6. TANAGEELLA. 87 



6. TANAGRELLA. 



Type. 



Tanagrella, Sw. Class. B. ii. p. 286 (1837) T. cyanomelfena. 



Hypotlilypis, Cah. in Schomb. Jteise, iii. p. 667 (1848) T. velia. 



This is the most " tenuirostral " genus of the typical Tanagers, 

 and exhibits but very slight traces of a dentation in the upper man- 

 dible. The four known species are of a brilliant blue in general 

 colouring, and are distributed over Guiana, Amazonia, and the \?ood- 

 region of S.E. Brazil. 



Key to the Species. 



A. Lower belly and crissum chestnut. 



a. Breast dark blue. 



) Front and sides of head blue 1. velia, p. 87. 



I Front and sides of head purple 2. iridina, p. 88. 



b. Breast bright greyish blue 3. cyanomelana, p. 88. 



B. Lower belly and crissum black 4. calophrys, p. 89. 



1. Tanagrella velia. 



Red-bellied Blue-bird, Echo. Nat. Hist. B. pi. 22. 



Motacilla velia, Linn. S. N. i. p. 336 (partim). 



Le Pipit bleu de Surinam, Daub. PI. Enl. 669. fig. 3. 



Tanagravelia, Vieill. Nouv. Diet, xxxii. p. 424 ; id. Enc. Meth. p. 780. 



Tanagra varia, Steph. Shaw, Zool. xiv. p. 7 ; Cuv. Reg. Anim. i. p. 367. 



Hypothlypis iridina. Cab. in Schomb. Gnian. iii. p. 667. 



Tanagrella velia, Bj:). Consp. i. p. 236 ; Sclater, Contr. Orn. 1851, p. 97 ; 



id. P. Z. S. 1856, p. 267 ; id. Sijn. At: Tati. p. 93 ; id. Cat. A. B. 



p. 60 ; *SW. et Salv. Nomencl. p. 18 ; Layard, Ibis, 1873, p. 379 



(Para); Salv. Ibis, 1885, p. 209 (Brit. Guian,). 



Above velvety black ; forehead, sides of head, external edgings 

 of wing- and tail-feathers, and upper tail-coverts bright blue ; lower 

 back shining silvery green : below bright blue, irregular collar across 

 the throat black ; middle of belly and crissum chestnut-red ; under 

 wing-coverts white ; bill black, feet dark brown : whole length 

 4"10 inches, wing 2-8, tail 2. Female similar, bi;t not quite so bright 

 in colouring. 



Hah. Cayenne and Guiana. 



The specimens from the interior of British Guiana are of a rather 

 darker blue on the head, and thus somewhat approximate to 2\ 

 iridina, 



a. Ad. sk. Cayenne. Sclater Coll. 



b. Ad, sk. Cayenne, J. Gould, Esq. 

 e. Ad. sk. Cayenne. Purchased. 



d. Ad. sk. Cayenne, Purchased. 



e,f. S 9- ^d. slv. Bartica Grove, British Guiana Salvin-Godman Coll. 



( Wliitely). 



g, 2 ad. sk. Merumi? Mts., British Guiana. Salvin-Godman Coll. 



h. S ad. sk. Camacusa, British Guiana Salvin-Godman Coll. 



{WJiitebj). 



i, j. S ad. sk, ; Roraima, British Guiana Salvin-Godman Coll, 



'Ic. 5 ad. sk. (Whifely). 



I. Ad. sk, British Guiana ( Whiiely). Salvin-Godman Coll. 



