on the under tail coverts in elevating the tail, this field markis lacking in the European coot.Winter.?Seebohm (1884) says: "In winter coots collect into im-mense flocks in the low-lying counties and frequent the fresh water aslong as it remains unfrozen, only quitting it for the sea when abso-lutely compelled by the long-continued frost. They appear to mi-grate to the coast under these circumstances in large flocks, quittingtheir fresh water haunts to a bird."DISTRIBUTIONRange.?Great Britain and greater part of continental Europe,Asia and northern Africa, from 70? north latitude in Scandinaviaand 60? north latitude in Russia southward and eastward to China,Japan, India, the Philippine Islands, and the Azores. Rarely wan-ders to Iceland and casually to Greenland.Egg dates.?Great Britain: 17 records, April 20 to June 23; 9records, May 1 to 18. FULICA AMERICANA GmeUnAMERICAN COOTHABITSExcept in the Northeastern States and Provinces, where it occursonly as a migrant and not very commonly, everybody who knowsbirds at all is familiar with the plainly dressed, but exceedingly inter-esting, coot or "mud hen" or "blue Peter." For it enjoys a widedistribution over most of the North American Continent, in which itis very abundant at some seasons of the year in all suitable localities,breeding from the "fur countries" to the West Indies and residentthe year round in the southern part of its range.I first became acquainted with this curious bird in the North Da-kota sloughs, those wonderful wildfowl nurseries of the western plains,teeming with a varied bird life in which the coot played a prominentpart, as a conspicuous, noisy, and amusing clown. Among the flocksof ducks, floating on the open water, a few of the somber, gray birds,with black heads and conspicuous white bills, were always in evi-dence ; they were constantly startling us by splashing and spatteringoff over the water, as we started them from the reedy borders; andto the ceaseless din made by the rythmic notes of countless yellow-headed blackbirds, the loud, guttural voices and varied calls of thecoots played a fitting accompaniment. They were never quiet andtheir antics were often entertaining.Spring.?The coot is a hardy bird and an early spring migrant,pushing on northward as fast as advancing spring melts the ice in
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 359the ponds, often arriving while there is still some ice. M. P. Skinnertells me that, in Yellowstone Park, "they come just as soon as theponds begin to melt"; he has seen them there as early as April 11.A. D. Henderson has known them to reach northern Alberta, LacLa Nonne, as early as April 16. He has seen them at Bear Lakewhen "the lake was still full of ice, but there was a narrow strip ofopen water along the shore on which were thousands of ducks withthe coots and a few Canada geese."Courtship.?The best account of the courtship of the coot is givenby Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1920) as he observed it at Lake Bur-ford, New Mexico, as follows:Many were in pairs on the date of my arrival, but until June 5 small flocks ofuumated birds remained feeding in the open bays or rested in little bands on openbeaches. Toward the latter part of this period these flocks at short intervalspresented a scene of great animation as the birds displayed and fought savagelywith one another. A little later on the companies broke up entirel3\ Each maleselected an area of shore line in the tules and remained near this constantly,guarding it jealously, taking frequent occasion to drive away ducks and earedgrebes who might chance to trespass, and having many fights with neighboringmales. In these encounters they drove at each other with heads extended onthe water and wing tips elevated. When near they began striking viciously withtheir bills and then, lying back, struck heavily first with one large foot and thenthe other, a most effective means of fighting as their claws were long and sharp,and their leg muscles powerful. Each tried to guard against these blows byseizing the feet of his antagonist so that often the two held each other b}' meansof their feet, while they thrust savagely with their bills. The females frequentlytook part in these squabbles also, so that sometimes three or four birds wereengaged, at one time, while neighboring males came rushing up also seemingminded to interfere. When they separated the males sometimes rested for sev-eral minutes with heads down on the water and wing tips raised, eyeing eachother like two game cocks.Their mating actions were interesting. Males frequently rushed after females,[)addling over the surface of the water with flapping wings, while the femalesmade off in the same manner, 10 feet or so ahead. Frequently the females mademerely a pretense at escape, striking out with their feet and making a greatsplashing but traveling slowly, but if too closely pressed they dove, leaving themales looking about for them on the surface. In the most common act of displaythe male came paddling out with head and neck prostrate on the water, wingtips raised high above the tail, and the tail spread and elevated so that the whitemarkings on either side were very prominent. As he came near the femaleusually assumed the same attitude. When 2 or 3 feet away the male turned andl)resented the prominently marked tail to the female, swimming off slowly andreturning to repeat the performance. This action was seen constantly when-ever coots were under observation. Paired birds often swam toward one anotherfrom a distance of several feet with heads extended on the water calling "kukkuk kuk kuk." As they met they assumed a more erect attitude and then asthey brushed against one another and turned about they dabbled in the waterwith quick jerks of the open bill that threw drops of water from side to side.Frequently the female reached over and worked her bill gently through thefeathers on the male's head and then lowered her head while he preened herfeathers in return.
360 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMNesting.?The same observer says in regard to nest building:In building, the female arranged the dead stems of the round stalked Scirpusoccidentalis to form a platform, bending them over and striking them repeatedlywith her bill to make them stay in position, causing a peculiar knocking, ham-mering noise that at this season was to be heard in the rushes on all sides. Fre-quently the first one or two eggs of a set were laid on a mere platform and thecompleted nest built up later, depending perhaps upon the need of the femalefor a place to deposit her eggs. A complete set of seven eggs with incubationbegun was seen on June 7 and after this sets were common. The males seemedto take no part in nest building, but stood about in the rushes a few feet awaj'.This guard continued as the eggs were laid and incubation began. When thefemales were on the nest it was amusing, as I approached slowly in the boat, tosee the males stalk truculently down and slide into the water, eyeing me closelyall the while. Frequently at this season they rose on the surface of the water,treading heavily for a few strokes, making a loud turmoil in the water and driv-ing themselves backward for a foot or more with the force of the effort, appar-ently a threatening act intended to frighten away an intruder.I made my first acquaintance with the nesting habits of the cootin Nelson and vSteele Counties, North Dakota, in 1901; since then Ihave seen many coots' nests, for it is an abundant bird in all suitableprairie sloughs. The nests are usually partially, or well, concealedin the bulrushes (Scirpus) or flags ( Typhus) about the borders of thesloughs or marshy ponds; sometimes the nests are in plain sight nearthe edge, or in an isolated clump; occasionally one is seen in an en-tirely open situation with no concealment whatever. The nest isusuall}'' a floating structure, under which one could pass the handwithout obstruction, but it is generally firmly attached to gro^vingreeds or flags, to prevent drifting. Whatever material is most read-ily available, bulrushes, flags, reeds, or grass, is used and firmlywoven into a substantial basket; the inner cavity, which is hollowedjust enough to hold the eggs, is neatly lined with pieces of dry flagsor other smooth material. An average nest, well concealed in athick clump and containing 10 eggs, measured 14 inches in outsideand 7 inches in inside diameter, the rim being 8 inches above thewater. A larger nest, in a more open situation and containing 15 eggs,measured 18 inches outside and 7 inches inside, but the rim was onlyabout 4 inches above the water. The largest nest I ever measuredcontained only 9 eggs but it was 20 by 15 inches in outside diameterand built up 7 inches above the water. These are normal types.John G. Tyler writes to me that he found about 15 pairs of cootsnesting in a shallow pond of about 40 acres, near Fresno, Cahfornia,on June 18, 1917; the nests were "all built of green wire-grass stemsand anchored in patches of grass in water averaging a foot deep."Robert B. Rockwell (1912) describes several other types of nestsfound in the Barr Lake region, Colorado, as follows:In the large number of nests examined were found wide variation in construc-tion and location. Most of the nests were built well out toward the edge of the
NOKTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 361
cftf-tails over water ti or 4 feet deep, others were built in close to shore in verydense cat-tail thickets. One nest was found built on dry ground, another fully2 feet above the ground on a platform of dead cat-tails, with a neat runwayleading up to it; and still another nest fully 4 feet above ground in the lowerbranches of an apple tree, the water of the lake having receded that much afterhaving inundated the orchard. Two nests were seen far out on open water thatwere readily visible at a distance of 100 yards. One nest was found that lookedexactly like a grebe's nest; another was built entirely of weed straws; stillanother entirely of freshly cut green cat-tails and one over deep water wasmade entirely from green moss brought up from the bottom of the lake.Eggs.?The number of eggs in a coot's nest varies from half ailozen to two or three times that number; normal sets usually runfrom 8 to 12 eggs; as many as 16 even 22 have been recorded, prob-ably the product of more than one bird. The shape of the eggsvaries but little from ovate, but they are often quite pointed. Theshell is smooth with a very slight gloss. The ground color variesfrom dull "pinkish buff," rarely, to "cartridge buff," wldch is theusual color. It is thickly and evenly covered with very small spotsand minute dots of very dark, or blackish, brown. The measure-ments of 122 eggs average 49 by 33.5 millimetei's; the eggs showingthe four extremes measure 63 by 32.5, 52 by 36, and 41.5 by 30 milU-meters.Young.?The period of incubation is 21 or 22 da3's. It is sharedby both sexes and the male often stands on guard while his mateis sitting. The eggs are apparently laid on successive days andincubation is continued more or less regularly during the laying per-iod, for one, or sometimes two, young birds hatch each day duringthe hatching period. The young are decidedly precocial, leaving thenest soon after they are hatched and swimming about in the vicinity;they can swim and dive almost as well as their parents and theirability to remain under water is astonishing. Grinnell, Bryant, andStorer (1918) say: "In two instances youngsters not more than aday old were observed to remain under water nearly three minutesas timed by a watch. They could be seen clinging to vegetationbeneath the surface until apparently forced to come up for air."Dr. Joseph Grinnell (1908) writes:A quite significant and interesting fact was noted in that the feet of the younggrew far more rapidly in proportion than the rest of their body. A half-grownmud hen has astonishingly large feet, and after ob.serving the ease with whichthe youngsters swam and dived (apparently just as well as the adults), the rela-tive importance of those members to the early success of the individual seemedplain. The young of a family near camp returned with both parents to the oldnest each evening at dusk, but much squabbling and jostling, accompanied byvarious toots, grunts, and cries, took place before they were all finally settledior the night.Plumages.?The downy young coot is a grotesque but showy littlechick; a black ball of do^vn with a fiery head. The almost bald
362 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMcrown is but thinly covered with hairlike black down; the upperparts are thickly covered with glossy black, long, coarse down, mixedwith long, hairlike filaments, which vary in color from "orangechrome" on the neck and wings to "Ught orange-yellow" on the back;the lores, chin, and throat are covered with short, stiff, curly hairs,varying in color from "flame scarlet" to "orange chrome"; the billis "flame scarlet," with a black tip; the under parts are thickly cov-ered with dense, furlike down, very dark gray to almost black, with,whitish tips.While raising young ducks and coots from the eggs in Manitobawe had a good chance to study their development. The young cootgrows rapidly, especially the feet and legs, which soon seem out ofproportion; but it is slow in assuming its plumage. The first, lightgrayish plumage appears on the breast when the bird is about 4 weeksold and about one-third grown; it is still covered with dark, sootygray down and the orange hairs have not wholly disappeared. Thewings do not start to grow until the young bird is 6 weeks old andthe plumage is not complete until it is at least 2 months old. Inthis full Juvenal plumage the upper parts vary from " hair brown" ta
"chaetura drab" more brownish on the back; the chin, throat andneck are "deep neutral gray," mottled with grayish white; and theunder parts are mottled with neutral grays and whitish.During the fall and winter a gradual molt of the contour plumageproduces steady progress towards maturity; but traces of immatur-ity persist all through the first year; young birds have much morewhite in the under parts, chin, throat, and belly, and they have notyet developed the wliite bill and frontal shield. The young birdbecomes practically adult after the first postnuptial molt, when overa year old. Adults have a complete molt in August and Septemberand a very limited, partial prenuptial molt in the early spring.Food.?The coot is quite omnivorous, living on a varied bill of fareat different seasons. Most of its food is obtained on, under, or nearthe water of its marshy haunts; but it is no uncommon sight to seeit walking about on the marshy shores or even on dry land pickingup its food in a lively fashion after the manner of domestic fowl.Sometimes far from the water it may be seen in flocks clipping offthe green grasses in the meadows or puUing up the sprouting grainon cultivated land. It feeds largely on the leaves, fronds, seeds androots of aquatic vegetation, such as pond weed (Potamogeton) , thetops of water milfoil ( Myriophyllum) and the seeds of bur reed {Spar-ganium). Much of this food must be obtained by diving to moder-ate depths, at which it is an expert. It is very fond of wild celery,some of which it steals from the canvasbacks and other ducks. Inthe great duck shooting resorts of Virginia and North CaroUna cootscongregate in enormous numbers in winter to feed on wild celery and
NOETll AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 363the foxtail grtiss, both favorite duck foods. In California, accordingto John G. Tyler ( 1913) , it still further annoys the duck hunters by eat-ing the grain thrown out to attract the ducks. In some duck clubs cootshave become such a nuisance that mud-hen shoots have been inau-gurated, at which sometimes as many as 5,000 coots have been killedin a day. Dr. Alexander Wetmore (1920) has seen a coot, at LakeBurford, "eating algae and slime that had collected on dead tulestems floating in the water. It fed eagerly on this material, seizingand stripping one piece after another."Its animal food includes some small fishes, tadpoles, snails, worms,water bugs and other insects, and their aquatic larvae. It has evenbeen known to pluck the feathers off and partially eat dead ducks.A bird, dissected by Doctor Wetmore (1916) in Porto Rico, hadeaten "'a number of small crustaceans, and a large mass of eggsbelonging probably to other crustaceans"; another "had catenalarge quantity of grass or sedge, with a few small roots."Behavior.?There is much that is interesting in the behavior of thecoot, characteristic of and pecuhar to this curious bird. The nameof "spatterer" has often been applied to it on account of its well-known habit of rising noisily from the water ; running along the sm*-face, it beats the water with wings and feet, splashing alternatelywith its heavy paddles and making the spray fly, until it gains suffi-cient momentum to fly; it has been suggested that this and othernoisy splashing antics are of use to frighten its enemies or warnits companions. When well under way its flight is strong and direct,much more vigorous and swifter than the fhght of gallinules; theneck is extended, with the conspicuous wliite bill pointing shghtlydownwards, and the feet are stretched out behind, with the toespointing upwards, to serve as a rudder in place of the useless littletail. The white tips of the secondaries show up well in flight as agood field mark. It flies usually near the water, or 10 or 15 feetabove it, and seldom makes long high flights except when migrating.It is much more Ukely to escape by swimming or by scurrying offover the surface than by rising and flying away as the ducks do.It is ordinarily not a shy bird, unless persistently hunted.It is a strong rapid swimmer, floating higher in the water than theducks or the gallinules, with the back more level, less submerged for-ward. When either swimming or walking it nods its head in stepwith its foot movements, like a dove or a hen. Its white bill, in con-trast with its black head, fairly gleams in the sunhght, an excellentfleld mark.On land the coot walks about actively, often in a hunched-backattitude suggestive of the guinea fowl ; its lobed feet give it a firmfooting on soft ground, but do not impede it on flrmer soil. Dr.
364 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMCharles W. Townseud has noted that it folds its toes as it lifts itsfoot. Audubon apparenth'' had never seen it dive, but it is now wellknown to be a good diver, to obtain its food and to escape its ene-mies. Dr. Townsend (1905) says that it "often goes under waterwith very little effort; at other times it leaps clear of the water likea grebe, with its wings pressed close to its sides, its body describingan arc, and the head entering as the feet leave the water.
"
I have often observed the peculiar antics of a coot when its nest isapproached; with head lowered until the bill almost touches thewater and with wings elevated behind like a swan's, it paddles aboutsplashing loudly and grunting a loud guttural "kruk, kruk, kruk";it often "backs water" vigorously with both feet, raising the bodybackwards out of the water. Sometimes it stands upright on itshind quarters, flapping its wings and splashing with both feet. Suchnoisy demonstrations may be due to nervous excitement or may beintended to scare us away.Coots associate on their breeding grounds and in their winter quar-ters with various species of ducks, with which they mingle freely andnever seem to quarrel. But with members of their own species theyare often very pugnacious and sometimes murderous. F. W. Hen-shaw (1918) tells the following remarkable story:Our boathouse rests in a cut opening out on Butte Slough, in Calusa County.California. Between the end of the boathouse and the current of the slough, thereare 60 or 80 feet of still water; three mud hens {Fulica americana) have takenpossession of this spot. They have grown quite tame; not only do they comeup to the boathouse for their food, but when hungry swim up and are clamor-
?ousljr insistent with their "put-put-put." The men have frequently told me thatthey were murderous fighters against their own kind, and one day I was a wit-ness of such a fight. A strange mud hen swam from the creek into the quietwater. The first of the three to see him attacked the stranger at once, "putting"harshly, and the intruder gave battle without the slightest attempt to retreat.They pecked at each other savagely. The other two boathouse mud hens swamup to the fray, one of them joining in, the other, the smallest of the three andprobably the female, simply looking on. In time they pecked the strange mudhen into a state of exhaustion. It was manifestly too weak to fly, but tried tomake its escape by swimming. They followed it up, and one actually stood onits body while the other held its head under the water until it was dead. Whensatisfied of this, they left it.Coots indulge in quite a variety of grunting, croaking, and squawk-ing notes and are responsible for most of the noise coming from theinnermost recesses of a slough or tule swamp. Rev. J. II. Langille(1884) says:It is decidedly a noisy bird, its "coo-coo-coo-coo-coo" being heard bothday and night, the first note being prolonged on a much higher key, while therest are somewhat accelerated. It will often squack similar to a duck, and hasother notes too unique and difficult of description to be given here.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 365Mrs. Florence Merriam Bailoy (1910) gives a very good idea ofthe notes as follows
:
As we walked along behind the tule hedge a confusion of most remarkablesounds came from the tules where invisible coots were swimming about?cough-ing sounds, froglike plunks, and a rough sawing or filing "kuk-kawk-kuk, kuk-kawk-kuk," as if the saw were dull and stuck. Often there was just a grating
"kuk-kuk-kuk-kuk-kuk-kuk." But all the mixed medley had the sound of goodfellowship, and, too, as open fearless disregard of who might be passing the otherside of the tule screen?for who wanted coots?Enemies.?On the Atlantic coast and in Florida, where bald eaglesare common, these cowardly birds of prey seem to be the coots'worst enemies. C. J. Maynard (1896) writes:The eagle hovers over a bunch of coots and endeavors by diving down towardsthe flock to make them scatter. The eagle will never attack a coot when sur-rounded by its fellows, but the instant one is separated from the flock his life isin jeopardy, for, no matter how expertly he dives, his untiring enemy is abovehim whenever he comes to the surface, and drives him further and further from hisfriends, who will never attempt to protect him, but who swim away as fast as theirlobated toes would propel them. But the chase, unequal in the outset, soon ends
?
the exhausted coot rises for the air which it must have, when like a thunderboltfalls the eagle and the lifeless waterfowl is borne away to satisfy the hunger ofthe eaglets who are waiting, expectant, in their stick-built home in the high topof some neighboring pine. I have never seen the coots attempt to defend them-selves even when in a body, in fact, they always dive and scatter somewhatwhen the eagle comes swooping downward toward them, but quickly gatheragain as soon as they rise. The reason why the eagle tries to separate one cootfrom its fellows must be that he can then trace that particular bird, and bychasing it until it is exhausted, effect its capture, whereas it would quite easilyelude him if it kept among its fellows. Among coots, their safety lies in numbers,even if all be cowards, but the wonder is, not that the eagles know this, but thatthe coots themselves do.But the eagle is not always successful. The following incident isrelated by Moses Williams, jr., in a letter to Dr. Charles W. Townsend:An eagle after putting a large flock of ducks and geese to flight in the usualway, approached a flock of some 200 coots. They crowded together so that fromour boat they appeared to be a solid black mass. When he came over them, hedropped from a height of about 25 yards to within a few feet. He did not swoop,but rather, comparatively slowly, pointed his flight downward. Immediatelythe coots set up such a splashing that the black spot was converted into a massof white spray. The eagle hovered over them for a moment, apparently lookingfor an individual to strike at and then passed on. The splashing ceased only tobegin again as he turned and again stooped and the same thing happened threemore times and then the eagle gave it up and in two minutes the coots wereagain in open formation and swimming about and feeding in their usual animatedway. We were all quite sure that the flock made no attempt to get away, butdid their splashing throughout on the same spot. It seemed to me a very intel-ligent performance on the part of a bird, which could not escape by flying or divingas the other fowl can.FaU.?The hardy coots not only arrive early in their northernhomes, but they are loath to leave in the fall, lingering often until
366 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMthey are driven out by the freezing of the lakes. They gather intoimmense flocks before leaving and hold noisy conclaves, as if discuss-ing the propriety of departure. On the morning after such a caucusthe lake is usually deserted, all having gone during the night. Some-times they Unger too long and may be seen crowded in a dense blackmass, perhaps mingled with the hardier ducks, in some unfrozen waterhole in the ice. The fall migration takes the coots to southern lakesand even to brackish estuaries near the coasts where they minglewith the ducks and are often shot as game. But they are hardlyworthy to be classed as game birds; they are too easy to kill andtheir flesh is not highly regarded. " Blue Peters," as they are called,are good game for boys and they help fill the pot when other gameis scarce. While camping in Florida we often found them a welcomeaddition to our larder, as they are clean feeders and quite palatable.Winter.?Below the frost line, from California to Florida, cootsare very abundant in all suitable lakes, ponds, bayous, marshes, andmarshy rivers, all through the winter, where they are highly gregarious.But they are seldom seen on salt water. Mr. Maynard (1896) writes:The coots are remarkably abundant in the little ponds and lagoons on themarshes which He to the eastward of Indian River, Florida. Here they have thehabit of gathering together in a nearly solid mass in the middle of the body of wateron which they float and it is exceedingly difficult to make them leave one of thesechosen resorts. Even wh^n shot at those that are uninjured will frequently re-main while those whicli do fly, generally circle around about and after a time re-turn. I remember once of walking along the margin of a narrow creek near Mos-quito Lagoon, with my assistant, when we encountered a large body of coots.At the point where we found them the creek was only about 10 yards wide, andas we could walk faster than the birds could swim, we were soon abreast of them,but although we were so close to them none of them attempted to fly, but as wepassed the first portion of the flock, the coots of which it was composed turnedand swam back, then, sheeplike, all followed, and we stood still while hundredsof them swam past us. As the birds were crowded together, somewhat, theirranks were quite wide so that the nearest birds were only a few feet away.Back Bay, Virginia, is a favorite winter resort for coots where theyfind an abundant food supply in the seeds and tops of the foxtailgrass and other duck foods and where they steal the wild celery fromthe canvasbacks and redheads. I thought I had seen coots in Florida,but that was as nothing compared with the countless thousands that Isaw here in November. There were acres and acres and acres of themspread out over the smooth waters of the bay in vast rafts. They weremuch tamer than any of the ducks and geese; even these big flocksallowed our power boat to approach almost within gunshot; and thenthey only pattered or flew away for a short distance and then settleddown again, thus making a pathway for us through the vast flocks.
NORTH AMEBICAN MARSH BIRDS 367DISTRIBUTIONRange.?North and Central America.Breeding range.?North to British Columbia (Quesnal, Kamloopsand Okanagan): Mackenzie (Fort Simpson, Hay River, Fort Resolu-tion, and Fort Smith); Saskatchewan (Prince Albert and Cumber-land House); Manitoba (Moose Lake and Chemawawin) ; Minne-sota (White Earth, Leech Lake, and Millelacs Lake) ; Wisconsin (LaCrosse, Kelley Brook, and Green Bay); Michigan (Lansing, Saginaw,and Rochester); Ontario (Sudbury and Beaumaris); and Quebec(Montreal and Quebec). East to Quebec (Quebec); Vermont (Hydeville) ; Massachusetts (formerly Boston) ; New York (probably LongIsland City); New Jerse}^ (Newark and Morristown) ; Pennsylvania(formerly Philadelphia) ; formerly District of Columbia (near Wash-ington); Noi'th Carolina (Pamlico Sound); probably South Carolina(near Charleston) ; formerly Florida (Monticello) ; Mexico, Vera Cruz(Tampico); and Yucatan (Cozumel Island). South to Guatemala(Duenas); Mexico, Michoocan (Lake Patzcuaro) ; Jalisco (Guadala-jara); Tepic (Tepic); and Lower California (Comondu). West toLower California (San Pedro Martir Mountains); California (SanDiego, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Gridley, and CrescentCity) ; Oregon (Bandon, Dayton, and Portland) ; Washington (Tac-oma, Seattle, and Bellingham Bay) ; British Columbia (Quesnal) ; andMackenzie (Fort Simpson).The breeding of the coot anywhere in the eastern United Statesis of rare or accidental occurrence as the species is not common as anesting bird east of Indiana (Kewanna, Lafayette, and Terre Haute)
;
southern Illinois (Mount Carmel); western Kentucky (Hick-man) ; western Tennessee (Reelfoot Lake) ; eastern Arkansas (BigLake) ; and central Texas (Decatur, Giddings, San Antonio, andBrownsville). The status of the coot as a breeder in the WestIndies also is somewhat disputed as another form, Fulica caribaeaRidgway, described from the Lesser Antilles, is resident in thisregion and to this probablj^ most, if not all, West Indian records arereferable. Until adequate specimens are available, this problemprobably can not be solved. A larger form of this has beendescribed from Porto Rico.The coot also has been not<;d in the Bermuda Islands in April,May, November, and December but is not known to breed.Winter range.?North, to British (-olumbia (wSumas and Okanagan;)probably Nevada (Carson); probabl}- Idaho ( Deer Flat Bird Reser-vation); Arizona (Salt River Bird Reservation, near Whipple andTucson); Colorado (Barr); Texas (Mason, San Angelo, and San An-tonio); southern IlHnois (Anna and Mount Cermel); western Ken-tucky (Hickman J ; and Maryland (Miller's Island). East to Mary-
368 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMland (Miller's Island); Virginia (Cobb Island); North Carolina,(Raleigh); South Carolina (Cooper River and Charleston); Georgia(Blackbeard Island and Savannah); Florida (Palatka, Fruitland Park,and Titusville); the Bahama Islands (Abaco, New Providence, RumCay, and Great Inagua); and Panama (Calobre). wSouth to Panama(Calobre); Costa Rica (Juan Vinas and Las Corcovas); Honduras(Lake Yojoa) ; Guatemala (Lake of Duenas and Lake Atitlan) ; Mex-ico, Sinaloa (Escuinapa) ; and Lower California (San Jose del Cabo andLa Paz). West to Lower California (San Jose del Cabo); CaUfornia.(Los Angeles, Point Pinos, and San Francisco); Oregon (KlamathLake, Corvallis, and NetartsBay); Washington (Seattle); and Brit-ish Columbia (Sumas).Winter occurrences of the coot outside of its normal range at thisseason include: West Virginia (Buckhannon) ; New York (MontaukPoint, February 22, 1921, Mastic, Long Island, February 12, 1916,Geneva, December 13, 1913, and January 11, 1914, Branchport, Jan-uary 1, 1914, and Oswego, January 17, 1904); and Rhode Island,(Point Judith, December 20, 1900); and one was taken in Connecti-cut, December 26, 1913. One wintered at Jamaica and LeverettPonds, Boston, Massachusetts, during 1907-8 and another remainedon Lake Maxinkuckee, Indiana, until it froze over January 10, 1901.The species also has been noted in winter from Clipperton Island,west of Mexico.Spring migration.?Early dates of amval are Pennsylvania, Renova,March 5, 1900, Cumberland County, March 16, 1894, Erie, March 28,1898, Westtown, March 30, 1913, and Coatesville, April 14, 1887; NewJersey, Camden, April 2, 1916, and Audubon, April 12, 1914; New York,Geneva, March 14, 1909, Oswego, March 16, 1890, Rhinebeck, March18, 1903, and Rochester, April 1, 1902; Connecticut, West Haven.April 2, 1910, and Portland, April 22, 1888; Massachusetts, Harvard,March 23, 1911, Sandwich, March 29, 1890, and Boston, April 2, 1910 *Maine, Castine, March 23, 1904, Philhps, April 2, 1908, and Farming-ton, April 12, 1910; Quebec, Montreal, April 28, 1893, and Quebec,May 14, 1890; New Brunswick, Chatham, April 10, 19 14; northern Illi-nois, Odin, February 26, 1890, Chicago, March 14, 1920, Alton, March15, 1894, Rockford, March 19, 1891, and Forest Park, March 21, 1916:Indiana, Indianapolis, March 5, 1884, Goshen, March 6, 1918, Frank-fort, March 8, 1895, Vincennes, March 10, 1922, La Porte, March 16,1894, Waterloo, March 17, 1907, Fort Wayne, March 15, 1918,and New Castle, March 19, 1911; Ohio, Columbus, March 10, 1906,Youngstown, March 13, 1918, Circleville, March 15, 1884, and NewBremen, March 21, 1911; Michigan, Battle Creek, March 12, 1885,Sandhill, March 18, 1884, Vicksburg, March 19, 1904, Ann Arbor,March 23, 1912, Detroit, March 28. 1905, and Grand Rapids, April 8.1890; Ontario, Dunnville, March 15, 1885, Port Rowan, March 16.
NOBTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 3691884, Yarker, April 13, 1890, Queensboro, April 16, 1912, and Ottawa,April 27, 1892 ; Iowa, Cedar Rapids, February 23, 1889, Council BluffsMarch 11, 1916, Indianola, March 12, 1904, Keokuk, March 13, 1900,La Porte, March 16, 1886, Mason City, March 19, 1921, Sioux City,March 20, 1916, BurUngton, March 20, 1884, Emmetsburg, March 21,1916, Marshalltown, March 25, 1913, Spirit Lake, March 25, 1892, andGrinnell, Marcli 26, 1886; Wisconsin, Elkhorn, March 1, 1911, EauClaire, March 17, 1918, Beloit, March 18, 1916, Portage, March 19,1914, Madison, March 22, 1907, Delavan, March 24, 1894, La Crosse,March 25, 1910, Milwaukee, March 26, 1911, and Fox Lake, March30, 1898; Minnesota, Heron Lake, March 16, 1894, Sherburn, March,23, 1917, Redwing, March 26, 1884, Minneapolis, March 28, 1907,Wilder, March 30, 1917, and Waseca, April 3, 1892; Kansas, EmporiaMarch 17, 1885, Manhattan, March 19, 1897, Topeka, March 25,1921, Richmond, March 28, 1886, Wichita, March 30, 1917, Onaga,March 31, 1903, and Lawrence, April 2, 1906; Nebraska, Pulhnan,March 10, 1916, Valentine, March 14, 1893, Nebraska City, March18, 1909, Whitman, March 21, 1920, Lincoln, March 23, 1900, FallsCity, March 24, 1890, and South Bend, March 27, ) 899; South Dakota,Sioux Falls, March 27, 1910, Grand View, March 31, 1889, Forest-burg, April 3, 1904, and Huron, April 8, 1887; North Dakota, Bath-gate, April 20, 1891, Larimore, April 20, 1890, Chase Lake, April 22,1913, Stump Lake, April 26, 1912, and Fargo, April 29, 1914; ManitobaAlexander, April 3, 1895, Reaburn, April 17, 1895, Dalton, April 18,1889, Portage la Prairie, April 21, 1908, Ossowo, April 22, 1891, Mar-garet, April 27, 1912, and Aweme, April 30, 1901; Saskatchewan,South Qu'Appelle, April 14, 1913, Indian Head, April 18, 1915, Dins-more, April 27, 1909, and Osier, May 1, 1893; New Mexico, DelawareCreek, March 24, 1856; Wyoming, Yellowstone Park, April 11, 1915,and Cheyenne, April 12, 1888; Idaho, Minidoka Bird Reservation,March 22, 1915, and Rathdrum, April 25, 1903; Montana, Neeley,March 1, 1917, Bonner's Ferry, April 15, 1916, and Rouan, April 22,1917; and Alberta, Flagstaff, April 14, 1915, Carvel, April 27, 1914,Banff, April 29, 1913, and Fort Vermilion, May 8, 1911.Fall migration.?Late dates of fall departure are: Montana, Terry,October 4, 1903, and Teton County, November 9, 1912; Idaho, SawTooth Lake, October 2, 1890, and Meridian, October 24, r?14; Wyom-ing, Yellowstone Park, October 11, 1915; New Mexico, Jornada, Oc-tober 0, 1905, and Chloride, November 28, 1915; Saskatchewan, wSouthQu'Appelle, November 30, 1913; Manitoba, Aweme, October 20, 1910,Killarney, October 27,1913, and Margaret, November 2, 1912; NorthDakota, Harrisburg, October 18, 1901, Antler, October 23, 1908, andGrafton, November 24, 1914; South Dakota, Wall Lake, October 23,1908, Sioux Falls, November 28, 1915, and Forestburg, November 30,1905; Nebraska, Badger, November 10, 1900, and Lincoln, November
370 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM18, 1900; Kansas, Onaga, October 26, 1899, and Lawrence, November6, 1905; Minnesota, Elk River, October 1, 1915, Hutchinson, October31,1914, Jackson, November 3, 1902, Minneapolis, November 6, 1906,Lanesboro, November 10, 1892, La Crescent, November 12, 1896, andHeron Lake, November 15,1914; Wisconsin, Shiocton, November 13,1882, Milwaukee, November 15, 1914, Elk Horn, December 2, 1919, andMadison, December 12,1915; Iowa, Gilbert Station, October 22, 1892,Marshalltown, November 1, 1913, Sigourney, November 10, 1920, Em-metsburg, November 18,1915, and Keokuk, November 18,1902; On-tario, Todmorden, October 10. 1891, Toronto, October 14, 1898, PointPelee, October 15, 1906, Ottawa, October 27,1916, and Kingston, Oc-tober 30, 1905; Michigan, Manchester, October 17, 1894, Manistee, Oc-tober 20, 1904, Sault Ste. Marie, October 24, 1922, Ann Arbor, Octo-ber 30, 1915, Hillsdale, November 3, 1894, Detroit, November 6, 1919,and Vicksburg, December 5, 1909; Ohio, Lakeside, November 5, 1920,BowUng Green, November 11, 1916, Scio, November 14, 1922, Youngs-town, November 22, 1913, Oberlin, November 26, 1906, Canton, De-cember 3, 1911, and Sandusky, December 15, 1910; Indiana, Indian-apolis, October 16, 1915, Bicknell. October 27, 1914, New Harmony, Oc-tober 27, 1902, and Lake Maxinkuckee, October 30, 1906; northernIllinois, La Grange, October 21, 1916, Lake Forrest, November 6, 1906,and Ilhnois River, November 14, 1912; Quebec, Montreal, October24, 1892; Maine, Pittsfield, October 8, 1895, Portland, October 9, 1905,Saccarappa, October 18, 1890, and Westbrook, October 24, 1904; NewHampshire, Durham, October 10, 1897; Vermont, Rutland, October10, 1916; Massachusetts, Lynn, October 23, 1912, Newtonville, No-vember3, 1911, Jamaica Plain, November 30, 1900, andBoston, Decem-ber 30,1909; Rhode Island, Newport, November 14,1871, and PointJudith, November 30,1900; Connecticut, East Hartford, October 2,1888, Meriden, October 25. 1915, and Portland, November 14, 1892;New York, Consook Island, November 4, 1881, Orient Point, Novem-ber 8, 1907, Great South Bay, November 17, 1905, Crugers Island,November 19, 1921, Brooklyn, November 22, 1914, and Branchport,November 23, 1906; New Jersey, Bernardsville, October 25, 1910,Camden, October 29, 1915, Morristown, November 10, 1885, andPennsville, November 25, 1914; and Pennsylvania, Bridesburg, Octo-ber 17, 1913, Berwyn, November 1, and Beaver, November 2, 1899,State College, November 5, 1916, Armingo, November 11, 1912, LakeSheriden, November 21, 1911, and Erie, December 6, 1900.Casual records.?The coot has been reported as rare at Anticosti Is-land and it has occurred once at Nain, Labrador, while there also is arecord from St. Johns, Nova Scotia, and one from Otter Brook, SableBay, Quebec, March 12, 1914. Two have been reported from Green-land, both in 1854, one from Godthaab and the other from JacobsHaven, near Disco: and Willett reports a specimen taken near Sitka,
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BHIDS 371Alaska, in September, 1908, stating that two or three others havebeen taken in that same region in the fall. He also reports three seenat St. Lazaria Island, Alaska, on September 9, 1913.Egg dates.?California: 58 records, April 11, to August 2 ; 29 records,May 19 to June 19. Central Canadian Provinces: 20 records, May16 to June 20; 10 records, June 1 to 7. Minnesota and the Dakotas:16 records. May 10 to July 6 ; 8 records. May 27 to June 4. Colorado*6 records, April 27 to July 2.

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874 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMBaynard, Oscar E.1912?Food of Herons and Ibises. The Wilson Bulletin, no. 81, vol. 24,pp. 167-169.1913?Home Life of the Glossy Ibis {Plegadis autumnalis, Liiin.). The Wil-son Bulletin, vol. 25, pp. 103-117.Beebe, C. William.1909?An Ornithological Reconnaissance of Northeastern Venezuela. Zoologica, vol. 1, nos. 2 and 3.B.EEBE,.William.1918?Jungle Peace.Beebe, C. William, and Beebe, Mary Blair.1910?Our Search for a Wilderness.Benners, George B.1887?A Collecting Trip in Texas. Ornithologist and Oologist, vol. 12, pp.49-52, 65-69, and 81-84.Beyer, George Eugene; Allison, Andrew; Kopman, Henry Hazlitt.1908?List of the Birds of Louisiana. The Auk, vol. 25, pp. 173-180 and439-448.Bishop, Louis Bennett.1904?The Eggs and Breeding Habits of Some Comparatively Little KnownNorth American Birds. Abstract of the Proceedings of the Lin-nacan Society of New York, nos. 15 and 16, pp. 48-61.iBoDKiN, A. E. and Mattley, C. T.1921?Shooting Notes. Timehri. The Journal of the Royal Agriculturaland Commercial Society of British Guiana, vol. 7 (new series) pp.115-125.Bonhote, John Lewis James.1^03?Field Notes on some Bahama Birds. Avicultural Magazine, vol. 8,p. 278; vol. 9, pp. 19, 54 and 87.1907?Birds of Britain.BowpisH, Beecher Scoville.1891?Notes on the Virginia Rail. The Ornithologist and Botanist, vol. 1,pp. 73-74.1902?Birds of Porto Rico. The Auk, vol. 19, pp. 356-366.Bowles, John Hooper.1893?A Peculiarity in the Nesting Habits of the Virginia Rail. Ornithol-ogist and Oologist, vol. 18, pp. 115, 116.1909?The Birds of Washington.Brehm, a. E.1871?Zur Fortpflanzungsgeschichte des Purpurhuhns. Journal fiir Orni-thologie, vol. 19, pp. 34-39.Bretherton, Wilfred A.1891?The Great Blue Heron. Ornithologist and Oologist, vol. 16, pp.90-91.Brewster, William.1881?With the Birds on a Florida River. Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornitho-logical Club, vol. 6, pp. 38-44.
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NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 375Brewster, William?Continued.1891?A Study of Florida Gallinules, with some notes on a Nest found atCambridge, Massachusetts. The Auk, vol. 8, pp. 1-7.1901?An Ornithological Mystery. The Auk, vol. 18, pp. 321-328.1902?Voices of a New England Marsh. Bird-Lore, vol. 4, pp. 43-56.1902a?Birds of the Cape Region of Lower California. Bulletin of theMuseum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College, vol. 41,No. 1.190G?The Birds of the Cambridge Region of Massachusetts. Memoirs ofthe Nuttall Ornithological Club, No. 4.1907?Notes on the Black Rail of California. The Auk, vol. 24, pp. 205-210.1911?Concerning the Nuptial Plumes worn by certain Bitterns and theManner in which they are Displayed. The Auk, vol. 28, pp.90-100.Brewster, William; and Chapman, Frank Michler.1891?Notes on the Birds of the Lower Suwanee River. The Auk, vol. 8,pp. 125-138.Brooks, Winthrop Sprague.1923?An Interesting Adaptation. The Auk, vol. 40, pp. 121-122.Brown, C. Barrington.1876?Canoe and Camp Life in British Guiana.Bryant, Harold Child.1919?Evidence as to the Food of the Wood Ibis. The Condor, vol. 21,pp. 236 and 237.Bryant, Henry.1861?[On some birds observed in East Florida.] Proceedings of the BostonSociety of Natural History, vol. 7, pp. 5-21.Bryant, Walter E.1893?Notes on the Food of Birds. Zoe, vol. 4, pp. 54-58.Bull, Charles Livingston.1911?Under the Roof of the Jungle.Bcrmeister, Hermann.1856?Systematische Uebersicht der Thiere Brasiliens, vol. 2, p. 425.Burns, Frank L.1915?Comparative Periods of Deposition and Incubation of Some NorthAmerican Birds. The Wilson Bulletin, vol. 27, pp. 275-286.BuRTCH, Verdi.1917?Nesting of the Florida Gallinule. The Auk, vol. 34, pp. 319-321.Butler, Amos William.1897?The Birds of Indiana. Department of Geology and Natural Re-sources. Twenty-second Annual Report.Cahn, Alvin R.1915?Notes on a Captive Virginia Rail. The Auk, vol. 32, pp. 91-95.1923?Louisiana Herons and Reddish Egrets at Home. Natural History,vol. 23, pp. 471-479.Cameron, Ewen Somerled.1906?Nesting of the Great Blue Heron in Montana. The Auk, vol. 23, pp.252-262.1907?The Birds of Custer and Dawson Counties, Montana. The Auk, vol.24, pp. 241-270.Carriger, Henry Ward; and Pemberton, John Roy.1908?Some Notes on the Great Blue Heron. The Condor, vol. 10, pp. 78-81.
376 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMChapman, Frank Michler.1892?Notes on Birds and Mammals Observed near Trinidad, Cuba, withRemarks on the Origin of West Indian Bird Life. Bulletin of theAmerican Museum of Natural History, vol. 4. pp. 279-330.1900?Bird Studies with a Camera.1902?Flamingoes' Nests. Bird-Lore, vol. 4, pp. 177-181.1904?Young Flamingos. Bird-Lore, vol. 6. pp. 193-19S.1905?A Contribution to the Life History of the American Flamingo {Phoe-nicopterus ruber) with Remarks upon Specimens. Bulletin of theAmerican Museum of Natural History, vol. 21, pp. 53-77.1908?Camps and Cruises of an Ornithologist.1908a?The Home-Life of the American Egret. Bird-Lore, vol. 10, pp. 59-68.1914?The Roseate Spoonbill. Bird-Lore, vol. 16 pp. 214-217.Clark, John Nathaniel.1884?Nesting of the Little Black Rail in Connecticut. The Auk, vol. 1,pp. 393,394.1897?The Little Black Rail. The Nidologist, vol. 4, pp. 86-88.Cobb, Stanley.1906?A Little Black Rail in Massachusetts. Bird-Lore, vol. 8, pp. 136,137.Cohen, Donald A.1895?The California Clapper Rail. The Oologist, vol. 12, pp. 171-173.Cooke, Wells Woodbridge.1897?The Birds of Colorado. The State Agricultural College, Bulleti37.1897a?The Scarlet Ibis in Colorado. The Auk, vol. 34, p. 316.1914?Distribution and Migration of North American Rails and their Allies.Bulletin of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, No. 128.CoRDiEK, Albert Hawes.1923?Birds, their Photographs and Home Life.Coues, Elliott.1865?Ornithology of a Prairie-Journey, and Notes on tlie Birds of ArizonaThe Ibis, 1865, pp. 157-165.1872?Key to North American Birds.1874?Birds of the North-West.Court, Edward J.1908?Treganza Blue Heron. The Auk, vol. 25, pp. 291-296.Dawson, Charles B.1917?Some Colony Birds, Part 3. The Journal of The Royal Agriculturaland Commercial Society of British Guiana, vol. 4 (ser. 3), pp. 38-57.Dawson, William Leon.1903?The Birds of Ohio.1909?The Birds of Washington.1915?The Breeding of the Snowy Egret in California. The Condor, \o\.17, pp. 97-98.1922?A New Breeding Record for California. The Journal of the Museumof Comparative Oology, vol. 2, pp. 31, 32.1923?The Birds of California.Dickey, Donald R.1923?Description of a New Clapper Rail from the Colorado River Valley.The Auk, vol. 40, pp. 90-94.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 377DicKEY', Donald R. and van Rossem, Adkian J.1924?A New Race of the Least Bittern from the Pacific Coast. Bulletinof the Southern California Academj- of Sciences, vol. 23, pp. 11and 12.Dresser, Henry Eeles.1866?Notes on the Birds of Southern Texas. The Ibis, 1866, pp. 23-46.Edwards, William H.1847?A Voj'age up the River Amazon, including a Residence at Para.Eliot, Willard.1892?The Wood Ibis. The Oologist, vol. 9 pp. 143-144.Emerson, William Otto.1885?California Clapper Rail. Ornithologist and Oologist, vol. 10, pp.142, 143.Erichsen, Walter Jefferson.1921?Notes on the Habits of the Breeding Water Birds of Chatham Count}',Georgia. The Wilson Bulletin, vol. 33, pp. 16-28 and 69-82.Evans, William.1891?On the Periods occupied by Birds in the Incubation of their Eggs.The Ibis, 1891, pp. 52-93.Faxon, Walter.1896?John Abbot's Drawings of the Birds of Georgia. The Auk, vol. 13,pp. 204-215.FiGGiNs, Jesse Dade.1925?Twice-told Tales. Proceedings of the Colorado Museum of NaturalHistory, vol. 5, pp. 23-31.FiNLEY, William Lovell.1906?Herons at Home. The Condor, vol. 8, pp. 35-40.Fisher, Albert Kenrick.1893?The Death Valley Expedition. North America Fauna, No. 7.FoRBusH, Edward Howe.1912
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A History of the Game Birds, Wild Fowl and Shore Birds of Massa-chusetts and Adjacent States.1914?The Sora Rail. Bird-Lore, vol. 16, pp. 303-306.Gabrielson, Ira N.1914?Ten Day's Bird Study in a Nebraska Swamp. The Wilson Bulle-tin, No. 87, vol. 26, pp. 51-68.GiBBS, Morris.1899?The Sora. The Oologist, vol. 16, pp. 151-153.GiFFORD, Eward Winslow.1913?The Birds of the Galapagos Islands. Proceedings of the CaliforniaAcademy of Sciences, Ser, 4, vol. 2, p. 1.Gillett, Dana C.1896?Two Interesting Birds of Tonawanda Swamp. The Oologist, vol. 13pp. 29-30 and 50-52.Giraud, Jacob Post.1844?The Birds of Long Island.Goss, Nathaniel Stickney.1891?History of the Birds of Kansas.GossE, Philip Henry.1847?The Birds of Jamaica.Grayson, Andrew Jackson.1871?Natural History of the Tres Marias and Socorro. Proceedings of theBoston Society of Natural History, June 7, 1871.
378 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMGrinnell, Joseph.1900?Birds of the Kotzebue Sound Region. Pacific Coast Avifauna, No. 1.1908?The Biota of the San Bernardino Mountains. University of Califor-nia Publications in Zoology, vol. 5, pp. 1-170.1914?An Account of the Mammals and Birds of the Lower Colorado Val-ley. University of California Publications in Zoology, vol. 12, pp.
.51-294.Gbinnel, Joseph; Bryant, Harold Child; and Stoker, Tracy Irwin.1918?The Game Birds of California.Griscom, Ludlow.1915?The Little Black Rail on Long Island, N. Y. The Auk, vol. 32, pp.227, 228.Gross, Alfred O.1923?The Black-crowned Night Heron {Nycticorax nycticorax naevius) ofSandy Neck. The Auk, vol. 40, pp. 1-30 and 191-214.Hagerup, Andreas Thomsen.1891?The Birds of Greenland.Hagmann, Gottfried.1906?Ornithologisches von der Insel Mexiana, Amazonenstrom. Ornithol.Monatsberichte, 1906, pp. 107-111.1907?Die Vogelwelt der Insel Mexiana, Amazonenstrom, ZoologischesJahrbuch, vol. 26, pt. 1, Reprint, pp. 11-62.Harlow, Richard C.1913?Nesting of the Black Rail (Creciscus jamaicensis) in New Jersey. TheAuk, vol. 30, p. 269.Hatch, Philo Luois.1892?Notes on the Birds of Minnesota.Henninger, Walther Friedrich.1910?Notes on some Ohio Birds. The Auk, vol. 37, pp. 66-68.Henshaw, Frederick William.1918?Some pugnacious Coots. The Condor, vol. 20, p. 92.Howe, Reginald Heber, Jr.1902?Notes on various Florida Birds. Contributions to North AmericanOrnithologj', vol. 1, pp. 25-32.Howell, Alfred Brazier.1917?Birds of the Islands off the Coast of Southern California, PacificCoast Avifauna, No. 12.Howell, Arthur Holmes.1911?Birds of Arkansas. U. S. Dept. of Agriculture Biological SurveyBull. No. 38.HoYT, R. D.1905?Nesting of Ward's Heron. The Warbler, vol. 1, pp. 114-115.Hudson, William Henry.1888?Argentine Ornithology.1902?British Birds.HuEY, Laurence M.1915?Random Notes from San Diego. The Condor, vol. 17, pp. 59-60.1916?The Farallon Rails of San Diego County. The Condor, vol. 18, pp.58-62.Huntington, Dwight W.1903?Our Feathered Game.Huxley, Julian S.1924?Some Points in the Breeding Behaviour of the Common Heron. Brit-ish Birds, vol. 18, pp. 155-163.
NORTH AMEEICAN MARSH BIRDS 370Ingersoll, Albert M. '1909?The Only Known Breeding Ground of Creciscus coturniculus. ' TheCondor, vol. 11, pp. 123-127.Ingraham, David Powers.1894?Do Wading Birds Swim? The Nidiologist, vol. 2, p. 25. " . ?Jackson, Thomas Hoopes. ?1887?The Limpkin and its Nest and Eggs. Ornithologist and Oologist,vol. 12, pp. 159-160.Job, Herbert Keightley. . ':.> .-.: s1905?Wild Wings. ....:??;Kappler, August. .;.1854?Zes Jaren in Suriname.1887?Surinam, sein Land, seine Natur, Bevplkerung und seine Kultur-Verhaltnisse.
. .
? ; ?. ,.;. .. ? : . -5Knight, Ora Willis. : .? : : ;.?1908?The Birds of Maine.Laing, Hamilton M. ??1915?Garoo, Chief Scout of the Prairie. Outing, 1915, pp. 699-710. .-Langille, James Hibbert. ... i1884?Our Birds and Their Haunts. ,-.,.., ,Leotaud, a.1866?Oiseaux de I'ile de la Trinidad (Antilles). :Lloyd, C. A. ,1895?Stray Notes from Pirara. Timehri. The Journal of the Royal Agri.-cultural Society of British Guiana, vol. 9 (new series) pp. 220-^32.1897?Nesting of Some Guiana Birds. Timehri. The Journal of the RoyalAgricultural and Commercial Society, of British Guiana; vol. 9i,(newseries) pp. 1-10. .,:....LoRENz, Th. ; : ?
.
;?
?
1871?Die Lasurmeise (Cyanistes cyanus). Journal fiir Ornithologie, vol,19, pp. 124-130.Lowe, Willoughby P.
. : :1894?The Scarlet Ibis (Guara rubra) in Colorado. The Auk, vol. ^i j).224.MacFarlane, Roderick Ross.1908?List of Birds and Eggs Observed and Collected in the North-^W^estTerritories of Canada, between 1880 and 1894. Through the Mac-kenzie Basin, by Charles Mair.Mackay, George Henry. ,1893?Behavior of a Sandhill Crane. The Auk> vol. 10, p. 300.Maltby, Fred.1915?Nesting of the Yellow Rail in North Dakota. The Oologist, \'ol. 32,pp. 122-124. .. :. ?Maynard, Charles Johnson.1888?Notes on the Breeding Habits of the American Flamingo, etc. Th^Oologist, vol. 5 pp. 108-110.1896?The Birds of Eastern North America.McAtee, Waldo Lee.1911?Winter Ranges of Geese on the Gulf Coast; Notable Bird Records forthe same Region. The Auk, vol. 28, pp., 272-274.McIlhenny, Edward Avery.1912?How I made a Bird City. Reprinted from Country Life in America.
380 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMMcKechnie, Frederick B.1906?A Late Spring Record for tlie Yellow Rail {Porzana noveboracensis)in Massachusetts, with Remarks on the " Ornithological Mystery."The Auk, vol. 23, pp. 457-458.Mearns, Edgar Alexander.1S95?Description of a New Heron (Ardea virescens anthonj'i) from theArid Region of the Interior of North America. The Auk, vol. 12,pp. 257-259.Merrill, James Gushing.1879?Notes on the Ornithology of Southern Texas, Being a List of Birdsobserved in the vicinity of Fort Brown, Texas, from February,1876, to June, 1878. Proceedings of the United States NationalMuseum, vol. 1, pp. 118-173.Miller, Richard F.1910?Notes on the Florida Gallinule {Gallinula galeata) in PhiladelphiaCounty, Pa. The Auk, vol. 27, pp. 181-184.Morris, Francis Orpen.1903?A History of British Birds. Fifth Edition.Morris, Robert O.1905?The Gadwall and Yellow Rail near Springfield, Mass. The Auk, vol.22, pp. 207-208.MURCHISON, A. C.1895?Nesting of the King Rail. The Nidiologist, vol. 2. pp. 141, 142.Nelson, Edward William.1877?Birds of North-Eastern Illinois. Bulletin of the Essc^x Institute, vol.8, pp. 90-155.1883?The Birds of Bering Sea and the Arctic Ocean. Cruise of the Reve-nue-Steamer Corwinin Alaska and the N. W. Arctic Ocean in 1881.1887?Report upon Natural History Collections made in Alaska.NoRTHRUP, Edwin F.1885?A visit to a Heronry. Ornithologist and Oologist, vol. 10, pp. 11-13.NuTTALL, Thomas.1834?A Manual of the Ornithology of the United States and Canada:Water Birds.Oberholser, Harry Church.1912?A Revision of the Subspecies of the Green Heron {Butorides virescensLinnaeus). Proceedings of the Ignited States National Museum,vol. 42, pp. 529-577.1912a?A Revision of the Forms of the Great Blue Heron {Ardea herodiasLinnaeus). Proceedings of the United States National Museum,vol. 43, pp. 531-559.OsaooD, Wilfred Hudson.1904?A Biological Recoiumissance of the Base of the Alaska Peninsula.North American Fauna, No. 24.Palmer, William.1909?Instinctive Stillness in Birds. The Auk, vol. 26, pp. 23-36.Patterson, Arthur H.1905?Nature in Eastern Norfolk.PcABODY, Putnam Burton.1922?Haunts and Breeding Habits of the Yellow Rail. The Journal of theMuseum of Comparative Oology, vol. 2, pp. 33-44.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 381Pearson, Thomas Gilbekt.1899?Notes on Some of the Birds of Eastern North Carolina. The Auk,vol. 16, pp. 246-250.1912?The White Egrets. Bird-Lore, vol. 1-1, pp. G2-69.1922.?Herons of the United States. Bird-Lore, vol. 24, pp. 306-314.Pearson, Thcmas Gilbert; Brimi.ky, Clement Samuel, andBRiMLEY, HerbertHutchinson.1919?Birds of North CaroHiia.North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey, vol. 4.Pelzeln, .\ugust von.1871?Zur Ornithologie Brasiliens.Pemberton, John Ray.1922?The Reddish Egret of Cameron County, Texas. The Condor, vol.24, pp. 3-12.Penard, Frederik Paul; and Penard, .\rthur Philip.1908?De Vogels van Guyana (Suriname, Cayenne en Demerara). vol. 1.Pennant, Thomas.1776?British Zoology, vol. 2.Pericles, Eugene.1895?Nesting of the Great Blue Heron. The Oologist, vol. 12, pp. 179-181.Peters, James Lee.1925?Notes on the Taxonomy of Ardea canadensis Linne. The .\uk, vol.42, pp. 120-122.Phelps, Frank M.The Resident Bird Life of the Big Cypress Swamp Region. The WilsonBulletin, No. 87, vol. 26, pp. 86-101." Picket "1883?Forest & Stream, December 20, 1883, p. 407.Preston, Juniu.s Wallace.1893?Some Prairie Birds. Ornithologist and Oologist, vol. 18, pp. 81, 82-Prill, Albert G.1922?Nesting of the Sandhill Crane, Warner Valley, Oregon. The WilsonBulletin, vol. 34, pp. 169-171.<JuiLLiN, Roy W. and Holleman, Ridley.1918?The Breeding Birds of Bexar County, Texas. The Condor, vol. 20,pp. 37-44.Racey, Kenneth.1921?Notes on the Northwest Coast Heron in Stanley Park, Vancouver,B. C. The Canadian Field-Naturalist, vol. 25, pp. 118, 119.Ramsay, R. G. Wardlaw.1923?Guide to the Birds of Europe and North Africa.Ray, Milton Smith.1902?Rambles about my Old Home. The Osprey, n. s., vol. 1, pp. 23-26.Reiu, Saville G.1884?The Birds of Bermuda. Part IV in Contributions to the NaturalHistory of the Bermudas. Bulletin U. S. National Museum, No. 25Rhoads, Samuel N.1892?The Birds of Southwestern Texas and Southern Arizona observedduring May, June, and July, 1891. Proceedings of the Academyof Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, Jan. 26, 1892.Rich, Walter Herbert.1907?Feathered Game of the Northeast.
382 BULLETIN 135^ UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMRiDGWAY, Robert.1880?On the Supposed Identity of Ardea occidentalis, Aud., and A. wiird-emanni, Baird. Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, vol.5, pp. 122, 123.1882?On an Apparently New Heron from Florida. Bulletin of the Nut-tall Ornithological Club, vol. 7, pp. 1-6.1890?Observations on the Farallon Rail (Porzana jamaicensis coturniculusBaird). Proceedings of the United States National Museum, vol.13, pp. 309-311.Roberts, Thomas Sadler.1879?Notes on some Minnesota Birds. Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornitho-logical Club, vol. 4, pp. 152, 155.Rockwell, Robert Blanchard.1910?Some Colorado Night Heron Notes. The Condor, vol. 12, pp. 113,121.1912?Notes on the Wading Birds of the Barr Lake Region, ColoradoThe Condor, vol. 14, pp. 117, 131.Sanford, Leonard Cutler; Bishop, Louis Bennett; and Vandyke, Theo-dore Strong.1903?The Waterfowl Family.Saunders, Howard.1889?An Illustrated Manual of British Birds.Saunders, William E.1918?An Episode with the Virginia Rail. The Ottawa Naturalist, vol. 32,p. 77.SCHLEGEL, H.1863?Mus6um d'Histoire Naturelle des Pays-Bas. Revue mdthodique etcritique des collections depos^es dans cet etablissement, vol. 5.Schmidt, Max.1880?On the Duration of Life of the Animals in the Zoological Garden atFrankfort-on-the-Main. Proceedings of the Zoological Society ofLondon, pp. 299-319.SCHOMBURGK, RiCHARD.1848?Reisen in Britisch-Guiana, vol. 3, Versuch eincr Fauna und Floravon Britisch-Guiana.ScHOMBURGK, ROBERT H.1840?Mr. Schomburgk's recent Expedition in Guiana. Annals of NaturalHistory, vol. 4, pp. 346-348 and 399-400.1841?Twelve Views in the Interior of Guiana.Scott, William Earl Dodge.1881?On birds observed in Sumpter, Levy, and Hillsboro Counties, Florida,Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, vol. 6, pp. 14-21.1887?The Present Condition of Some of the Bird Rookeries of the GulfCoast of Florida. The Auk, vol. 4, pp. 135-144; 213-222; 273-284.1888?Supplementary Notes from the Gulf Coast of Florida, with aDescription of a New Species of Marsh Wren. The Auk, vol. 5, pp.183-188.1889?A Summary of Observations on the Birds of the Gulf Coast of Flor-ida. The Auk, vol. 6, pp. 13-18.1890?An Account of Flamingoes {Phoenicopterus ruber) observed in theVicinity of Cape Sable, Florida. The Auk, vol. 7, pp. 221-226.Seebohm, Henry.1884?History of British Birds.
NORTH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 383Selby, Prideaux John,1833?Illustrations of British Ornithology.Sell, R. A.1917?Some Notes on the Effects upon the Bird Life of the Corpus ChristiStorm of August IS, 191G. The Condor, vol. 19, pp. 43-46.191S?The Scarlet Ibis in Texas. The Condor, vol. 20, pp. 78-S2.Sennett, George Buuritt.1878?Notes on the Ornithology of the Lower Rio Grande of Texas. Bul-letin of the United States Geological and Geographical Survey,vol. 4, pp. 1-66.Shaw, John.1635?Speculum mundi.Sim, Robert J.1911?Notes on Captive Paludicolae. The Wilson Bulletin, vol. 23. pp.75-78.Simmons, George Finlay.1914?Notes on the Louisiana Clapper Rail {Rallus crepitans snturaius) inTexas. The Auk, voh 31, pp. 363-384.1915?With Rallus in the Texas Marsh. The Condor, vol. 17, pp. 3-8.1915a?On the Nesting of Certain Birds in Texas. The Auk, vol. 32, pp.317-331.Smith, J. B.1894?"High Jinks" of the Great Blue Heron. The Nidiologist, vol. 2,pp. 10 and 11.Stephens, Frank.1909?Notes on the California Black Rail. The Condor, vol. 11, pp. 47-49.Stoddard, Herbert L.1916?The Black Rail {Crecisctis jamaicensis) at Chicago, 111. The Auk,vol, 33, pp. 433-434.Sutton, George Miksch.1924?A Visit to a Wood Ibis Colony. Bird-Lore, vol. 20, pp. 391-395.Taverner, Percy Algernon.1922?An Aquatic Habit of the Great Blue Heron. The Canadian Field-Naturalist, vol. 36, pp. 59, 60.Taylor, Edward K.1897?Ardea herodias Nests on the Ground. The Nidiologist, vol. 4, pp.100, 101.Thayer, John Eliot.1909
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Two letters from W. W. Brown, Jr. The Condor, vol. 11, p. 142.Thayer, John Eliot; and Bangs, Outram.1909?Description of a New Subspecies of the Snowy Heron. Proceedingsof the New England Zoological Club, vol. 4, pp. 39-41.1912?A New Race of Great Blue Heron from Espiritu Santo Island, LowerCalifornia. Proceedings of the New England Zoological Club, vol.4, pp. 83, 84." Thompson, Ernest Evan " =Seton, Ernest Thompson.1890?The Birds of Manitoba. Proceedings of the United States NationalMuseum, vol. 13, pp. 457-643.Torre Y, Bradford.1889?The " Booming " of the Bittern. The Auk, vol. 6, pp. 1-8.Townsend, Charles Wendell.1905?The Birds of Essex County, Massachusetts. Memoirs of the NutiaiiOrnithological Club, No. 3.
384 BULLETIN 135, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUMTowNSEND, Charles Wendell?Continued.1920?Supplement to the Birds of Essex County, Massachusetts. Memoirsof the Nuttall Ornithological Club, No. 5.Tregaxza, An'twonet, Edward and Albert Owen.1914?A Forty-five Year History of the Snowy Heron in Utah. The Con-dor, vol. 16, pp. 245-250.Tyler, John G.1913-?Some Birds of the Fresno District, California. Pacific Coast Avifauna,No. 9.Van Hetjrn, W. C.1912?Enkele Maanden Ornithologiseeren in Suriname, 29 Mei-22 October1911. Club van Nederlandscho Vogelkundigen, Tweede Jaarver-slag. Reprint, p. 17.VisHEK, Stephen Sargent.1910?Notes on the Sandhill Crane. The Wilson Bulletin, vol. 22, pp. 1 lo-ll?.Warren, Edward R.1904?A Sandhill Crane's Nest. The Condor, vol. 6, pp. 39, 40.Wayne, Arthur Trezevant.190.5?Breeding of the Little Black Rail, (Porzana jamaicensis) , in SouthCarolina. The Warbler, vol. 1, pp. 33-35.1905a?Notes on Certain Birds Taken or Seen near Charleston, South Car-olina. The Auk, vol. 22, pp. 395-400.1906?A Contriljution to the Ornithology of South Carolina, chiefly theCoast Region. The Auk, vol. 23, pp. 56-68.1910?Birds of South Carolina. Contributions from the CharlestonMuseum, No. 1.Wayne, Arthur Trezevant.1922?Discovery of Breeding Grounds of the W^hite Ibis in South Carolina.Bulletin of the Charleston Museum, vol. 17, pp. 27-30.Weber, Jay Anthony.1909?The Virginia and Sora Rails Nesting in New York City. The Aukvol. 26, pp. 19-22.Wells, John Grant.1886?A Catalogue of the Birds of Grenada, West Indies, with Observationsthereon. Proceedings of the United States National Museum, vol9, pp. 609-633.1902?Birds of the Island of Carriacou. The Auk, vol. 19, p. 239.Wetmore, Alexander.1916?Birds of Porto Rico. U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Bulletin No. 326.1916a?The Speed of Flight in certain Birds. The Condor, vol. 18, pp.112-1131920?Observations on the Habits of Birds at Lake Burford, New Mexico.The Auk. vol. 37, pp. 221-247 and 393-412.Wheelock, Irene G.1906?Nesting Habits of the Green Heron. The Auk, vol. 23, pp. 432-436Willett, George.1906?The Southern California Clapper Rail Breeding on Fresh Water. TheCondor, vol. 8, p. 151.1919?Bird Notes from Southeastern Oregon and Northeastern California.The Condor, vol. 21, pp. 194-207.Willett, George; and Jay, Antonin.1911?Mav Notes from San Jacinto Lake. The Condor, vol. 13, pp. 156-160.
NORTH A.MEKICAN MARSH BIRDS 385Williams, John.1918?Some Florida Herons. The Wilson Bulletin, vol. 30, pp. 48-55.Wilson, Alexander.1832?American Ornitholocy.WiTHERBY, Harry Forbes, and Others.1920?A Practical Handbook of British Birds.Wright, Albert Hazen; and Harper, Francis.1913?A Biological Reconnaissance of Okefinokee Swamp: The Birds. TheAuk, vol. 30, pp. 477-505.WtJRDEMANN, GuSTAVUS.1861?Letter relative to the obtaining of Specimens of Flamingos and otherBirds from South Florida. Annual Report of the Smithsonian Insti-tution for 18G0, pp. 426-430.Yarrell, W^illiam.1871?History of British Birds. Fourth Edition. 1871-1885. Revised andenlarged by Alfred Newton and Howard Saunders.
EXPLANATION OF PLATESPlate 1American bittern on its nest with 4 small young, a photograph purchasedfrom S. S. S. Stansell. (Frontispiece.)386

U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 2
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^i3P' ?^^fj '.Jij^^^ 7
"SSS^-
';|! ^/?^'?Sl^-American FlamingoFor description see page 387
Plate 2Upper: American flamingo colony alarmed.Lower: American flamingo colony at ease. Both photographs taken by Dr.Frank M. Chapman, in the Bahama Islands, June, 1904; presented by him andby courtesy of D. Appleton & Co. 387
Plate 3Left: American flamingo, feeding small young.Right: Large young flamingos, feeding. Note the adult attitude. Bothphotographs taken by Dr. Frank M. Chapman in the Bahama Islands, June, 1904;presented by him and by courtesy of D.' Appleton & Co.388
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 3H^ 'Jf^y
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'AvM-
8 <
U. S!
5 5
02G42?26t 2G
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 4
V Xr T" ^ S^ t"'V\
American FlamingoFor description ser page facing
Plate 4UppiT: American flainiiifi'is in ilight.Lower: Young American llamingos resting. Note the folded legs. Bothphotographs taken l)y Dr. Frank M. Chapman; presented b\' him and bj' courtesyof D. Appleton & Co. 389
Plate 5Upper: Nest and eggs of roseate spoonljill, Cuthbert Lake, Florida, May 1,1903, referred to on page 15.Lower: Another nest and eggs in the same localit}^, March 30, 1908, referredto on page 15. Both photographs by the anthor.390
.U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 5
Roseate SpoonbillFor description see page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 6
Roseate SpoonbillFor description see page facinq
Plate 6Upper: Young roseate spoonbills in their nest, Cutlibert Lake, Florida, May1, 1903, a photograph by the author, referred to on page 1.5.Lower: Older young of the same species, Alligator Lake, Cape Sable, Florida,Mav, 1903, presented bv Herbert K. .Jol). 391
Plate 7Rookery of wliite ibises at Orange Lake, Florida, presented by Oscar EBaynard.392
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 7
881 ib-
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 8
White IbisFor description see page facing
Plate 8Upper: White il)ises on a favorite pcrcli in a liis rookery in Victoria Country,Texas, May 30, 1923, photograplied by the author and n^ferrcd to on page 24.Lower: Nest and eggs of White ibis, Orange Lalv(>, Florida, presented byOscar E. Bavnard. 393
Plate 9Nests of white ibises, Cutlibert Lake, Florida, May 1, 1903. Both photo-graphs bj^ the author; referred to on page 25.394
U. S NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 9
White IbisFor description see paob facino
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 10j^-*.^
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White IbisFor description see page facinq
Plate 10Upper: Young white ibises about five days old, presented by Oscar E,Baynard.Lower: Young white ibis nearly ready to leave the nesi, AllisiatDr Lake, CapeSable, Florida, May 1903, presented by Herbert K. Job. 395
Plate 1
1
Upper: Glossy il)is building its iicst.Lower: Nest and eggs of glossy ibis. Both photographs taken at Orange Lake,Florida, in 1912, by Oscar E. Baynard and presented by him; referred toon page 47.396
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 11
<.)-^ti\2 20t 27 Glossy IbisFor OEScniPTioN see paoe facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 12
Plate 12Nesting site of white-faecal glossy ibis, MallnMir Lake, Oregon, ])resented by\\illiam L. Finlcv and H. T. Bohlman. 397
Plate 13Upper: Young white-faced glossy ibises, in their nest.Lower: Nest and eggs of white-faced glossy ibis. Botii photographs byGeorge Willett and Antonin Jay, taken at San Jacinto Lake, Riverside County.California, May 2S, 1911, presented by them, referred to on page 53.398
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 13
^'h
WHITE-FACED GLOSSY IBISFor DE3CBIPTION SEE PAQE FACINU
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 14
a;ill. a iUi
1 i^Tir'-i\4
h ii^:x?V!t^j.JiWhite-faced Glossy IbisFor description see paqe facinq
Plate 14Wliite-faced glossy ibis on its nest, Malhcnr Lake, Oregon, ijrcsentcd bj'William L. Finlev and H. T. Bohlnian. 399
Plate 15Upper: Wood ibises on their breeding grounds, Polk County, Florida, March8, 1925, taken by the author, referred to on page 50.Lower: Another photograph, same locality and date, presented by ClarenceF. Stone.400
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUIVl BULLETIN 135 PLATE 15
Wood IbisFor orscRiPTiON iee paqc facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 1(
Wood IbisFor description see page facing
Plate 1GUpper: Nests and 3'ouug of wood ibis, Polk County, Florida, May 31, 1925,presented b}- Oscar E. Baynard.Lower: Nests and eggs of wood ibis, Polk County, Florida, March S, 1925, aphotograph by the author, referred to on page 59. 401
Plate 17Upper: Nesting ti-ee of wood ibis, Oivaloachoochcc Slough, Hendry Count}-,Florida, March 23, 1914, presented by Frederic II. Kennard, referred to onpage 59.Lower: Young wood ibises in the rookery at Alligator Lake, Cape Sable, Flor-ida, January 29, 1924, presented by Ernest G. Holt.402
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 17
Wood IbisFor description see page facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 18
Plate 18Homeof tlu' jal)irii, iKvir l^arinas, Venezuela, presented by Htui. Hiram Biiigliam.403
Plate 19A jahiru family at hdinc, near liariiias, Venezuela, i)rcscntcd hy Hon. HiramBiiigliuni.404
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 136 PLATE 19
02642?26t 28 JabiruFor description stc page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 20
JabiruFor description see pace facing
Plate 20Nest of jabiru about 60 feet up in an immense tiead tree, near r(iriinil):i, MattoGrosso, Brazil, October 30, 1912, presented by J. R. Pemberton. lOo
Plate 21Nest and eggs of American bittern, Duck Lake, Oakland County, Michigan,May 27, 1923, presented by \yalter E. Hastings.406
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 21
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 22
Plate 22Xests, oggs and young of American bittern, Colorado, presented by the Colo-rado Museum of Natural Historv. 407
Plate 23Left: Nest and eg^s "f American bittern, Branchport, New York, May 21, 1912.Right: American bittern on its nest, in hiding pose, Branchport, New York.Maj' 18, 1912. Botli photographs presented })y Verdi Burtch.408
U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 23
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 24
Least BitternFor description see page facing
Plate 24Upper: Nesting site of least bittern, Merritt's Island, Florida, April 2G, 1902Lower: Nest and eggs of least bittern in the above locality. Both photo-graphs by the author, referred to on page 85. 409
Plate 25Nest and eggs of least bittern, near Omaha, Nebraska, June 22, 1901, pre-sented by I'^rank TI. Shoemaker.410
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 25
Least BitternFor DESCR;pT;nN see paqe facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 26
Plate 26Left: Least bittern on her iiesi, in :l l)nlt()n l)us]i, Camden, New Jersey, Miiy29, 191G.Kiglit: Young least bitterns, four tiays oltl, in anotlier nest, June (>, lOlG.Both photographs presented l)v Julian K. Potter. 411
Plate 27Left: Female least bittern, in broken reed posture on her nest, Ithaca, NewYork, June 3, 1914, presented by Dr. Arthur A. Allen.Right: Young least bittern, twenty days old, Oakland CJounty, Michigan, July11, 1922, presented by Walter E, Hastings.412
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 27
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 28
Great WhiteIHeronFor description see page facinq
Platk 28Upper: Xt'stiiisr site of great uliitc heron, ( )\\slc'r Kt'y, ]iay iif I'loiida, April29, 190:;.Lower: Xest, eggs and young of great white heron in aliove locality. Bothphotographs bv the autlior, referred to on page 9.5. 413
Plate 29Upper: Two ii(';ii-l> full j^rown young of grrai \vhit(> heron in tlieir nest, Oys-ter Key, Bay of Florida, April 29, 1903.Lower: Anoth(>r nest with half grown young of great white heron in above lo-cality. Both photographs by the author, referred to on page 95.411
U. S NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 29
Great White HeronFor DCscRiprioN see paqe facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 30
Great Blue HeronFor description see page FACiNO
Plate 30Part of a colony of 300 nests of ^wnt \>hw heron, Livingstone; Country, Michi-gan, Mav 1, 1921, presented hv Walter ]*). Hastings. 415
Plate 31Upper: Nests of great blue heron, Yellowstone River, Montana, Jnne 29, 1905,probably treganzai, presented by E. S. Cameron.Lower: Nest and eggs of great blue heron, Skull Creek, Saskatclicwan, June 5,1905, a photograph by the author, rc^feired to on page 105,4 It)
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 J. PLATE 31
Great Blue HeronFor description see page facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 32
Plate 32Left: 'S'dUiiii threat l)lue lieroii, alxjiit halt" thrown, ])rcscii(c(l l)y the ColoradoMuseum of Natural History.Right: Youiis great bhie lierou, iiiuo weeks old, Yellowstoue River, Montana,presented l)v E. S. CauKM-on. Both i)rnbal)lv tnqdiizai. 417
Plate 33CJrcMi blue herons and their nests, Livingstone County, Michigan, April 30, 1923,|)resentcd by Walter E. Hastings.418
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 33
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 34
Pl.ATE 34Left: Colony of northwest coast lierons, Si.inlry Park, Vancouver, RriUshColumbia, June (i, 1022, presentefl 1)\' J. A. Munro, ii\ cnurtesy uf the Cana-dian National Parks Braucili, referred to on page 115.Kiglit: Nest of double-crested cormorant in foreground and nest of Treganzah(>ron in background, Bird Island, Great 8alt Lake, Utah, presenled by A.O. Treganza, referred to on page 124. 419
Pj.ate 35I'ljpcr: Ward licniiis on llicir iicsis, Bird Key, Boca Ceiga Bay, Florida, Marcli11 and 17, 1925, ret'L-rivd to on page 1.S5,Lower: Nest of Ward heron in prickly pear eaclus, liird Island, Laguna Madre,
I cxas, presented by (leorgc Fiiilay Sininioiis, i-et'ci-rcd to on page 120.420
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 35
Ward Heron02042 2Gt 30 For description see page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 36
Plate ;5(')Xc'sting site of Ciilifoniiu herons, on the ground in a salt Marsh, IJcilwood City,California, April 7, 1907, presented by J. R. Peniberton, referred In on \)n^r 12S.421
Plate 37Colony of Califdniia lieroiis, II nests, and hlack-CTowncd night licrons, 28nests, in a large sycaniofe tix'c, San l*'raticisco Bay i'(\gion, ('aiifoi-nia, pi'esentcdby Wllliaui L. Finley and 11. T. Hi)!ilnian, referred to on page 127.422
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 37
California HeronFor DEScniPTioN see paoe facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 38
American EgretFor description see page facing
Pi.att: :)S
I'ppL'r: Aiiicricaii ('^w\ on i1> nest, Bird Key, Boca Cciga 15ay, T'lorida, Maicli1], IIH)"}, referred to on iniav 13").I^ower: Xest and esil^^ <?!' American etiret, ("nllihert. Lalsc, ]''lorida, May 1,I'.ll);;, refeiTcd to on ])a,iie IMl. l^otli photocrraiihs 1)\ the author.
1 23
Plate 39American t'g;ret poses, four photographs by Jloward T. Middletoii, presentedby the Eastman Kodak Co.424
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 39
American EgretFor description see paqe facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 40
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I'LAIE 40
rpiH'i-: Aiiu-ricaii CRret rcsurKitatiiifi; food for its young. Notf llic Imiip inits throal: youiifisix weeks old.Lower: Aineriran ey;re1 ineiihat inti. Both pliotoiri-aplis taken liy ( )scar E.Ikivnard at Orange Lake, L'lorida, and presented by him. 425
Plate 41Upper: Nesting site of snowy egrets, nests in small trees and bushes.Lower: Nest and eggs of snowy egret, in a prickly pear cactus. Both pho-tographs taken by the author on an islantl in Galveston Bay, Texas, May 5, 1923,referred to on page 148.42G
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 41
Snowy EgretFor DEscmPTioN see page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 42
^^^^^^Km^Si^ ^. . '
Pl.ATK 42\'\>\)vr: \ n\inii s]](}\vy i%n'is. iicac l{(iscl:i nd, l''l(ifiH;i. I'.t'JI), pri'scntcil l>y Dr.A. II. ('(.idicr.Lower: Sih)\v\- carets in tiic rookery ;i1 <)r;iii.t;i' Ijuke, Florida, pi-esented byOscar E. Ba\ nard. 427
Plate 43Nest and eggs of snowy egret, near Los Baiios, California, June 4, 1914, pre-sented by W. Leon Dawson.428
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 43
liJ S> IZ oCO ?
92042?2Gt .'51
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 44
Reddish EgretFor description see page facinq
Pr,ATE 14
r])lHT': Coliiny (if reddish cp^rds, (Irccn fsland, Texas, l\)'2.'<, ])reseiited l)y Dr.A. II. Cordier, referred Id on l)aKe KiO.Lower: Xest. and e.tiKs of reildisli e^ret, Cluiin of Ishnids, San Anlnnin Hay,Texas, May Ki, lO'j:!, pluilogniphed liy tlie author, referred to on paiie !.")!?.42',)
Plate 45Reddish egret incubaling, Green Island, Texas, presented by Alvin R. Calm,430
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 45
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 46
Plate 40Two poses of reddish egret, Green Island, Texas, presented liy Alvin R. Calm.431
Plate 47Nests of Louisiana heron, St. Johns River, Florida, April 18, 1902. Bothphotographs by the author, referred to on page 170.432
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 47
LOUISIANA HeronFOn DESCRIPTION SEE PAGE FACING
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 48
Louisiana HeronFor description see paqe facinq
Plate 48Upper: \'ariciiis heroiis and cKrcIs in llight, Cliaiii of Islands, San AntonioBay, Texas, May Hi, l'.?2o, referred 1o on pase 171.Lower: Louisiana heron standing on its nest in a hunch of canes. GalvestonBay, Texas, May .5, l'.)2o, referred to on page 171. Botii ])hotographs l)y theauthor. 4.33
Plate 49Left: T'liflcdged young Louisiana lieron, Green Ishnul, Texas, presented byDr. A. 11. (Wordier.Right: Young Louisiana heron, fully grown and in juvenal plumage, BretonIsland Reservation, Louisiana, June 24, 1910, a photograph by the author.434
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 49
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 50
Louisiana HeronFor description see pace facing
Plate 50
rppci': I,(iiiisiMii;i lici'iin (nniiiiii- its c^i^s, Anitv Tslaml, l>i)uisian;i , |ii'cscntc(ll.^v Pruf. .Iiiliaii S. Huxley and (ii'tir^-c F. Simmons.Lowit: J^ouisiana iicron, siiicldin.t:; its \(ninti; from t lie cain, < )ranii;(" Laia', Flor-ida, piH'Sfntt'd 1)V Oscar E. Ba\nard. 4:^5
Plate 51Upper: Colony of little blue herons, South Carolina, May S, 1907, presentedby Dr. Frank M. Chapman, by courtesy of D. Appleton & Co.Lower: Nest and eggs of little blue heron, St. Johns River, Florida, April 20,1902, a photograph by the author, referred to on page 178.436
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 51
92642?26t Little Blue HeronFOR DESCRIPTION SEE PAQE FACING
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 52
Little Blue HeronFor description see paqe facing
Plate 52rppcr: Nests (if liltlr Muc licnm, near Miiuiit Pleasant, Scmt h ( 'amliiia, May20, l'.)15.Lower: Xest witn small ydiuiii nl" lit t le l>lue iieroii, iu above locality. Botliphotofiraplis h_\' the aiithoi-. refeiTe(l to on page 17S. 437
Plate 53Left: Little lAwv lieron about to feed its young.Right: Little blue heron iiieubatiiig. Both photograi)lis taken by Dr. ArthurA. Allen, Kissimmec Prairie, Florida, April 22 and 23, 1924, and presented by him.438
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 53
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BUI I FTIN 135 PLATE 54
Green HeronFob description see paqe facing
Plate 54Xcsts and eggs of green licroii, ^^'(st port , Massacliusdls, .May JiO, I'.XIT, bothphotographs taken bv tlie author, ri'fern'd to mi l)age 1S7. 13'J
Plate 55Upper: Green heron on its nest, Aver\' Island, Louisiana, presented by Prof.Julian S. Huxley and George F. Simmons.Lower: Green lieron approaching its nest, Ithaca, New York, .June 15, 1914,presented by Dr. Arthur A. Allen.440
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 55
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k^r?a^Green heronFor description see paoe facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 56
Green HeronFor description see paqe facing
Plate oGUpper: Youtig fiix-cn licrini, lo <la,\s old.Lower: 8aiiic liird, !!? ilaxsold. I'!i(it()fi;rai)lis taken Jiiii(? 2o ami 27, IClo,and presented bv Cliarles A. Giauini. 441
Plate 57L'l^pcr: Xt'st and eggs ol Antliuiiy green lieion, Fairljaiik, Arizona, presentedby Francis C. Willard.Lower: Nest and nine eggs of Anthony green heron, San Diego County, Cal-ifornia, Maj^ 30, 1915, presented by Donald R. Dickey, referred to on page 19G.442
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 57
Anthony Green HeronFor OEScniPTiON see page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 58
V ;mi'
Plate 58I'ljpcr: Distant \ic\v uf tlic rookcTv of l)lack-ci'(i\viUMl iiifjlit lu'fons at Barn-stable, Massachusetts, presented by Dr. Alfred (). Gross, referred to on page 198.Lfjwer: Some nests in the above rookery, July 3, 1918, photographed by theauthor. 443
Plate 59Upper: Nest and egj^s of tjlack-crowned night heron, (Mear Lake Reservation,California, May 27, 1923, presented by J. Elliot Patterson.Lower: Nest and eggs of same species, in a piteh jiinc tree, liarnstable, Massa-chusetts, May 30, 1919, a photograph by the auliior, referred to on page 199.444
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE C9
9264-_'^2C1 Black-crowned Night HeronFor DEscniprioN 5^e paqe facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 60
Black-crowned Night HeronFor description see page facing
Plate 60Black-crowiu'd uitilil hcrun, sliiiidiiiij; mi its nest, in tlic tulos, Mallicur Lako,
( )i-c^(jii, presiMiU'il li\ William L. ImiiU'v and II. T. liohlmaii. 445
Plate 61Upper: Young hlack-crowncd night herons, about a week old, near Barr, Colo-rado, May 31, 1907.Lower: Same brood, about three weeks old, June 15, 1907. Both photographspresented by Robert B. Rockwell; referred to on page 201.446
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 61
-^??J ;;-:-'i'T<ir;r ^J'JS;*Black-crowned Night HeronFor description see paqe facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 62
Black-crowned Night HeronFor description see page facino
Plate G2Upper: YdiiiiK black-ci'owiR'd night lieroiis i-liiiil)infi in ti\'c tops, B;u'iisl;il)li',Massachusetts, July 12, 191:;.Lower: CUinl)iiig antics of another young hird, same locality and (hile. Both[jjiotographs l)v tlie author, referred to on page 204. 447
Plate 63Upper: Nest and eggs of yellow-crowned night heron, Bird Key, Boca CeigaBay, Florida, April 14, 1925, referred to on page 214.Lower: Another nest of the same species, St. Jolins River, Florida, A])ril 21,1902, referred 1o on i)age 214. Both photographs l)y the author.448
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 63
Yellow-crowned Night HeronFOR DESCRIPTION SEE P*QE FACING
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 64
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Plate G4Two views of a ycllow-crowiii'd iii^lit Iktoii on it? iicsl, Pn/./At' Lake, Florida,April 2S, 1924, presented l)v Dr. Arthur A. Allen. 4-49
Plate 05Upper: Nesting site of whooping crane. The clear water around the nestshows where the rushes have been pulled up to build it.Lower: Young wliooping crane, just hatched. Both photographs taken byFred Bradshaw in Saskatchewan, May 28 and 29, 1922, presented by him,referred to on i)age 222.450
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 65
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Whooping CraneFor description see page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 66
Pr.ATE noXcsi anil ctitis (if wliodpiiig cfanc, Saskatclicwaii, May '2S, 1022, prcsciilcd byFi"C(i I'd'adsliaw, i-cfcn-cd Id on pagt' 222. 451
Plate 07Upper: Nest and eggs of little brown (.'nine, Hooper Bay, Alaska, June 12, 1924.Lower: Young little brown cranes. Hooper Bay, Alaska, June 21, 192-1; stand-ing bird about two days old and the other half a day old. ]5oth ])hotographspresented by Herbert W. Brandt.452
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 67
Little Brown CraneQ-2VA-2?2(ii For PESCRiption see paoe pacinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 68
Sandhill CraneFor description see page facino
Plate 68UpiK'r: Flock of saiulliill cranes, presented by llaniiltoii W. Lainj;.T.ower: Pair of sandliill cranes, with a iiowly hatched youiiR in 'he nest,Kissinimee Pruirie, Fh)rida, March 13, 1924, presented by Dr. Arthur A. Alien.453
Plate 69Tipper: Nest and eg^s of sandhill crane, near Bassenger, Florida, March 23,1924, presented by Ernest G. Holt.Lower: Nest and eggs of sandhill crane, Gunnison County, Cohjrado, June 5,1903, presented by Edward R. Warren, referred to on page 244.454
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 69
Sandhill CraneFor OEScRiPTfON see paqe facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 70\
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] ,' '\ eyi ; //.^.. /.^'^^'''"mfi ifi^iP/>*^ A'
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SANDHILL CraneFor description see paqe facing
Plate 70Upper: Nest and eggs of sandliill crane, in open situation among " pondcypress.
"
Lower: Another nest in thick growth of pickerel weed. Botli photographedhy the aiitlior, near Bassenger, Florida, March 21, 1925, refernnl to on page 243.455
Platk 71Upper: Voung saiulhill crMiie, just liatched, Jvissiiiiinee Prairie, Florida, March13, 1924. Both photographs presented by Dr. Arthur A. Allen.Lower: Young sandhill crane, about a month old, upper St. Johns River, Flor-ida, April 17, 1924.456 ^
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 71
Sandhill CraneFor description see p*qe facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 72
LIMPKINFor DEscRipriON see paoe facing
Plate 72Upper: Nesting place of linipkin.Lower: Nest and large set of eggs of liinpkiii. Botii photographs presentedbv Oscar E. Baynard. 457
Plate 73Two views of a liinpkiii on its iu\st,, Upper 8t. Joluis River, Florida, April IS,1924, presented by Dr. Arthur A. Allen458
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 73
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 74
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King RailFOf! DESCRIPTION SEE PAGE FACING
Plate 74I'ppcr: Xcst of King mil, as originally found, Plant City, Florida, March 30,1925.Lower: Same nest uncovered. Both pliotographs l)y11ie autlior, referred tooti page 2(J0. 459
Plate 75Nest and eggs of California clapper rail, near Redmond City, California, April15, 1911, presented by W. Leon Dawson.4 GO
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 7S
'.rjt;v^?-2(;j
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 76
Light-footed RailFor description see page facing
Pr.ATE 76
T'l)I)('i-: Xcst and (>ggs of lit;li( -fDulcil rail.Lower: Tiflal marsh haUitat in which aliove nest was round, < )ranKe County;California. .May 14, 1917. J^ot h |)ho1ofirai)hs preseided by Harold .M. Holland,referred to on page 273. IC.l
Pl.ATK 77
l'l)|)('r: Lifilit-fuijied rail, brooding young, Sun Dit'go, California, May 13,I'JI 1.Lower: Light-footed rail arranging eggs, same locality, Maj' 19, 1914. Botlil)liotographs presented l:iy Donald R. Diekey.462
BULLETIN 135 PLATE 77
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Light-footed RailFori DtscnicriON sfk pake facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 78
Clapper RailFOR DESCRIPTION SEE PAOE FACING
Plate 78
I'lipci': Xcstiiifi site of chipixT rail.Li)\vcr; Ncstof clapper rail, sliowiiiii t he incline Uvadiiiff 1i> it. lioth ])li()1()-grai)lu'<i \)y Hie author, ('ol)l) Island, \'irtiiiiia, .June 2'i, l'.ll)7, referred to onpaKO 278. 463
Plate 79Upper: Nest and eggs of Louisiana clapper rail, near Houston, Texas, ])rc-scuted l)y George Fiiilay Simmons.Lower: N"est and eggs of Florida clapper rail, near Safety Harbor, Florida, pre-sented by Oscar E. Baynard.464 .
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 79
Louisiana Clapper Rail
Florida Clapper RailFor description sec page iacinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 80
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Pl.ATK SOLd'l : Wayne cla [)i)ci' r'ail dii its nest.Right: Xcst ami ciisis of saiiii'. Both |)liiit(),t;rai)lis taken Uy H. Hlu'itCliainlxM'lain, near ( Miarleston, Soutli ('arulina, .lune 10, lOlT), and i)rest'nt.e(i ljyhim. 4t);l
Plate 81Nest and eggs of Virginia rail, Barr Lake, Colorado, presented In- tlie Colo-rado Museum of Natural History.4G6
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 81
Virginia RailFor description see page facing
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 82
Virginia RailFor descrcption see page facing
Plate 82Two views (if Viriiiiiia i-ails at their nest, ])i-eseiif ed by .Teiine.ss Rieliardsdii4()7
Plate 83Left: Nest with c^f^s and xoiiii!;- of Virginia rail, Uraiichixirt, New Yoris, June12, 1913, presented l)y Venli Buiicli.Right: Young Virginia rail, just hatelied, Ithaea, New York, June 1"), 1910,presented by Dr. Arthur A. Allen.108
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 84
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SoRA RailFor description see page facing
I'latk si
l'|)|)('i-: Nest and cuk^ "I s<ira fail. Mar1lia> N'incyaril, Massacliiisct (s, Ma_\'27, 1000, pli(.t(i,m-a|)lic(l by tlic aiillior. rrtcnvd lo en i)a^c :;()l.J><)\vL'r: Not and cj^iis oC sora rail, lluilortl County, Maryland, May 25, ISUU,liri'sciitcd bv William II. Fisher. 4(J9
Plate 85Upper: Female sora rail, iiRMil)atiiig, Illiaca, New York, Jul.y 2(), \\)\',], pre-sented by Dr. Artliiir A. Allen.Lower: High-water nest of sora rail, Biancliport, New York, May 28, 1914,l)re8eiitcd by Verdi liurtch.470
U S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE
SORA RailFor description see pace facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE
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Yellow RailFor description see page facing
Plate ,86Upper: Nesting .site of ycllnw rail, " flic Idji; coulee," Benson County, NorthDakota, referred to on pajie ;!17.Lower: The 1012 nest, a,s found in al>o\-e iocahl \ . Bol h plioloiirapiis ])resente(]l)y Rev. P. B. PeatxKlv. 471
Plate 87Upper: Fairly open type of nest of yellow rail, rare.Lower: The 1912 nest, exposed. Both photographs taken by Rev. P. B.Peabody, Benson County, North Dakota, and presetited by him.472
U, '5. NAT'ONAI MU'^rUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 87
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Yellow RailFor description see page facing
Plate 89Left: Farallon rail in San Diego .Salt Marsh, San Diego, California, presentedby Laurence M. Huey.Right: Nest and eggs of Farallon rail in above loeality, ])r('s(Mited ])yDonald R. Dickey.474
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 89
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U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 90
Purple GallinuleFob description see paqe facino
Tlatk 90
rppci-: Xot liiiil cgtis of piii'plf tialliiiiilc, ill a rliiiii|i >>t' wiM parsnii). LakeA|)i)pka., l''li)riila, .\.|)ril 2(1, Ht'Jo, pli(iti)nra.i)liL'il by the aiitlidr, rrrcrreil in onpatfc 310.Lowoi': Aiiotlu'f iii'st in a cliinip of S ijin plnnd, pfcsc'iiti'il liy (_)scar E.Bavnard. 475
Plate 91Left: Nest and eggs of purpk- gallimile, South Edisto River rice fields, Charles-ton County, South Carolina, May 22, 1924, presented by B. Rhett Cluimberlainand Alexander Sprunt, jr.Right: Nest and eggs of purple galiiinile. in a clinnp of cat-lail flags, PascoCounty, Florida, April 25, 1925, photographed by the author, referred to onpage 340.476
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 91
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!i::iu:^ 1:0; --37
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 92
D az 3
Two \-i('\Vs of ;l |)iM'|)i(' ^.'illiliulr oil it7, 1924, ])iv.sc"ntrcl l.y Dr. Arlliiir A. AlI'l.ATi; !>'_> Man I''loii(la, May477
Plate 93Upper: Nest and e^g.s of Florida fialliiiule, anions tliiek flags, Bnuiehport,New York, May 31, 1915, presented by Clarence F. 8tuue.Lower: Nest and eggs of Florida gallinnle, among open flags, Gainesville,Florida. May 2, 1924, pr(>sented by Ernest G. Holt.17S
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE <?,T
Florida GallinuleTor descripkon see paqe f*cinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUIVl BULLETIN 135 PLATE 94
\
Florida GallinuleFor description see paqe facing
Plate 94
T'|)|)(M': Xcst ;ui(l (>gf^s of Floi'ida galliinilc, aiiiona; A'//////i/*'/rr/ and Ih/ilrocoli/Ie
1 Idiida, i)rcsriitL'il l)y Oscar E. liaynard.Lower: Florida gallimilc approaching iicst, (Cayuga Lake, Xfw \'ork, Juiu! 25,1914, presented bv Dr. Arthur A. Allen. 479
Plate 95Upper: Florida gallinulc incubating, Branchport, New York, July 5, 191G.Lower: Young Florida gallinulc, 5 hours old, Branchport, New York, June28, 1910. Both photograjjhs presented by Verdi Burtch.480
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE 95
Florida GallinuleFor description see paoe facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM Bulletin I35 plate 96
American CootFor description see page facinq
Platk 9(>
I'ppt'i': Distant N'icw of ncsl of Aiiicricaii (Mnit, Steele ('(ninly, Xnrth Dakota,June 8, 1901.Lower: Nearer \ ieu of same nest with 15 eggs, liiitli piuitographs by theauthor, referred to on page 360. 481
Plate 97Nest and eggs of Auu-ru'an cout, Barr Lake, Colorado, presented by the Col-orado Museum of Natural History.482
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 1J5 PLATE 97m^m^'W^Tr
American CootFor DESCRiPTroN see paue facinq
U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 135 PLATE
American CootFor description see paqe facino
l'|)pcr: I'Mdfk nf Amci-ican coots, witli :i frw (cnl, Luiiisiaiia, Dcccinhcr,19 lo.Lower: Yoiint; Aincricaii cuols, a few days old, Manitolia, I'JIM. ]5oth jilio-tograplis presented l)\ Herl)ert K. Joli. 4S3

INDEX
PageAbbott, Clinton G ?on Florida gallinule 348on least bittern... 85Adams, Ernest, on California clapper rail.- 269,270Ajaia ajaja 13ajaja, Ajaia 13iilba, Guara 23Allen, Arthur A., on least bittern 89,90American bittern. 72American coot 358American egret _. _ 133American flamingo... 1americana, Fulica__ 358am.ericana, Mycteria 57americanus, Megalornis _ 219Ames, J. n., on yellow rail 322Anderson, R. M., on whooping crane. 220,221Anthony green heron ._ 195anthonyi, Butorides virescens 195Aramus vociferus vociferus 254Ardea cinerea cinerea 131herodias fannini 114herodiap 101hyperonca 127sanctilucae 130treganzai 123wardi 118occidentalis 93wuerdemanni 97atra, Fulica 356Audubon, J. J.
?
on American egret 134,141,142on black-crowned night heron 207,209on clapper rail 277,280,281,282on Florida gallinule 351on great blue heron 101,109,111on great white heron 99, 100on green heron 186on king rail 260,202,263on least bittern 88onlimpkin 255.257,258on little blue heron 181on Louisiana heron 174on purple gallinule 341,343on reddish egret 158,102on roseate spoonbill 17,19,20,21on scarlet ibis 34on snowy egret 147,151,152on sorarail 304,308on Virginia rail 293on Ward heron 122on white ibis 24,25,28,30,32on whooping crane 220,228on wood ibis 01,62,01on yellow-crowned night heron 214,210,217on yellow rail 317,32292642?26t 38
PageBailey, Florence Merriam, on American coot . 366Baird, Brewer, and Ridgway?on purple gallinule 343on sora rail _ 3iiBales, B. R., on least bittern 85,87Barker, Samuel II., on green heron 191Barrows, Walter B., on American bittern 79Bartlett, A. D., on scarlet ibis 44Bassett, Bartlett E., on great blue heron 109Baynard, Oscar E.?on American egret 140on black-crowned night heron 208on glossy ibis 46,48,49,50on little blue heron.. _ 182on Louisiana heron 174on snowy egret 151on white ibis... 31Beebe, William, on scarlet ibis 35,39,41,42,44Beldingrail 260beldingi, Rallus 266Benners, G. B., on roseate spoonbill.. 19Bingham, Iliram, on jabiru... 71Bishop, Louis B.?on Florida clapper rail 287,288on Wayne clapper rail 290,291bittern American 72bittern, Cory least 88bittern, least 84black-crowned night heron 197black rail.... 326blue heron, great 101blue heron, little 177Bodkin, O. E., and C. T. Matthey, on scar-let ibis 43Bonhote, J. L.
?
on American flamingo 10on com crake 357on spotted crake 302Botaurus lentiginosus 72Bowdish, B. S.?on green heron 190on Virginia rail 294on yellow-crowned night heron 213, 217Bowles, J. Hooper
?
on northwest coast heron 114, 116, 117on Virginia rail 295Bradshaw, Fred, on whooping crane... 224,225,228Brandt, Herbert W.?on little brown crane.. 233,234,235on purple gallinule 341Brehm, A. K., on scarlet ibis 42Bretherton, Wilfred A., on great blue heron. 110Brewster egret 16GBrewster, William?on American bittern.. .- 73,81on Belding rail 266485
486 INDEXPageBrewster, William?Continued.on Farallon rail 333on Florida gallinule 346,347,353on Frazar green heron. 194on glossy ibis 4fion green heron 190on "kicker" 326,331on least bittern 90on limpkin 258on scarlet ibis 34on sora rail 309Brewster and Chapman, on Florida clapperrail -- 287browsteri, Egretta candidissima 156Brooks, Allan, on northwest coast heron. 114, 116, 117Brooks, W. Sprague, on green heron 191Brown, C. Barrington, on jabiru 69brown crane, little 231Brown, D. E., on northwest coast heron 117Brown, Wilmot W., jr.?on Belding rail 267on Espiritu Santo heron 130Bryant, Harold C, on wood ibis _. 63Bryant, Henry
?
on limpkin. 257,259on sandhill crane 245on wood ibis 64Bull, Charlas L., on scarlet ibis 36,42Burmeister, Hermann, on scarlet ibis 39Burtch, Verdi?on Florida gallinule 350on Virginia rail 295Butler, Amos W., on sandhill crane 246Butorides virescens anthonyi 195frazari 194virescens 185Cachinnans, Gallinula chloropus 346caerulea, Florida - 177Cahn, Alvin R.?on reddish egret. ^ IW, 162,165on Virginia rail 296California clapper rail 267California heron 127Cameron, E. S.?on great blue heron 107on little brown crane... 238Camp, R. D., on reddish egret 161,164canadensis, Megalornis.. 231mcxicanus, Megalornis 250pratensis, Megalornis 253candidissima brewsteri, Egretta 156candidissima, Egretta 146Egretta candidissima 146Carolina, Porzana 303Carriger, H. W., and J. R. Pemberton onCalifornia heron... 128, 129Casmerodius egretta 133Chambers, W. Lee, on light-footed rail 272Chapman, Frank M.
?
on American egret.. 137, 138, 141on American flamingo 1,4,5,6,7,8,9, 10on least bittern 90on little blue heron 179, 183on roseate spoonbill 13,17on Ward heron 121on white-faced glossy ibis 55
Pagechloropus cachinnans, Qallinula 346cinerea, Ardea cinerea 131cinerea, Ardoa 131clapper raU _ 277clapper rail, California.. 267Florida. 287Louisiana 283Wayne 290Yuma 275Clark, John N., on Mack raU 326,327coast heron, northwest 114Cobb, Stanley, on black rail 329,330Cohen, Donald A., on California clapperrail 269,271Conover, H. B., on little brown crane 235Cooke, Wells W.?on sandhill crane 241on scarlet ibis 34on sora rail 310on whooping crane.. 220coot, American 358European 356Cordier, A. H.
?
on little blue heron . - 179,180,183on Ward heron 120corn crake 337Cory least bittern 88Coturnicops noveboracensis 316coturniculus, Creciscus 332Coues, Elliott
?
on American bittern 72on sandhUl crane.. 247,249on scarlet ibis 34on Treganza heron.. 123on whooping crane 219,227on wood ibis 63Court, Edward J., on Treganza heron 124crake, corn 337crane, Florida sandhill 253little brown 231sandhill .- 241whooping 219Creciscus coturniculus _ 332jamaicensis 326crepitans, Ralluslongirostris.. 277Crex crex 337cre.t, Crex -- 337Crispin, William B.
?
on American bittern 76on great blue heron - 104Dawson, Charles B., on scarlet ibis. 40,41.42,43,44Dawson, W. Leon
?
on California clapper rail 271on California heron 129on king rail 263on light-footed rail 275on sandhill crane 249on snowy egret 150on sora rail -- 306on yellow rail - 319Dichromanassa rufescens 157Dickens, Elizabeth, on great blue heron 112Dickey, D. R.?on Anthony green heron 196on Yuma clapper rail 275,276,277
INDEX 487
Dresser, n. E? Pageon com crake. - 338on European coot 356,357on spotted crake 301,302Edwards, William H., on scarlet ibis 36,37,41egret, Americ;in 133Brewster 156reddish - 157snowy 146Egretta candidissima brewsteri. 1 50candidissima 146egretta, Casmerodius 133elegans, Rallus - 200Eliot, Willard, on wood ibis 58,04Emerson, W. Otto, on California clapper rail- 269Erichsen, W. J.
?
on American egret 130on great blue heron..'. 113on green heron 180Espiritu Santo heron 130European coot... 356European heron 131Evans, Williamon corn crake - 337on European coot 35()Evermann, Barton W., on California clapperrail ? 208exilis exilis, Ixobrychus 84hesperis, Ixobrychus 84Ixobrychus exilis S4falcinellus, Plegadis 45fannini, Ardea herodias 114Farallon rail 332Faxon, Walter, on scarlet ibis 34Figgins, J. U., on scarlet ibis 34Finley, William L.?on black-crowned night heron 202on California heron 127Fisher, A. K., on little brown crane 237flamingo, American 1Florida caerulea - 177clapper rail 287gallimile .,- --- 340sandhill crane 253Forbush, Edward H., on sera rail 306,310,313Frazar green heron i'Mfrazari, Butoridos virescens... 194Fulica americana .- 358atra -- 350Qabrielson, Ira N.
?
on American bittern 76,77,79on least bittern 87Gallinula chloropus cachinnans 340gallinule, P'lorida 346purple - 339Qibbs, Morris, on sora rail 306,307(iiflord, Edward W ?on American flamingo 6, 11on yellow-crowned night heron 213(jilUitt, Dana G., on great blue heron 104Oilinour, Neil, on whooping crane 222glossy ibis 45glossy ibis, white-faced 62Goss, N. S ?on king rail 263on whooping crane.. 226
Gosse, P. H? Pageon black rail - 329on purple gallinule... 344Grayson, A. J., on yellow-crowned nightheron 213great blue heron 101groat white heron -.. 93green heron 185green heron, Anthony 195Frazar 194Qrinnell, Bryant, and Storer?on California clapper rail 207,208,209,270on light-footed rail 272on little brown crano 237,239on wood ibis _ 63Grinnell, Joseph?on American coot 361on little brown crane 233, 234, 235, 237, 238on Treganza heron _ 124,125on white-faced glossy ibis 55Griscom, Ludlow, on black rail 329Gross, Alfred O., on blnck-crowned nightheron 200, 20], 202, 203, 205, 207, 208, 21Guara alba... 23Guara rubra .-- 33guarauna, Plegadis 62Hagorup, A. T., on spotted crake 301Hagmann, Gottfried
?
on jahiru 66,68,69on scarlet ibis 37,41Harlow, R. C?on Ameiican bittern 76on black rail .- 328on greiit blue heron 104on least bittern.. 86Hastings, Walter E., on great blue heron . .
.
105,106,109Hatch, P. L ?on American bittern 75on Virginia rail 294Henderson, A. D., on great blue heron 105Henninger, W. F., on king rail 261Henshaw, F. W., on American coot. 364herodias, Ardea herodias 101fannini, Ardea 114herodias, Ardea 101hyperonca, Ardea 127sanctilucae, Ardea 130treganzai, Ardea 123wardi, Ardea 118heron, Anthony green 195black-crowned night 197Cahfornia... 127Espiritu Santo.. 130European 131Frazar green 19*1great blue.. 101great white 93green 185little blue.. -- '77Louisiana ' 07northwest coast 114Treganza- . 123Ward - I '8Wurdemann's 97yellow-crowned night 213
488 INDEXPageHersey, F. Seymour?on little brown crane. _.. 233,238on Virginia rail _ 294hesperis, Ixobrychiis exilis 84Holland, Harold M., on light-footed rail 273Holt, Ernest G ?on great white heron 97,98on Ward heron _.. 98on Wiirdemann heron. 98Howe, Reginald Heber, Jr., on Americanflamingo 3Howell, A. B.?on California heron 129on light-footed rail 275Howell, Arthur 11.?on great blue heron 109on little blue heron. 182Hoyt, R. D., on Ward heron 118Hudson, W. H ?on European coot 357on jabiru 66Huey, Laurence M .?on Anthony green heron 196on Farallon rail 334,335,336on Yuma clapper rail 276Huntington, Dwight W., on whooping crane. 227Huxley, Julian S.?on European heron 133on Louisiana heron 169, 173, 175Hydranassa tricolor raficollis 167hyperonca, Ardea herodias 127ibis, glossy 45scarlet 33white 23white-faced glossy.. 52wood 57Ingersoll, A. M.?on Farallon rail 333,336on light-footed rail 273,274Ingram, D. P., on American flamingo _. 11lonornis martinicus 339Ixobrychus exilis exilis 84hesperis 84neoxenus 88jabiru 66Jabiru mycteria 66Jackson, Thomas 11., on limpkia 255jamaicensis, Creciscus 326Job, Herbert K., on American egret... 142Kappler, August, on scarlet ibis 36,41,43Kennard, Frederic H., on limpkin 256king rail : 260Knight, Ora W., on great blue heron 108Laing, Hamilton M., on sandhill crane 247,248Langille, J. H.?on American coot 364on sorarail i 310Law, J. Eugene
?
on California heron 129on light-footed rail. 274least bittern 84least bittern, Cory 88lentiginosus, Botaurus ^ 72L6otaud, A., on scarlet ibis 40,41levipes, Rallus 272light-footed rail 272
Pagelimpkin 254little blue heron 177little brown crane 231Lloyd, C. A.?on jabiru 67,68on scarlet ibis 37longirostris crepitans, Kallus 277saturatus, Rallus 283scotti, Rallus 287waynei, Rallus 290Lorenz, Th., on scarlet ibis 44Louisiana clapper rail 283Louisiana heron 167Lowe, Willoughby P., on scarlet ibis 34MacFarlane, R. R., on little brown crane 234Mackay, George H., on sandhill crane 246Maltby, Fred, on yellow rail.. 319martinicus, lonornis 339Mattingly, A. H. E., on snowy egret 153May, John B., on great blue heron 110
-Maynard, C. J.
?
on American coot 365,366on American egret.. 140on American flamingo 3,9on reddish egret 164on sora rail 309on Ward heron 121,122on Wayne clapper rail 291on yellow-crowned night heron 215,216Mcllhenny, Edward A., on snowy egret... 150, 154McKechnie, F. B., on yellow rail 317,322McMulIen, T. E., on black rail 329,330,331Mearns, Edgar A., on Anthony green heron .. 195Megalornis americanus 219canadensis 231mexieanus 250pratensis 253mexieanus 241Merrill, J. C, on white-faced glossy ibis S3mexieanus, Megalornis 241canadensis... 250Mitchell, Catherine A., on great blue heron . 102Moore, N. B.?on Florida clapper rail 289on sandhill crane 245,246,249Morris, Francis O., on corn crake.. 337Morris, Robert O., on yellow rail 323Munro, J. A., on northwest coast heron 116Murchison, A. C, on king rail 261,263M ycteria americana 57mycteria, Jabiru 66naevius, Nycticorax nycticorax.. 197Nelson, E. W.?on black rail 326on little brown crane 232, 233, 235, 237, 238on whooping crane.. 220neoxenus, Ixobrychus 88N icholson , Donald J ., on black rail 328night lieron, black-crowned 197night heron, yellow-crowned 213Northrup, Edwin F., on great blue heron .. . 104northwest coast heron 114uoveboracensis, Coturnicops 316Nuttall, Thomas?on scarlet ibis 34on whooping crane.. 226,227,228
INDEX 489PageNyctanassa violacea , 213nycticorax naevius, Nycticorax.. 197Nycticorax nyolicorax naevius 197
?obsoletus, Kallus 207
?occidentalis, Ardea 93Osgood, Wilfred II., on little brown crane 238Palmer, William, on Louisiana heron... 175Patterson, A. II., on European heron 132Peabody, P. B., on yellow rail _ 317,318,320,321,322,323Pearson, T. Gilbert?on American egret 137,143on Hmpkin 254on little blue heron 177,179on reddish egret 165on snowy egret _ 152Pelzeln, August von, on scarlet ibis. 44Pemberton, J. R.
?
onjabiru 67,70,71on reddish egret 161Penard, F. P., and A. P., on scarlet ibis 37,38. 39, 40, 41, 42, 43Penard, Thomas Edward, on scarlet ibis 33Pennock, C. J.
?
on black rail.. 331On Florida clapper rail 288,289on Florida galllnule 346on limpkin _*? 255,259on little blue heron 178, 179on white ibis _ 24Pericles, Eugene, on great blue heron 104Peters, James L., on sandhill crane 241Phelps, F. M.?on sandhill crane 244on wood ibis __ 58Phoenicopterus ruber ._ 1
"Picket," on whooping crane. 226,227Plegadis falcinellus 45Plegadis guarauna 52Pope, E. F., on Louisiana clapper rail _. 285Porzana Carolina 303porzana 301porzana, Porzana. 301pratensis, Megalornis canadensis 253Preston, J. W., on whooping crane 221Prill, A. O., on sandhill crane 244purple gallinule... 339Quillin and Ilolleman, on purple gallinule... 341Racey, Kenneth, on northwest coast heron.. 115rail, Belding. _ 266black 326California clapper 267clapper 277Florida clapper 287king 260light-footed 272Louisiana clapper 283sora 303Virginia 292Wayne clapper 290yellow 316Yuma clapper 275Ballus beldingi 266elegans 260levipes 272longirostris crepitans 277
PageHallus, longirostris saturatus 283scotti 287waynei... 290obsoletus 267virginianus 292yumaneusis. ._ 275Ramsay, R. O. W., on spotted crake 302Rathbun, S. F., on sandhill crane 244reddish egret 157Reid, Saville O., on American bittern 82Rhoads, Samuel N., on roseate spoonbill 20Rich, Walter U., on yellow rail 323Ridgway, Robert
?
on Farallon rail __ 332on Wilrdemann's heron.. 97Roberts, Thomas S., on Florida gallinule 349Rockwell, Robert B.
?
on .\merican coot 360on black-crowned night heron 201roseate spoonbill 13ruber, Phoenicopterus... 1rubra, Ouara 33rufe^cens, Dichromanassa 157ruficollis, Hydranassa tricolor IG7sanctilucae, Ardea herodias 130sandhill crane.. 241sandhill crane, Florida 253Sanford, L. C, on sora rail.. 312Santo heron, Espiritu 130saturatus, Rallus longirostris 283Saunders, W. E.?on European coot 356,357on Virginia rail. 298scarlet ibis 33Schlegel, H., on scarlet ibis. 39Schmidt, Max, on scarlet ibis... 44Schomburgk, Richard
?
onjabiru 08on scarlet ibis... 37,41Schomburgk, Robert H., on jabiru 67,70Scott, W. E. D ?on American flamingo 2,
9
on Florida clapper rail... 287,289on reddish egret 157,164,166on roseate spoonbill 13scotti, Rallus longirostris 287Seebohm, Henry, on European coot 357,358Selby, P. J., on European coot. 357Sell, R. A., on scarlet ibis. 35Sennett, George B.
?
on American egret 138on snowy egret 149Soton, Ernest Thompson
?
on sandhill crane.. 242,249on whooping crane 220,227,229Sharpies, R. P., on great blue heron 103,112Shaw, John, on European heron 132Sherman, Althea U., on sora rail 306Sim, Robert J., on sora rail 309Simmons, George Finlay?on least bittern 86on Louisiana clapper rail 283, 284, 285, 286Skinner, M. P., on great blue heron 110Smith, J. B., on California heron 127snowy egret 146sora rail 303
490 INDEX
Page-spoonbill, roseate 13spotted crake 301Sprunt, Alexander, jr.
?
on Florida gallinule 349on purple gallinule 341Stephens, Frank, on Farallon rail 333,335,336Stoddard. H. L., on black rail __ 330Stuart, George H., 3d, on black riil 328Sutton, George M., on wood ibis 60Taveiner, P. A., on great blue heron 110Taylor, Edward K., on California heron 128Thayer and Bangs
?
on Brewster egret 156on Espiritu Santo heron 130Thayer, John E., on Belding rail 267Torrey, Bradford, on American bittern 80Townsend, Charles W.
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on American bittern 77,82on American coot 364on corn crake 337on European coot 356on European heron 131on great blue heron. 111on giecn heron 185on spotted crake 301on Virginia rail _ 292,297Treganza, A. E. and A. O., on snowy egret.. 149Treganza, A. O.?on Treganza heron 124on white-faced glossy ibis 54Treganza heron 123treganzai, Ardea herodias 123tricolor ruficollis, llydrauassa 167Tyler, John G.?on American coot 360,363on Anthony green heron 196on California heron 126Van Heurn, W. C, on scarlet ibis 36, 39, 41, 42Van Rossem, A. J.-on Anthony green heron _. _ . 196on light-footed rail __. , 274violacea, Nyctanassa 213virescens anthonyi, Butorides 195Butorides virescens 185frazari, Butorides 194virescens, Butorides _ _ . 185Virginiarail . _ _ , 292virginianus, Rallus _ 292Visher, Stephen S., on sandhill crane 242vociferus, Aramus vociferus 254vociferus, Aramus 254Ward heron 118wardi, Ardea herodias. 118Warren, Edward R., on sandhill crane 244Wayne, Arthur T.?on black rail 330on king rail 200,261,264
PageWayne, Arthur T.?Continued.on purple gallinule _ 340, 34Son Wayne clapper rail 292:on white ibiS- 27,31on yellow-crowned night heron 215,217on yellowrail 324Wayne clapper rail 290'waynei, Rallus longirostris 290Weber, J. A.?onsora rail 303on Virginia raiL.. 293,295,304Wells, J. G ?on purple gallinule. 343on yellow-crowned night heron 215-Wetmore, Alexander
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on American coot 359,360,36*on American egret 14(>on black-crowned night heron 208on California heron 130on Florida gallinule 352on little blue heron.. ^-., 182on snowy egret 151on Treganza heron 125, 126-Wheelock, Irene O., on green heron 186, 187, 188white-faced glossy ibis. 52white heron, great 93white ibis 23whooping crane 219Willett, George?on American egret 137on light-footed rail 273Willett, George, and Antonin Jay, on white-faced glossy ibis 53-Williams, John, on Louisiana heron 171Williams, Moses, jr., on American coot 365-Wilson, Alexander
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on clapper rail 282on great blue heron 103, 109on scarlet ibis. 34on snowy egret 148,151Witherby's Handbook
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on corn crake.. _ 337on European coot 356on spotted crake 301wood ibis 67Wright and Harper, on sandhill crane 246wuerdemanni, Ardea 97Wiirdemanu, Gustavus, on American fla-mingo 2Wurdemann's heron 97Yarrell, William?on corn crake 338on spotted crake -. 302:yellow-crowned night heron 213yellow rail 316Yuma clapper rail 275yumanensis, Rallus 275-o

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