The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-08-21
AMERICAN CRANES ARE
Other Valuable Game Birds Of Same Family Need Legislative Protection
 900 Of One Species shot ir sin- gle Day on Small Marsh

Washington, Aug. z1,-The white crane, one Of the most striking of .iNorth American birds, once seen In great numbers on our praaries Is now almost extinct Those individuals Of a smaller species. the sandhdI crane. which nest in FsIorfda, also seem door1a- ed. Owing to their harmless habits. economic worth, and the danger to which they are subject the U. 8. De- partment of AgricultIre,s hiolog1st thinks that all cranes should be care- fully protected. Other members or the same family also are in need Of pro- tectiTe State legislation; otherwise they will soon be creatures of the past like the white crane.
 The Carolina rail or sora, bird allied to the crane, has existed until recently in great numbers in the marshes of the Alicante States. It is so highly prixed as table deldcacy that it is ssiaalg htered in great mum bers. As many as 3,O00 have been shot in a, single day on marsh Of 800 acres. It is absolntety harmless. breeds only in places not suited for agricultural purposes, and if given a fair chance will survive as 8 game bird long after many others have been compelled to give way before the ad- should be taken by the states to de- crease the bag limit for the sora~
 The rails are marsh or meadow breeding birds, and differ from the cranes in appearance and habits, all though they belong to td1e same farni- ly There are valuable rails besides the sora some Of which can probably maintain their numbers in spite Of persecution, since they are secretfve and spend most of their firpe we'll concealed in rank swamp vegetation Rails breeding in salt marshes, how
 
 although they are not in as much danger as is the sora- The Depart nent's, biologist thinks that they should be allowed to breed in peace, and that the robbing Of their nests, particularIy Of clapper rails should be prohibit ed
 The coot is a member of the rail family ana has 8. wide range over the United States Al thoush it Is much adespised by hunters who class it with the crow as a food bird. nevertheless, under some conditions 1t is a. delicacy. After this bird has been fattened on wild rice, which is the best of all the taste than when it has fed for many weeks on the animal life or the saltwater marshes. |
 There ares 21 kinds of ra1iS and their cousins the cranes coots, and galli- nllIes in the United States Some are
 
 misund ersta ling has arisen in regard to the powers Of fIight of certain of these birds The sora,s flight is so slow and labored that the bird seems unable to fly long distances. and some writers have even supposed that 1t performed it's migration on foot As matter of fact, the sora often tra- veIs not less than ?. 800 miles and sometimes as much as 5000. Great mum bers of them make the hundred mile flight between F1ordda and Cuba and there, is every reason to believe that some easily cover the 50O-1nile passage from F1erida to Ylleatan.
 Precise information as to the ranges of the North American cranes. rails, and others of this family is given in a new bulletin of the U- s. Depar tment Of Agriculture. This is professional paper, and Is hardly of general inter est. However. it furnishes data that should be va1uabIe as a basis for pro tective legislation in the respective states where these valuable game birds are found.