23O BIRDS OF THE REPUBLIC OF PANAMA PART 4 



low 300 m, near Montijo Bay, Veraguas. On Barro Colorado Island in 

 the Canal Zone, where the population is intermediate between nominate 

 decurtatus and darienensis, Willis and Eisenmann (Smiths. Cont. Zool. 

 no. 291, 1979, p. 26) found it "very common in the treetops, often the 

 center of mixed flocks there or in groups of its own kind." The Smith- 

 sonian has specimens from several locations in Chiriqui, including 

 Puerto Armuelles on the coast and El Volcan at 1320 m; from Bocas 

 del Toro at Almirante and Isla Bastimentos; Sona and Puerto Vidal in 

 Veraguas; Pedasi in Los Santos; El Valle and El Cope in Code; and 

 Rio Indio in Colon. 



There is little information on the breeding of this bird in Panama. 

 E. A. Goldman's notes include the mention of a female "in breeding 

 condition" taken at Gatun, Canal Zone, on April 26, 1911. Stone (Proc. 

 Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, vol. 70, 1918, p. 273) lists "male and 

 young" collected at Gatun on June 25 and July 4, 1911. Fortunately, 

 Skutch (Pacific Coast Avif., no. 34, 1960, pp. 29-34) has studied this 

 race in Costa Rica. After living 20 years where Lesser Greenlets were 

 abundant he found its nest in April of 1955. The nest was a deep cup 

 attached by its rim to two diverging branchlets of a large muneco 

 (Cordia) tree, 4.5 m above the ground. The structure was mainly 

 leaves, in strips or fragments, or whole if small, all held together and 

 attached to the branches by fibers and cobweb, and lined with a sparse 

 layer of vegetable fibers. Outside dimensions were 8.9 cm in height by 

 6.4 cm in diameter at the top; the interior was 4.5 cm in both diameter 

 and depth. The eggs were not laid until a week after the nest was com- 

 pleted. The two eggs, laid a day apart, were "white, scarcely glossy, 

 spotted and blotched with pale brown, heavily on the large end and 

 sparingly elsewhere. They measured 17.5 by 13.5 and 18.3 by 13.5 

 millimeters." 



Incubation took 16 days and when the young hatched they were de- 

 void of down; the interior of their mouths was yellow. The young 

 were periodically brooded by the female, but fed by both parents, who 

 brought them insects and spiders. At 6 days of age the young had 

 prominent pin feathers, although still no down, and their eyes were 

 partially open. Three days later feathers covered most of their bodies; 

 at 12 days they left the nest, with 1 flying about 8 m in its first flight. 



HYLOPHILUS DECURTATUS DARIENENSIS (Griscom) 



P achy sylvia minor darienensis Griscom, 1927, Amer. Mus. Novit, no. 282, p. 7. 

 (Cape Garachine, eastern Panama.) 



Characters. — Crown yellowish olive. 



