of American Thamnophili. S5 



tiions are feeble and indecisive, still it is the wisest plan that a 

 judicious writer can adopt. 



Most of the birds I am about to describe, were collected during 

 my travels in Brazil, in the years 1815 and 1816. Since that 

 time, I have been informed that a sumptuous work on the Zoo- 

 logy of that country has been commenced under tlie immediate 

 auspices of the Austrian government, and that several other ac- 

 counts of Brazilian productions, in one form or other, have issued 

 from the presses of Berlin and Vienna. None of these, as far as 

 I can learn, are in this country ; so that whether they do or do not 

 contain antecedent descriptions to those which follow, I am quite 

 unprepared to state. 



THAMNOPIIILUS. 



Rostrum validum, comprcssum, gonyde recurva ascendcnte. 

 Vibrissae nulla?. 



AlcB breves, imbelles, rotundatE. 



Cauda elougata, gradata vcl rotundata, rectricibus fasciculatis, 

 angustis. 



Tarsi robusti, squamis lateralibus frequentibus. 



General Observations, 



The habits of these birds, as well as their scientific liistory, * 

 have already been alluded to. They may be considered as chietly 

 inhabiting the tropical regions of the new world, having a range 

 to the north as far as Canada, and to the south as far as Paraguay. 

 It is somewhat remarkable, that from the interior of Mexico, not 

 a single species has reached this country. The immense elevation 

 of the table land on the Mexican Cordilleras, where the tempera- 

 ture closely assimilates to that of the south of Europe, may pro- 

 bably account for this j particularly as we find that the nearer we 

 approach Equinoctial America, the more abundant are the species. 



The prevalent colours are black, grey, and rufous, variegated 

 by spots and bands of white, or other light colours. The Ming- 

 covers are generally black, tipt by round spots of a snowy white- 



* Zool. Journal, Vol. 1, p. 297. 



