316 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM vol. 63 



Yellowthroats are common as winter visitors to weed grown fields 

 and grassy pastures, though sometimes difficult to see as they keep 

 well under cover. Unless clearly observed at times they are hard to 

 distinguish from the Chamaethlypis that frequent the same coverts. 

 The three races of trichas identified seem to range together. Our 12 

 specimens of all include 11 males and 1 female. 



CHAMAETHLYPIS POLIOCEPHALA PALPEBRALIS (Ridgway) 



Oeothhjpis {Chamaethlypis) palpebralis Ridgway, Manual of North American 

 birds, 1887, pp. 526, 5!)2 (Mirador, Veracruz). 



This is a resident species, common in the Tres Zapotes region 

 wherever bushes are scattered through the grasslands. They kept 

 under cover ordinarily, flying out occasionally as I passed, or were 

 seen as they sang from the tops of bushes or tall grass stems. The 

 song is a low, rather inconsequential warble of several notes. I had 

 a better view of them at times in crossing these savannas on mule 

 back, as then from the elevation of the saddle I could see about more, 

 and the birds were less wary. They tend always to be inconspicuous 

 and to slip aside. They suggested the yellowthroats of the north in 

 most of their habits. 



We secured a series at Tres Zapotes, while Carriker shot one at 

 Tapacoyan and one between 1,000 and 2,000 feet elevation on Cerro 

 de Tuxtla, both on May 5. He collected two more at about 2,500 feet 

 on Volcan San Martin, April 21. All these are typical of the race 

 palpebralis. 



On comparison of material in the U. S. National Museum it is 

 evident that specimens from near Brownsville, Tex., in the lower Rio 

 Grande Valley, differ from typical poUocephala in significantly paler 

 color, with less yellow on the lower surface. They are to be separated 

 therefore as Chamaethlypis poUocephala ralphi (Ridgway) 67 in 

 spite of the fact that Ridgway in his last account of the species 68 

 placed the Texas birds under typical poUocephala. With a good 

 series of skins the differences are clearly evident. 



ICTERIA VIRENS VIRENS (Linnaeus) : Yellow-breasted Chat 



Turdus vircns Linnaeus, Systema naturae, ed. 10, vol. 1, 1758, p. 171 (South 

 Carolina, 200 or 300 miles from the sea). 



Our small series from Tres Zapotes includes birds taken between 

 January 17 and March 10. I recorded them in 1939 until April 9. 



Carriker found chats abundant in January but noted some decrease 

 later. They were seen regularly around camp, and occasionally they 



87 Geothlypis poUocephala ralphi Ridgway, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 16, Feb. 5, 1894, 

 p. 692 (Brownsville, Tex.). 



68 U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 50, pt. 2, 1902, p. 689. 



