26 Mr. Ambrose A. Lane — Field-Notes 



in the provinces of Valparaiso and Santiago. I do not know 

 how far northward it extends — perhaps to the commencement 

 of the desert region; but as one travels from the above 

 provinces southward it is found in quantities, as morasses 

 and swamps are plentiful ; and this continues to Arauco, 

 where it is numerous and resident on the coast. I did not 

 find these birds so plentiful about Valdivia, and further 

 south they are scarce and perhaps only occur as summer 

 migrants, I believe they occur in Chiloe and on the adjacent 

 mainland. I found them near the Rio Bueno. 



The female is somewhat smaller than the male^and different 

 in colour ; the latter being a deep blacky all except the first 

 set of scapulars on each shoulder ; so that when seated the 

 bird appears all black, but the yellow shows strikingly when 

 it flies. They appeared to me to be altogether insectivorous, 

 probably feeding chiefly on some kind of grubs or aquatic 

 insects ; they feed on wet mudbanks and amongst sedge. One 

 day when at Hospital (province of O'Higgins) I watched a 

 female " Trile '' running along the muddy border of a small 

 river. It turned over all the small stones, leaves, bits of 

 stick, &c., with its bill, just like a Turnstone. As I had at 

 the time a good pair of field-glasses, I was able to watch it 

 closely. 



These birds have a peculiar smell about their plumage, 

 common to other Starlings, but possessed by them in a more 

 marked degree than Trupialis militaris and Curaus ateiTimus. 



I did not observe their breeding-habits. Except for their 

 call-note and a few others, they do not seem to be possessed 

 of any vocal abilities. I heard that they could be kept in 

 confinement. 



18. Trupialis militaris (Linn.). 



Trupialis militaris, Sclater, B. M. C. xi. p. 356. 



(Hacienda Mansel, Calle-calle, and Colico.) 



This bird, known in Chili as the " Loica " or " Loyca,'^ is 

 plentiful in all the central provinces and extends southward 

 to Chiloe and the adjacent mainland, wherever suitable 

 localities exist. 



