530 CUCTJLID^. 



above, darker beneath, and with the under surface of the tail black ; P. mexicana, on 

 the other hand, is light rufous above and has a rufous tail beneath, the white terminal 

 spots being banded inwardly by a black subterminal bar. 



The ranges of the two birds are also distinct, P. cayana being found in Eastern 

 Mexico and thence southwards to the Isthmus of Panama, whence it spreads in various 

 forms over nearly the whole of South America as far as South Brazil and Paraguay. 

 P. mexicana, on the other hand, is restricted to Western Mexico, and is not found 

 elsewhere within our region. The only difficulty that arises is that on the Isthmus of 

 Tehuantepec we find intermediate birds which have a rusty tint over the under surface 

 of the tail-feathers, and thus we have a case similar to what we find in Melanerpes 

 santacruzi (antea, p. 421) and also in Psilorhinus morio and P. mexicanus, where forms 

 mingle along their respective boundaries. In the present case, as in the others referred 

 to, we think it best to treat each form as distinct, recording the fact that a certain 

 amount of mixture takes place where the two come in contact. 



P. cayana is a common species throughout our region from the Mexican State 

 of Tamaulipas southwards. It keeps to the eastern side of the mountains, as far 

 south as the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, where it also crosses to the Pacific coast, and 

 is the only form throughout the. rest of Central America, In altitude it ranges from 

 the sea-level to a height of at least 6000 feet in the mountains of the interior. 

 Though strictly arboreal in its habits, P. cayana is not restricted to any particular kind 

 of forest, but frequents the trees on the margins of clearings, sometimes resting close 

 to the ground, at others amongst the upper branches. It is also found in the woody 

 margins of streams. It is a bird that usually sits quietly on a bough ; but both 

 Mr. Richmond ^^ and Mr. Cherrie ^^ mention a habit it has of running along the 

 boughs of trees, and thus resembles a squirrel, so much so that in Costa Rica it is 

 called " Pajaro Ardilla," or Squirrel -bird. It also, from its tameness, is called " Bobo," 

 or Foolish bird. 



Mr. Nutting says it is silent and solitary, but when disturbed utters a loud harsh 

 note at regular intervals and flits its tail with angry jerks. The same observer says 

 that the cry of this Cuckoo is fi'equently heard around San Juan del Sur. In Yucatan 

 Dr. Gaumer says ^^ it is a common bird, and he is the only observer that speaks of its 

 habit of frequenting the neighbourhood of hive-bees and feeding freely on them, taking 

 them when resorting to flowers in search of honey. 



Mr. Cherrie ^^ describes the nest from the notes of Senor Alfaro, who found one 

 amongst some scraggy trees on the banks of the Rio de Poas in Costa Rica. The 

 female bird, which he shot, was sitting on the nest, but flew to a short distance on 

 being disturbed. The nest was placed about nine feet from the ground in the branches 

 of a small tree, and Avas well hidden by the broad leaves of a climbing plant. It 

 was constructed of decayed leaves, and could not be preserved. The two eggs were 

 opaque white without markings, elliptical-oval in shape, and measured 35x24 and 

 33 X 24 millim. 



