292 BIRDS OF THE REPUBLIC OF PANAMA PART 2 



an attractive ornament. Though usually they feed low down, often 

 they rest on high perches in trees. Here the males call, a double, 

 chipping note, that is repeated steadily for a considerable period. 



Though the body is fairly heavy the leg muscles seem slight and 

 weak. 



When Heine named this bird in honor of his friend and professor 

 Dr. Jean Cabanis, he was particular in using the form cabanidis with 

 the following statement — "denn so, nicht Cabanisi muss der Genitiv 

 dieses Namens nach der eigenen Ansicht seines Tragers gebildet 

 werden." 



Skutch (Nuttall Orn. Club, Publ. no. 7, 1967, pp. 22-39) gives 

 a detailed life history of the species as a whole remarking (p. 32) 

 "Over vast stretches of territory in the highlands of tropical America, 

 from Mexico far South into the Andes, the squeaky song of the 

 Violet-ear is one of the most prevalent of natural sounds through a 

 large part of the year." Five geographic races of the species have 

 been recognized in the area outlined. The one found in western 

 Panama, cabanidis, extends also into the highlands of Costa Rica. 

 The major part of Dr. Skutch's observations relate to the nominate 

 form of Mexico and Guatemala. In Costa Rica he found that the 

 subspecies cabanidis built a more bulky cup-shaped nest than the 

 more northern bird, that differed also (p. 34) in being "attached to 

 downward-drooping stems or dangling roots or vines, whereas . . . 

 Guatemalan nests, made by the nominate subspecies, were on hori- 

 zontal limbs of cypress saplings." The only eggs described by Skutch 

 are those of the northern form. Three complete sets of 2 each 

 measured as follows: 13.1-13.9x8.7-9.1 mm. 



ANTHRACOTHORAX PREVOSTII VERAGUENSIS Reichenbach: 

 Prevost's Mango, Mango de Prevost 



Anthracothorax veragnensis Reichenbach, Troch. Enum., July 18, 1855, p. 9. 

 based on his plate "793" (error = 794), no. 4848. ("Veragua," type locality 

 here designated as David, Chiriqui.) 



Description. — Length 115-118 mm. Adult male, above metallic 

 green to bronzy green, including wing coverts ; upper tail coverts 

 usually bluish green ; central rectrices coppery green ; other rectrices 

 maroon, edged with bluish black ; wings brownish slate, with narrow 

 carpal edge dull white ; chin and f oreneck metallic emerald-green, 

 the feathers black basally, occasionally with this showing as an 

 indistinct spot ; breast and central abdomen greenish blue ; sides like 

 back • under wing coverts duller green ; under tail coverts dusky, 



