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BIRDS OF 1 HE REPUBLIC OF PANAMA PART 4 



race is also found in the highlands of Honduras and Costa Rica; other 

 races occur in Mexico and from Colombia and Venezuela to Bolivia. 



Almost nothing is known of this species. In Costa Rica, it is reported 

 to travel in small flocks feeding on the ground in the lush grass of pas- 

 tures, but near cover of forest (Ridgely, op. cit.). The ones Leek 

 caught were in a mist net set along a small stream in a wooded area. 



ACANTHIDOPS BAIRDI Ridgway: Peg-billed Finch, Pinzon Piquiagudo 



Acanthidops bairdi Ridgway, 1882, Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus. 4, p. 336. (Volcan de 

 Irazu, Costa Rica.) 



Small; adult male mostly dark slate gray; female olive-brown on 

 upper surface, somewhat warmer and burner on undersurface. 



Description. — Length 142-145 mm. Adult male, upper surface dark 

 slate gray, slightly lighter on rump and upper tail coverts, remiges and 

 rectrices blackish; undersurface lighter slate gray, tinged with buff on 

 center of belly and undertail coverts. 



Adult female, upper surface olive-brown; remiges and rectrices 

 dusky; middle and greater wing coverts tipped with brown; throat and 

 breast grayish olive tinged with buff and indistinctly streaked darker; 

 abdomen and undertail coverts buffy, becoming darker brown on flanks. 



Immature male, like adult female. 



Measurements.— Males (2 from Costa Rica), wing 68.0-68.5 (68.3), 

 tail 58.4-58.6 (58.5), culmen from base 15.6-16.2 (15.9), tarsus 18.5- 

 20.4 (19.5) mm. 



Female (1, from Ridgway, Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., no. 50, 1901, part 

 1, p. 519), wing 63.5, tail 52.1, exposed culmen 13.2, tarsus 20.3 mm. 



The Peg-billed Finch is known in Panama from a series of sightings 

 in January through March 1979, when as many as 200 were seen per 

 day in forest along the Boquete Trail above Cerro Punta, Chiriqui, at 

 2000-2300 m by V. Emanuel and Ridgely (in litt.). All were feeding 

 on seeding Chusquea. Recognizable photographs were taken by D. 

 Galinat. The maximum number seen was more than 200, in late Janu- 

 ary, by John Arvin. By March, the number had declined — on March 

 21, Ridgely found only about 25, although he suspected there may have 

 been more at higher elevations. No birds have been found there since. 



This species was previously known only from the highlands of Costa 

 Rica, where it is rare (Slud, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., vol. 128, 

 1964, p. 380) . There it is found above the timberline near the summit 

 of volcanoes. Its fine bill suggests it may take insects as well as seeds, 



