FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



in exchange ten years later. In the trade it is quite 

 likely that it may have been confounded T\-ith the 

 typical Sulphur-breasted bird. 



SwAiNsox's Toucan* {Shamphastos tocard). 



Gejieiial colour black; neck and upper te-ck washed 

 with m'aii'O'On ; upper tajil-coFerts white ; below, throat 

 and neck sulphur-yellow, bordered beliind by a scarlet 

 band ; under tail-eoTerts scarlet ; upper mandible 

 crossed from nostrils to tomiuni by a diagonal black 

 line, above which it is yellow and below it more or less 

 red; irides red. Female not differentiated, but doubt- 

 less smaller, with shorter aird less tapering bill, Hab., 

 " Xicaiiagua, Oosta Bica, Panama, and Western 

 Ecuador," (Sclater,) 



Stolzmann observes (" Taczanowiski's Ornithologie du 

 Perou," Vol, III,, p. 146) : "I suppose that the name 

 of this bird, dios-te-de, is derived from tJie plaintive 

 mote which, to a certain extent, resembles those words, 

 accentuating the letters of the word dios and e de. One 

 'hears it in the forest throughout the day, especially in 

 the morning and evening. It is equally social to the 

 other Shamphastidij:. I have also found it between 

 Omia and Sorritor, at 4,500 feet elevation." 



Mr. W. Goodfellow says {The Ibis, 1902, p. 215) : 

 • Althoiugih this Toucan was fairly numerous at Samito 

 Domingo, we only secured two males during our stay 

 there. It was very shy, and kept to the highest trees, 

 igenerally in flocks of from eigiht to a dozen. Iris pale 

 blue, bare skin round the eye yellowish-green ; loiwea' 

 mandible black, upper mandible yellow, shaded with 

 blue and green down the centre. The Ecuadorians call 

 these birds ' Predica-dores' or ' Dios-'te-de.' " 



This is all I have found respecting the wild life. A 

 specimen reached the London Zoological Gajdens in 

 August, 1876, but Dr. Russ appears to have overlooked 

 the fact. 



Red-billed Torc.VN {Bhamphastos erythrorhynchus). 



Black ; upper tail-coverts yellow ; throat and neck 

 white ; a pectoral band and under tadl-coverts scarlet ; 

 Ibill red, with a broad yellow band margined with black 

 at base ; tip of lower mandible black (laccording to 

 Reichenau a bright bluish, b!aok-ma.rigiined transverse 

 band) ; feet black ; irides blue-grey ; orbital patch 

 ibrigHit blue. Female smaller than the male, with dis- 

 tinctly shoiiter bill, less curved at the tip. Hab., Guiana, 

 Lower Amazon, and N. Brazil. 



Dr. Emil A. Goelii [The Ibis, 1897, pip. 157-158) says ; 

 " St.rikimg is the difference in the cry of Bhamphastos 

 erythrorhynchus compared with that of R. ariei and 

 B. discolorus. It is particularly eo£t, nearly melodioius, 

 and may be tolenaibly interpreted by the syllables tiu- 

 ihi-fii-fu-fil." 



This species amvied at tihe London Gardens in 1859 

 and in 1874 ; it has also been exhibited in the Berlin 

 Gardens. 



Cuvter's Totjcak {Bhampliastos cuvieri). 



General colour black ; upper tail-coverts orange, some- 

 iiim^ wa^lii d with scarlet; throait and neck white. 

 eoniitiiiii'i \\;ished with lemon-yellow behind; pectoral 

 Jiainl ami uiuler tail-coverts scarlet; bill black, with 

 tlie culuieii and a basal band yellowish ; irides orange- 

 yellaw ; naked orbital patch blue. Female not dif- 

 tferentiated. but probably slightly smaller than the 

 male, and with shorter bill, Hab., '" Colombia, Ecuador, 

 and Upper Amazonia," (Sclater.) 



Stolzmann says (Taczanowski's " Oirnithologie du 



* In " How to Sex Caer€-bird*9,*' I adopted the name " Doubt- 

 ful Toucan," used in the Zoolosrical Society's List, but this 

 name oUEjht certainly to be UBod preferably for R. ambiguus. 



Perou," Vol. III., p. 147): "Tliis Toucan keeps in 

 small comparxies, more rarely in pairs or alone. Like 

 the other representatives of the family, it remains chiefly 

 on tall trees, rarely descending to the lower branohes. 

 Its ^ voice nearly resemlbles that of B. tocard, but is 

 a little more simple, composed of two notes. It is a 

 very restless bird, though clumsy in its actions, or, at 

 any rate, its beak gives it that appearance." 



Mr. Walter Goodfellow lT?ie Ibis, 1903, pp. 215, 

 216) says : "A series of males and females from the Rio 

 Napo, where they were extremely numerous. This 

 was remarkable, for the Indians slaughtered them by 

 the hundred, and at certain seasons organised expedi- 

 iticns especially for IdUing them. I have seen them 

 retm-n from these expeditions with many hundreds of 

 smoked Toucans, which they keep to eat out of the 

 ifrtiit season, when game is scarce. When the fruit is 

 ripe on certain forest trees, the Indian lads axe sent to 

 make a temporary dwelling under the branches, and 

 tliey take up their abode there while the fruit lasts, 

 each bo}' selecting a tree to liimiseif. With their silent 

 blcnvpipes they pick off all bii'ds that come there to 

 feed. Considering this wholesale slatighter, it is a 

 wonder that tliis Toucan and many other ibirds have not 

 long ago become extinct, in the Napo region at any 

 late. The Indians use the feathers for decoroAing their 

 nveapons and persons, wliile from the bills they carve 

 ■quaint necklaces. The bare skin around the eye is 

 shaded Oxford blue. Indian name, ' Dumbiqui.' When 

 we were on the Napo we only met this Toucan singly or 

 in pairs." 



The first ex)ample of Cuvier's Toucan reached the 

 London Zoological Gardens in December, 1871, and a 

 second in October, 1875 ; it has also been represented 

 in the Berlin Gardens. 



Keel-billed TonciN {Bhamjjhastos culminatus). 

 A smaller repnesentative of the preceding, with much 

 smaller and dift'erently sliaped bill. Hab., "Eastern 

 Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Colombia." (Sclater.) 

 I have fO'Und no notes on the wild life of this bird. A 

 sijecimen arrived at the Berlin Zoological Gardens in 

 1897. 



Ariel Toucan (BhampJuxstos ariel). 



Black; upper tail-coverts scarlet; whole throat and 

 neck orange ; a broad pectoral band and the imder tail- 

 coverts scarlet; bill black, with a basal yellow band, 

 the culmen blue-grey at base ; feet leaden-grey, with 

 black claws ; irides bluish ; naked orbital patch dark 

 red. Female with shorter bill, with shorter terminal 

 cuiTatm-e ; the flattened basal portion of tihe culmen 

 often considerably broiadei-, but this may not be a 

 reiiable character. Hab., Eastern Brazil, 



Burmeister (" Systematisohe Uebersicht," Vol, II,, 

 p, 206) says : " In the coastal forest region this species 

 is the commonest ; one even meets with it in tihe vicinity 

 of Bio de Janeiro, and especially in the forests on the 

 Organ Mountains. At Neiw Freiibm'g I have seen many 

 examples, and once also a young bird which was fed 

 Avith potatoes, mandioc, and Spanis-h potatoes. The 

 Brazilans frequently ti-ap the bitxi, becaaise its flesh 

 atfords them agreeaible food. Cooked with rice, the 

 disli resembles a good pigeon broth, and is quite tasty. 

 By the Indians the beautiful yellow gorget is especially 

 utilised as an adornment, but the bird is in like maimer 

 generally eaten by them." 



This "bird first arrived at the London Zooloigical 

 Gkwdenis in 1859, since when nuany have come to hand ; 

 it reached the AmsteaxJam Gardens still earliea- — in 1853. 

 Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria possessed it in 1878, when 

 it was to be seen in most natm-a)li6its' establishments ; 



