420 '- PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM VOL, 97 
The genus Ametrornis proposed for this species because of its nearly 
straight bill seems too slightly characterized to be maintained as 
distinct from Phaethornis. 
Griscom and Greenway (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., vol. 88, 1941, 
pp. 168-169) consider the birds of the Guianas and Mount Duida 
as a different race, whitelyi Boucard, 1891, distinguished by its more 
uniformly pale mouse brown underparts. If this be maintained by 
further material, our Venezuelan birds, coming from fairly near to 
Mount Duida, would have to be considered whitelyi. The problem 
then would be to place the Brazilian specimens. They are not in 
plumage condition to allow for subspecific identification, but are less 
uniform below than are the Venezuelan birds. If the usual distribu- 
tional pattern apply in this species the Upper Rio Negro population 
would be the same as the Upper Orinoco one. In that event whitelyi 
would include these northwestern Brazilian birds. Griscom and 
Greenway mention an intermediate example from Caqueté, 
Colombia, which would be in keeping with such an arrangement. 
Apparently the only previous Brazilian records for the species are 
Natterer’s one from Marabitanas on the Rio Negro, and a male 
from Caxiricatuba, Rio Tapajdéz, listed by Griscom and Greenway. 
If we accept the restriction of the type locality to the Rio Tapajéz 
(why not make it Caxiricatuba to be more exact, while about it?) 
the range of the nominate form, if whitelyi were to be recognized, 
would be: the Tapajéz to the Lower Rio Negro and westward to 
eastern Ecuador and Peru; and whitelyi would extend from the 
Guianas to southern Venezuela and possibly to adjacent areas of the 
Upper Rio Negro in Brazil. 
PHAETHORNIS RUBER EPISCOPUS Gould: Bishop Hermit 
Phaethornis episcopus Goud, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1857, p. 14 (Demerara, 
British Guiana). 
SPECIMENS COLLECTED 
1 im.—, Venezuela, Chapazon, right bank Brazo Casiquiare, January 30, 1931. 
lad. 9, Venezuela, Cerro Guanari, Brazo Casiquiare, February 4, 1931. 
1 im. o, 1 im.—, Venezuela, Brazo Casiquiare below mouth of Rio Pacila, 
February 13, 1931. 
1 ad. co’, Venezuela, Puerto Ayacucho, Rfo Orinoco, January 2, 1930. 
The adult male was noted as being in breeding condition when 
collected. 
The total comparative material available for study when identifying 
these specimens has been rather meagre, and the results arrived at. 
by Hellmayr (Nov. Zool., vol. 14, 1907, pp. 75-76) have been followed 
as best fitting the material seen. The present examples are mostly in 
poor condition, making it impossible to study them very critically. 
