﻿VENEZUELAN ORNITHOLOGY — FRIEDMANN AND SMITH 497 



Gilliard, that additional material may well reveal other separable 

 groups at present kept under the name griseus. 



This bird was found once at the edge of open woods. The example 

 collected was the only one seen. 



DENDKOCINCLA FUUGINOSA MERULOIDES (Lafresnaye) 



Dendrocops meruloides Lafresnaye, Rev. Mag. Zool., ser. 2, vol. 3, 1851, p. 467 

 ("Cote ferine" = vicinity of Cumand, Bermudez, northeastern Venezuela). 



SPECIMEN COLLECTED 



1 9 , Caicara, November 4, 1947; gonads small; iris light brown, bill with 

 maxilla blackish, mandible blue-gray, feet blue-gray; gizzard contained insects, 

 plumage somewhat abraded. 



This bird was found but once, in deep, wet woods. 



Family FURNARIIDAE: Spinetails, Ovenbirds 



SYNALLAXIS ALBESCENS TRINITATIS Zimmer 



Synallaxis albescens trinitatis Zimmer, Amer. Mus. Nov., No 819, 1935, p. 2 

 (Princestown, Trinidad Island). 



SPECIMEN COLLECTED 



1 9 , Cantaura, January 20, 1946; gonads slightly enlarged; iris very pale tan; 

 plumage fairly fresh. 



The forehead in our specimen is somewhat darker than in others 

 from El Sombrero, and Soledad. However, it is not a great difference, 

 but it may vaguely point to a variational trend southward toward 

 the characters of josephinae of southwestern Venezuela and British 

 Guiana. 



The collector noted that this bird had a habit of continually jerking 

 its tan up and down. The example collected was one of a pair (?) 

 seen doing this. 



This form was collected in a fairly open field. It was common in 

 overgrown fields at both Cantaura and Caicara, recorded throughout 

 the year. During the third week of July one was seen carrying nesting 

 material. 



The call was high phoebe note, not unlike the song of the North 

 American black-capped chickadee (Penthestes atricapillus) , although 

 somewhat harsher. Often this call was repeated again and again, 

 even in the heat of midday. 



PHACELLODOMUS RUFIFRONS INORNATUS Ridgway 



Phacellodomus inornatus Ridgway, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 10, 1887, p. 152 

 (Caracas, Venezuela). 



SPECIMENS COLLECTED 



1 cf, 1 9 , Caicara, December 19, 1945, and July 24, 1948; gonads not enlarged; 

 iris dull milk white in the male, brown in the female. 



