310 FIELD MUSEUM OP NATURAL HISTORY ORNITHOLOGY, VOL. I. 



pallid neutral gray; lower abdomen between smoke 

 gray and neutral gray; under tail coverts grayish 

 black; under wing coverts pale mouse gray; wing, 

 about 144; tail, about 265 mm. 



Piaya cay ana nigricrissa Sclater (Babahoyo, 

 Ecuador) * Northern Peru, Ecuador, and 

 Colombia north to Bogota. 



Compared with nigricrissa from Ecuador. P. c. 

 mehleri from Central America has the lower breast 

 and upper abdomen approaching neutral gray (de- 

 cidedly darker than in nigricrissa); the lower abdomen 

 and thighs are also distinctly more blackish, the 

 under tail coverts slightly so, and the coloration of the 

 upper parts is darker. Differs from P. c. nigricrissa 

 in its ashy gray (instead of quite black) tibia, and 

 blackish gray (instead of black) crissum; under sur- 

 face of the tail entirely black. Differs from P. cay ana 

 in the much darker brown (less fox red) upper parts, 

 and the blackish under tail coverts.f 



Piaya cayana obscura Snethlage. (Rio 

 Purus, W. Brazil) Western Brazil, Bolivia, 

 S. E. Peru.J 



Back walnut bay; throat vinaceous fawn; under wing 

 coverts pale mouse gray; upper abdomen between 

 smoke gray and neutral gray; lower abdomen black- 

 ish; under tail coverts blackish (more nearly black 

 than in nigricrissa, but not so deep black as in caucce); 

 thighs dusky or dark neutral gray; wing, about 170; 

 tail (Paraguay specimens), about 365 mm. 



Piaya cay ana tnacrottraGambell. (Paraguay) 

 Paraguay and southern Brazil. 



* There appears to be no question as to the type locality of this subspecies, the 

 name nigricrissa having been first applied by Dr. Sclater to three examples from 

 Babahoyo, Ecuador, which he considered to be new. Later, in giving a list of the 

 species of Piaya in his collection, he states he has specimens of the new form "ex 

 Nov. Grenada, rep. Ecuat. et Peru." (Proc. Zo6l. Soc. Lond., 1860, p. 285.) 



t From original description, as I have seen no specimens. The description is 

 unsatisfactory and no measurements are given. P. c. nigricrissa from Ecuador has 

 the tibia approaching neutral gray or only slightly darker, and the crissum is grayish 

 black (not deep black as in cauccs). 



t As given by Brabourne & Chubb, Bds. South America, I, 1912, p. 152. 



Specimens from Paraguay and extreme southern Brazil are very large, while 

 those from farther north are much smaller and may be separable subspecifically (for 

 remarks on this subject see ante). 



