574 Annals of the Carnegie Museum. 



up to 3,000 feet (rarely above 1,500) on the Caribbean side and about 

 800 feet on the Pacific. They seldom leave the heavy forests, and 

 are usually seen in the tops of the highest trees, unless they are acci- 

 dently encountered feeding in a low one. They have the habit of 

 perching on a lofty dead or exposed limb, where they may remain per- 

 fectly quiet for some time. Their note is rather pleasing, but has a 

 melancholy tone, especially when heard in the evening just about dusk, 

 at which time they always call. The note also has a marked ventrilo- 

 quistic quality, rendering it very difficut to locate a bird which is heard 

 calling, for one moment it seems to be high up in a tree, and the next 

 down on the ground. Fruits of various kinds form their entire source 

 of food. 



306. Pteroglossus torquatus (Gmelin). 



Rhamphastus torquatus Gmelin, Syst. Nat., I, 1788, 354. 



Pteroglossus torquatus Wagler, Isis, 1829, 508. — Cabanis, Jour, fur Orn., 

 1862, 331 (San Miguel and Sarapiqui [Frantzius]). — Cassin, Proc. Acad. 

 Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, no (Angostura and Turrialba [Carmiol]). — Law- 

 rence, Ann. Lye. N. Y., IX, 1868, 129 (Angostura and Turrialba [J. Car- 

 miol]). — Frantzius, Jour, fur Orn., 1869, 316 (Angostura and Turrialba). 

 — Boucard, P. Z. S., 1878, 46 (San Carlos, common). — Nutting, Proc. 

 U. S. Nat. Mus., V, 1882, 401 (La Palma de Nicoya). — Zeledon, An. Mus. 

 Nac. de C. R., I, 1887, 123 (Naranjo de Cartago, Jimenez, and Liberia). — 

 Sclater, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., XIX, 1891, 141 (Bebedero [Arce]). — 

 Underwood, Ibis, 1896, 445 (Miravalles). — ■ Salvin and Godman, Biol. 

 Centr.-Am., Aves, II, 1896 (Mexico to Venezuela). 



U. S. Nat. Museum: Guayabo and Bonilla (Ridgway and Zeledon). 

 Bangs Collection : Bolson, Tenorio, Jimenez (Underwood). 

 Carnegie Museum: Guapiles (Carriker & Crawford); Guacimo, Car- 



rillo, El Hogar, Miravalles (Carriker). Ten skins. 



Two skins of this species from Santa Marta, Colombia, have the 

 black spot on the chest very pronounced (as in Pteroglossus frantzii) 

 while in Costa Rican birds it is only present as a very small spot in two 

 skins out often. Birds from British Honduras resemble those from Costa 

 Rica, but two skins out of four examined having a small spot, while all 

 have the chest very red, much more so than any of the Costa Rican or 

 Colombian birds. 



This species is present over the whole of the Caribbean lowlands, 

 up to about 3,000 feet, and on the Pacific side only from the Gulf of 

 Nicoya northward. On the Pacific slope it does not go much above 

 1,500 feet, and is rare above 1,000 feet. It frequents open wood- 



