172 BIRDS OF THE REPUBLIC OF PANAMA PART 4 



Blanca, and Volcan, at elevations between 1800-3090 m. A male col- 

 lected by Hartman at Cerro Copete (2100 m), near Boquete is now in 

 the Smithsonian collections, and another male from El Salto (1740 m) , 

 also near Boquete is now in the California Academy of Sciences col- 

 lection. Bangs (Proc. New England Zool. Club, vol. 3, 1902, p. 58) 

 wrote that in May and June 1901, W. W. Brown "found this species 

 only at high altitudes [3000-3300 m] on Volcan de Chiriqui. The birds 

 were in small flocks, composed of adults and full-grown young still in 

 nestling plumage. Sometimes he saw one of these flocks leave the high 

 peak of the mountain and fly across the valleys in the direction of the 

 lofty Costa Rican mountains, which could be seen in the distance." 



Ridgely (in litt.) found small numbers at the Fortuna Dam site in 

 central Chiriqui, including several down to 1200 m, the lowest elevation 

 from which it has been recorded; Fortuna is also the easternmost lo- 

 cation from which it is known. 



Besides westernmost Panama, this species is found only in Costa 

 Rica, at similar elevations. 



I have encountered this bird several times on Volcan de Chiriqui and 

 at Cerro Punta. On February 25, 1955, I took a male in near breeding 

 condition at 2010 m in Bajo Grande, Cerro Punta. It was feeding on 

 the drupes of a small tree in partly open forest. The tongue was dis- 

 tinctly bifid at the tip like that of a titmouse. I saw these birds also on 

 Cerro Picacho above 1800 m, but found them so wild that they flew 

 before I could shoot. Their flight is swift and direct, but somewhat 

 undulating. 



Skutch (Auk, 1965, pp. 375-426) is the only one to have studied the 

 breeding biology of this species. From February to July 1963 he ob- 

 served several pairs in the trees around a large dairy farm on the 

 western end of the massif of Volcan Barba, in the Cordillera Central 

 of Costa Rica. Their diet was composed of large quantities of insects 

 caught in the air in long sallies and of berries, including those of 

 Fuchsia arborescens, Eurya thcoides, Citharexylum moccinnii, and a 

 mistletoe, all picked while the bird was perched. 



Long-tailed Silky-flycatchers are highly vocal but practically song- 

 less. The call most frequently heard is a dry che chip, che chip, given 

 both while perched and in flight. Another call given when taking off 

 and in flight is a long-drawn, dry che-e-e-e-e. The song, which Skutch 

 heard rarely, is composed of "low, lisping notes that were scarcely audi- 

 ble at a distance of 25 yards"; it was delivered by the male from a high, 

 exposed perch while his mate incubated. 



These birds are loosely social, often traveling in flocks of more than 



