FAMILY VIREONIDAE 



199 



musical, whistled phrases, each repeated for many minutes, until a new 

 phrase is taken up and repeated, the entire performance lasting for 

 hours. There is great variety in the total series of songs. 



Where it occurs in tall forest, the peppershrike often forages up 

 high. In Costa Rica, Skutch (Publ. Nuttall Orn. Club, no. 7, 1967, p. 

 124) several times observed peppershrikes feeding on fat caterpillars, 

 which were held beneath one foot while pieces were torn off and swal- 

 lowed, a habit shared with shrike-vireos and true vireos. The nest is 

 likewise similar to that of the true vireos; the highest one Skutch found 

 was 9 m from the ground — although the birds foraged much higher in 

 the surrounding trees — a cup hung by its rim from a forked branch, 

 in typical vireo fashion. 



Figure 18. — Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Pajaro Perico, Cyclarhis gujanensis. 



The characters of each race found in Panama are given below, but it 

 should be added that some forms intergrade; 2 birds from Aguadulce 

 and El Potrero, Code, are intermediate between C. g. flarens and perry- 

 goi in the extent of yellow on the undersurface. 



On May 29-31, 1971, Eisenmann (in litt.) saw 2 or 3 individuals 

 singing at Playa Coronado, western Province of Panama, in tall, 

 planted trees, and a pair on visits on January 31, 1973, and March 27, 

 1974. On earlier visits during the 1940's to 1960's when the natural 

 vegetation was scrubby and planted trees were much younger and lower, 

 he did not notice this species. The song resembled those heard in the 

 western Chiriqui highlands. N. G. Smith told Eisenmann that he had 



