Birds of Paraguay. 59 



December 3 of the same year. The eggs are deep coffee- 

 brown in colour and measure: axis 1*55 to 1*8 inches; 

 diameter 1-15 to 1 -25. 



6. COLUMBA SYLVESTRIS. 



Paluma de la month Azara, Apunt. iii. p. 11. no. cccxix. 

 (1805). 



Columba sylvestris Vieill. N. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. xxvi. p. 366 

 (1818, ex Azara) ; Hartl. Ind. Azara, p. 20 (1847) ; Salvad. 

 Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxi. p. 289, note (1893). 



Columba rufina (uec Temm.), Berlepsch, J. f. O. 1887, 

 p. 124 (Paraguay) ; Salvad. Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxi. p. 289 

 (1892) ; Ihering, Revista Mus. Paulista, vi. p. 341. 



Columba rufina sylvestris Hellmayr, Nov. Zool. xiii. p. 47 

 (1906) ; id. op. cit. xv. p. 91 (1908 : Goyaz). 



a. <J imm. Sapucay, April 25, 1903. 



Bill black; tarsi and feet purplish red ; iris red. 



This example differs from the adult bird chiefly in having 

 the vinous colour of the head, neck, and upper breast much 

 less pronounced. The British Museum has also a specimen 

 of this species, in fully adult plumage, obtained at Villa 

 Rica, Paraguay, in October 1906, and presented by the 

 Hon. Wyndham Knatchbull-Hugessen. 



I refer specimens from Medellin and Bogota to C. rufina. 

 All the forms are closely allied. The differences consist 

 chiefly in the marking of the tail and the colour of the 

 under tail-coverts ; 



In the Paraguayan bird the grey tips to the tail-feathers 

 are preceded by a very distinct shade of black, which 

 brings out the tip of the feather in strong relief. 



This bird, which is C. sylvestris of Vieillot, is represented 

 in the Museum from Brazil, Ytarare (Natterer), Chapada, 

 Matto-Grosso (H. H. Smith), Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul 

 (Joyner), Island of Mexiana {A. R. Wallace), and Para 

 (R. Graham). It also extends to Peru, as there is a male, in 

 the Salvin-Godman collection, from Guayabamba, obtained 

 by O. T. Baron. The under tail-coverts in this form are 

 entirely leaden grey. 



From this bird I propose to separate the following : — 



