Todd-Carriker : Birds of Santa Marta Region, Colombia. 463 



Arbelorhina cyanea eximia Bangs Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, XII, 1898, 143 



(" Santa Marta "). 

 Cyanerpes cyanea eximea (sic) Allen, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., XIII, 1900, 



173 (Bonda, Cacagualito, and Minca). 

 Cyanerpes cyaneus eximia (sic) Chapman, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., XXXIV, 



I 9 I 5, 656, in text (Bonda; meas.). 

 Cyanerpes cyaneus Ridgway, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 50, II, 1902, 386 



("Santa Marta"; meas.; crit). 



Additional records: Tucurinca (Carriker). 



Thirty-nine specimens : Bonda, Cacagualito, Minca, Mamatoco, La 

 Tigrera, Las Vegas, and Don Diego. 



These are inseparable from Venezuelan specimens coming from near 

 the type-locality of eximius, having the same long bills. In color they 

 are precisely the same as Central American skins ; in fact, the latter 

 can be distinguished only by having shorter bills on an average, but 

 numerous examples are quite alike in this respect also, and with the 

 range of individual variation thus so great it is a grave question 

 whether it is profitable to recognize either eximius or cameipes as dis- 

 tinct races. Certainly neither can be distinguished by the color of the 

 females, as claimed by Dr. Oberholser {Auk, XVI, 1899, 13), for, 

 as shown by the present series, this is a variable feature in birds from 

 all regions. Moreover, a series from French Guiana, which may, we 

 think, be considered fairly typical of cyaneus, are not certainly dis- 

 tinguishable from the Colombian and Venezuelan birds. 



This gorgeous little bird is found from sea-level up to 3,500 feet 

 on all sides of the mountains, although it is more numerous below 

 2,500 feet, preferring as it does the region of the Lower Tropical Zone. 

 It was very common, for instance, at Minca and Don Diego, favoring ,< 

 the more open " dry forest," especially where tracts of savanna were 

 found. It goes about in pairs or flocks, often ten to twenty birds to- 

 gether, which are quite tame, and not easily frightened away, although 

 when they do go they often fly a long distance. Like its cousin, C. 

 cccruleus cceruleus, it has the habit of frequenting trees in blossom or 

 those bearing small berry-like fruits. There is one species of tree, 

 confined to the savannas, which bears a small fruit filled with red 

 seeds, of which these birds are inordinately fond, gorging themselves 

 to the point of sluggishness. The writer has never been able to lo- 

 cate a nest of either species of this genus. 

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