FAMILY HAEMATOPODIDAE 379 



chisel form. This is used in prying loose and opening the mollusks 

 that are their principal food. Part of the species recognized are 

 wholly dark in color, and part are blackish on the head and neck, 

 gray or gray-brown on the back and white underneath. As a group 

 they are found worldwide in continental areas, except in regions of 

 heavy cold. 



HAEMATOPUS PALLIATUS PITANAY Murphy: American Oystercatcher; 



Ostrero Blanco 



Figure 65 



Haematopus palliatus piianay Murphj'^, Amer. Mus. Nov. no. 194, Nov. 17, 1925, 

 p. 1. (Pisco Bay, Peru.) 



A large shorebird with long red to yellow bill, compressed at the 

 tip ; sooty black head and neck, grayish-brown back and white under- 

 parts. 



Description. — Length, 420 to 440 mm. Adult (sexes alike), head 

 and neck sooty black, slightly grayer on the crown; spot on lower 

 eyelid white; back, longer tertials, lesser and middle wing coverts 

 grayish brown; greater wing coverts, and secondaries white except 

 for the black tips; wings and tail sooty black; upper tail coverts, 

 sides of rump, and under parts white ; under wing coverts white more 

 or less spotted with sooty black. 



A juvenile, half grown, from Isla San Jose, with the general color 

 pattern of the adult, has the throat covered with gray down, spotted 

 indistinctly with white and darker gray; entire upper surface with 

 feathers tipped narrowly with cinnamon-buff; rump and tail tipped 

 with cinnamon. 



Iris yellow; edge of eyelids red; bill red, becoming yellow at tip, 

 and orange at base ; tarsus and toes pinkish white to pale flesh color ; 

 claws fuscous. 



Measurements. — Males (5 from Panama), wing 141-156 (150), 

 tail 90.6-107.0 (98.7), culmen from base 75.0-81.0 (78.5), tarsus 

 54.5-58.3 (56.3) mm. 



Females (2 from Panama), wing 157, 158; tail 101.6, 104.0; 

 culmen from base 82.1, 90.0; tarsus 58.0, 61.5 mm. 



Resident. Local along the Pacific coast: Archipielago de las 

 Perlas (recorded from islas San Jose, Pedro Gonzalez, Bayoneta, 

 Malaga, Pacheca, Pachequilla, Saboga, Contadora and Rey). Rare 

 elsewhere: Veraguas (specimen in British Museum without definite 

 locality or date taken by Arce) ; Los Santos (La Honda) ; east of 

 Panama City (Sturgis, Field Book Birds Panama Canal Zone, 1928, 

 p. 54) ; mouth of Rio Maje. 



