THE RED RUMPED TANAGER 



N American family, the Tan- 

 agers are mostly birds of 

 very brilliant plumage. 

 There are 300 species, 

 a few being tropical birds. They are 

 found in British and French Guiana, 

 living in the latter country in open 

 spots of dwellings and feeding on 

 bananas and other fruits. They are 

 also said to do much harm in the 

 rice fields. 



In "The Auk," of July, 1893, Mr. 

 George K. Cherrie, of the Field Mus- 

 eum, says of the Red-Ruinped Tanager. 



" During my stay at Boruca and 

 Palmar, (the last of February) the 

 breeding season was at its height, and 

 I observed many of the Costa Rica 

 Red-Rumps nesting. In almost every 

 instance where possible I collected 

 both parents of the nests, and in the 

 majority of cases found the males wear- 

 ing, the same dress as the females. 

 In a few instances the male was in 

 mottled plumage, evidently just assum- 

 ing the adult phase, and in a lesser 

 number of examples the male was in 

 fully adult plumage — velvety black 

 and crimson red. From the above it 

 is clear that the males begin to breed 

 before they attain fully adult plumage, 

 and that they retain the dress of the 

 female until, at least, the beginning 

 of the second year. 



"While on this trip I had many 

 proofs that, in spite of its rich plumage, 

 and being a bird of the tropics, 

 it is well worthy to hold a place of 



honor among the song birds. And 

 if the bird chooses an early hour 

 and a secluded spot for expressing its 

 happiness, the melody is none the less 

 delightful. At the little village of 

 Buenos Aires, on the Rio Grande of 

 Terraba, I heard the song more fre- 

 quently than at any other point. 

 Close by the ranch house at which we 

 were staying, there is a small stream 

 bordered by low woods and under- 

 brush, that formed a favorite resort for 

 the birds. Just below the ranch is a 

 convenient spot where we took our 

 morning bath. I was always there 

 just as the day was breaking. On the 

 opposite bank was a small open space 

 in the brush occupied by the limbs of 

 a dead tree. On one of these branches, 

 and always the same one, was the spot 

 chosen by a Red-rump to pour forth 

 his morning song. Some mornings I 

 found him busy with his music when 

 I arrived, and again he would be a few 

 minutes behind me. Sometimes he 

 would come from one direction, some- 

 times from another, but he always 

 alighted at the same spot and then 

 lost no time in commencing his song. 

 While singing, the body was swayed to 

 and fro, much after the manner of a 

 canary while singing. The song would 

 last for perhaps half an hour, and then 

 away the singer would go. I have not 

 enough musical ability to describe the 

 song, but will say that often I remained 

 standing quietly for a long time, only 

 that I might listen to the music." 



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