FAMILY PS1TTACIDAE 73 



Measurements. — Males (8 specimens from Panama and Colombia), 

 wing 227-241 (234.4), tail 191-242 (222), culmen from cere 36.7-41.6 

 (39.2), tarsus 21.8-27.6 (24.3) mm. 



Females (8 from Panama and Colombia), wing 220-241 (230), 

 tail 190-245 (218, average of 7), culmen from cere 36.4-39.8 (38.1), 

 tarsus 21.1-24.7 (23.3) mm. 



Resident. Locally fairly common in the Tropical Zone of Darien, 

 especially in the middle and upper valleys of the Rio Tuira (Rio 

 Seteganti on Cerro Pirre, Boca de Paya, Pucro), and the Rio 

 Chucunaque (mouth of Rio Tuquesa). Formerly found in the north- 

 ern Canal Zone (Lion Hill). 



The only record outside eastern Darien is of a bird McLeannan 

 forwarded when he was stationed at Lion Hill (Lawrence, Ann. Lye. 

 Nat. Hist. New York, vol. 7, 1862, p. 474). I found them fairly 

 common in 1959 near the mouth of the Rio Paya, in 1961 on the 

 forested slopes of Cerro Pirre, and in 1964 on the Rio Pucro. They 

 were seen usually in pairs in morning and late afternoon flight over 

 the forest. Occasionally small groups fed on figs in the high tree 

 crown, where they clambered about slowly, often hidden among the 

 leaves. Their voices are higher pitched than those of the larger species, 

 and have a drawling, somewhat complaining tone. Occasionally, from 

 early February to early March I saw pairs about holes high in dead 

 trees. A female taken at Boca de Paya on February 26 was laying. 

 An egg in the Nehrkorn collection measures 38.4 X 30.4 ( Schonwetter, 

 Handb. Ool., pt. 9, 1964, p. 516). 



Bangs and Penard (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, vol. 62, 1918, p. 47) 

 separated the birds of northwestern South America as a race castanei- 

 frons Lafresnaye (1847) on supposed larger size, but our series from 

 Panama and Colombia includes the dimensions that they cite for their 

 specimens from Guiana. The type locality of Psittacns severus 

 Linnaeus was designated by Hellmayr in 1906 as the "Amazon River," 

 which antedates the proposal for "Colombia" of Brabourne and Chubb 

 (Birds South Amer., 1912, p. 80). 



ARATINGA FINSCHI (Salvin) : Finsch's Parakeet; 

 Perico Frentirrojo 



Conurus finschi Salvin, Ibis, ser. 3, vol. 1, January 1871, p. 91, pi. 4. (Bugaba, 

 Chiriqui, Panama.) 



Largest of the parakeets of Panama; green, with red forehead; 

 immature birds often lack the red. 

 Description. — Length 250-270 mm. Adult (sexes alike), forehead 



