28 BIRDS OF THE REPUBLIC OF PANAMA — PART 2 



tail 56.1-61.9 (59.7), culmen 11.5-137 (12.5), tarsus 16.5-17.5 (17.1) 

 mm. 



Resident. Common throughout the lowlands, except in regions of 

 heavy forest. Appears in forested areas as soon as clearings are made ; 

 apparently also is extending upward over mountain slopes with in- 

 crease in agriculture ; Isla Cebaco. 



Blake (Fieldiana: Zool., vol. 36, 1958, p. 510) recorded 1 male and 

 2 females taken by Monniche at 1,350 meters, near Quiel above Bo- 

 quete, November 8, 1934, and October 24, 1937. None were collected 

 here by W. W. Brown, Jr., in 1901. On the western slope of the 

 volcano in 1954 and 1955 I found them at 650 meters above Concep- 

 tion, and on March 20, 1965, I saw 2 at 1,250 meters above the Rio 

 Chiriqui Viejo at Palo Santo. 



This small dove is seen regularly in early morning in pairs or small 

 flocks on open roadways where they walk quickly with steadily nodding 

 heads, their footprints making a lacy pattern in dusty soil. When 

 approached they stand or crouch motionless, and then rise quickly with 

 a flutter of sound and a flash of brown from the underside of the 

 wings. As the sun warms the cooler air of early morning, little groups 

 fly up to open branches to bask in its pleasant heat. In country sec- 

 tions, particularly on the Pacific side of the Isthmus, their double-noted 

 cooing calls, coo-ah coo-ah, are heard in steady, monotonous repetition 

 throughout the day. Where their food of seeds is abundant 50 to 100 

 or more may congregate. 



While there seems to be a principal breeding season from February 

 to May, nesting may begin in late December or early January and 

 continue even as late as the middle of August. As mated pairs walk 

 quickly on open ground the male at intervals makes a quick hop of a 

 few centimeters, with both feet together, that brings him to the side 

 of the female. In other displays he walks with the tail held at an angle 

 above the back, or he may stand briefly, quickly flitting the tips of his 

 wings. Nests are placed in shrubs or low trees, usually from 1 to 6 

 or 7 meters from the ground. According to observations by Skutch 

 (Condor, 1956, pp. 159-196) the male brings small sticks and straws 

 to the female to arrange for the nest, or, if she is away, places them 

 himself. The usual finished structure is loosely made and often flimsy, 

 with the open cavity shallow. The eggs are white with a faint gloss. 

 The normal set is 2, with 1 found in some instances. A single egg sent 

 to me by Dr. Pedro Galindo, collected at Almirante, Bocas del Toro, 

 April 5, 1962, measures 22.5x16.9 mm. Near El Real, Darien, on 

 January 27, 1964, 1 found a nest in a rancho built for shelter in a small 



