TROGON SURUCURA, Viel.

Surucua Trogon.

X

SPECIFIC CHARACTER.

Mas. Trog. vertice, cervice, pectoreque wridescenti-viridibus ; facre guttureque nigris; dorso
saturate tridescenti-aureo-viridi in ceruleum ad uropygium vergente ; rectricihus intermediis
duabus cerulescenti-viridibus, duabus proximis utringue pogonits externis cerulescenti-viri-
dibus internis nigris, harum omnium apicibus nigris, reliquis dimidio basali nigro apicali
albo ; remigibus nigrescenti-brunners, albo ad pogonia externa fimbriatis ; secundariis alaque
supra negro alboque lineolatim punctatimque variis; abdominis medio tectricibusque caudee
mnferioribus coccineis.

Irides saturaté rufescenti-brunnee ; rostrum flavescenti-albidum ; pedes saturaté brunnei.

Foem. Fulginoso-cinerea ; ventre imo caudeque tectricibus inferioribus coceineis ; alis brunnes-
cente-nigris, remigibus albo fimbriatis, secundarits plumisque ceteris cinereo-albido fasciatis ;
rectricibus nigrescenti-brunneis ; intermediis sex nigro apiculatis, reliquis albo fimbriatis nis¢
basin versus pogoniorum internorum.

Rostrum cinereo-albidum.

Male. Crown of the head, back of the neck, and chest changeable green and violet; throat and
face black; back and upper tail-coverts deep changeable golden green, inclining to blue
on the rump; the two middle tail-feathers bluish green, the two next on each side with
their outer webs only bluish green, the inner black, the whole six upped with black; the
three outer feathers on each side have their basal half black, the remainder white ; prima-
ries blackish brown bordered with white on their exterior edges ; secondaries and upper
part of the wing freckled with markings of black and white ; centre of the abdomen and
under tail-coverts crimson scarlet; bill yellowish white; irides deep reddish brown; feet
dark brown.

Female. Whole of the head, neck, chest, back and rump sooty grey; lower part of the belly
and under tail-coverts scarlet ; wings brownish black, primaries edged with white; the
secondaries and upper part of the wings transversely rayed with greyish white ; six centre
tail-feathers blackish brown tipped with black, three outer feathers on each side blackish
brown margined on their exterior edges and partly so on their inner ones with white; bill
greyish white.

Total length, 102 inches; Sz//, 1; wing, 5; tawl, 5+; tarsi, 3.

Le Surucua, Azara, Voy. dans lAmérique Méridionale, tom. iv. No. ccnxx.

 

Tbid., Sonnini’s Translation, tom. iv. p. 41.
Trogon Surucura.  Vieill., L' Encyclopédie Méthodique, tom. 3. p. 1362.

 

I wave not the slightest hesitation in asserting this species of Trogon to be the Swrwcua of Azara, from whose
elaborate work I am consequently induced to insert the following nearly literal translation.

After informing us that Swrucua is the native name of this bird in Paraguay, he proceeds to state that “ it
is not common, and it does not quit the largest woods. It generally remains on the upper portions of the
trees without descending to the lower branches or to the earth: it sits a long time motionless, watching for
insects which may pass within its reach, and which it seizes with adroitness ; it is not gregarious, but dwells
either in solitude or in pairs ; its flight, which is rapid and performed in vertical undulations, is not prolonged.
These birds are so tame as to admit of a near approach; I have seen them killed with a stick They do not
migrate, and they are never heard except in the love season ; their note then consists but of the frequent repe-
tition of the syllables po in a strong, sonorous and melancholy voice: the male and female answer each other.
They form their nest on the trees by digging into the lower part of the nest of a species of ant known by the
name of cupiy, until they have made a cavity sufficiently large, in which the female deposits in the mouth of
September two white eggs according to some, and four according to others. I have seen the male clinging
to a tree, after the manner of the Woodpeckers, occupied in digging a nest with his beak, while the female
remained tranquil on a neighbouring tree.”

Azara states that he has only seen this bird from Paraguay ; I have, however, received it from the southern
parts of the Brazils, and a single specimen formed part of the fine collection made by Capt. P. P. King during
his survey of the Straits of Magellan. Although I have not been able to ascertain from what precise locality
Capt. King’s specimen was procured, I am inclined to believe that it has a more extensive range than is gene-
rally suspected. i

TCR OE NPS

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