VENEZUELAN ORNITHOLOGY — ^FRIEDMANN AND SMITH 507 



were placed under the eaves of houses, and in the crotch formed by 

 the basal portion of palm leaves. 



Muscivora tyrannus (Linnaeus) 



Muscicapa tyrannus Linnaeus, Systema naturae, ed. 12, vol. 1, 1766, p. 325 

 (Surinam). 



Two races of the fork-tailed flycatcher are here involved. For the 

 sake of clarity and convenience we shall list the specimens under each 

 of the two races and then combine the discussion of both. 



Muscivora tyrannus tyrannus (Linnaeus) 



Muscicapa tyrannus Linnaeus, Systema naturae, ed. 12, vol. 1, 1766, p. 325 

 (Surinam). 

 2 cf , 3 9 , Cantaura, August 4, 6, 12, 1950, and July 17, 1952; all birds are 

 young; all with small gonads and incompletely ossified skulls; iris dark brown; 

 bill black with the remnant of the gape dull yellow; feet black. 



Muscivora tyrannus tnonachus (Hartlaub) 



Tyrannus (Milvulus) mon,achus Hartlaub, Rev. Zool., vol. 7, 1844, p. 214 (Guate- 

 mala) . 



2 d^ adults, Caicara, May 15, July 20, 1952; gonads small in July specimen; 

 fairly enlarged in May bird. 



1 nestling, partly grown, Caicara, May 26, 1952; iris brown; bill and feet brown. 



1 nest, Caicara, May 26, 1952. 



Apparently, there is little information in literature about the nesting 

 of the fork-tailed flycatcher M. tyrannus, except in the southern part 

 of its range in Argentina. In fact, even the breeding in Venezuela of 

 the resident race, M. tyrannus monachus (Hartlaub), appears to be 

 unsubstantiated. Cherrie (1916, p. 246) fails to include it in his long 

 list of birds breeding in the Orinoco region. Chubb (1921, vol. 2, 

 p. 237) states that its nesting is unknown in British Guiana. Belcher 

 and Smooker (1937, p. 228) did not find it breeding in Trinidad. 

 Zimmer (1937, p. 6) was unable to determine whether it breeds in 

 Venezuela and, as a matter of fact, appears to have had at hand only 

 one breeding record for Colombia, that of Salmon (no date). In 

 discussing the breeding range of M. tyrannus tyrannus (Linnaeus), 

 Zimmer based his conclusions on plumage and gonadal condition, as 

 no eggs or nests were available. Dugand apparently has not treated 

 the problem, nor, for that matter, has Phelps, except to consider 

 monxichus as the resident race of Venezuela, and tyrannus as the 

 migrant race from austral South America (Phelps and Phelps, 1950). 

 Considering the striking appearance and the relative abundance of 

 this flycatcher, as well as the accessibility of its habitat, the paucity 

 of information regarding its breeding habits is indeed surprising. 



Therefore, we believe it of interest to record that a nest of the 

 resident race, M. tyrannus monachus, was found at Caicara, Monagas, 



