THAMNOPHILUS RADIATUS NIGRICRISTATUS (Lawrence).
BLACK-CRESTED ANTSHRIKE.
Similar to T. doliatus and its subspecies[1] but adult males with elongated feathers of pileum entirely black. Still more like T. radiatus radiatus[2] but coloration darker, in both sexes.
Adult male. — Pileum, except sides of occiput (supra-auricular region) and more or less of forehead, uniform black (without concealed white, except, sometimes, a very little on the occiput); rest, of upper parts black barred, more or less broadly, with white, the white bars never as wide as the black interspaces, sometimes reduced to transverse spots; forehead usually more or less (sometimes extensively) streaked with white; sides of occiput (supra-auricular region), streaked with black and white, the black streaks usually broader than the white ones; auricular and malar regions and sides of neck similarly streaked, but the black streaks rather narrower; under parts white, the chin and throat usually streaked (sometimes broadly) with black, the remaining under parts (except, sometimes, abdomen) barred with black, the black bars usually much narrower than the white interspaces but sometimes nearly as broad, especially on flanks; maxilla blackish, paler on tomium; mandible grayish (sometimes whitish terminally and on tomium), bluish gray in life; iris straw color;[3] legs and feet dusky (bluish gray in life ?); length (skins), 138-158 (149); wing, 67.5-72 (70.2); tail, 54-61 (56.8); culmen, 17-19.5 (18.3); tarsus, 26-27.5 (26.7); middle toe, 14.5-17 (16.4).[4]
Adult female. — Pileum deep chestnut, becoming paler (more tawny) on forehead; hindneck broadly streaked with black and ochraceous or tawny; wings and tail uniform deep cinnamon-rufous or chestnut- rufous, the back, scapulars, and rump similar but usually lighter and more tawny-rufous; sides of head (including supra-auricular region) buffy whitish, buffy, ochraceous, or pale tawny, streaked (except on lores) with black, the black streaks broader on supra- auricular region, narrower (sometimes nearly obsolete) on anterior
portion of malar region; chin and throat immaculate, very pale buffy
- ↑ The individual variation in this form seems to include as great extremes of coloration, as regards relative width of black and white bars in the adult male and intensity of coloration in the female, as is covered by the geographic variations in T. doliatus!
- ↑ Thamnophilus radiatus Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., iii, 1816, 315; Sclater, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., xv, 1890, 210. Several subspecies have been described, but I have not been able to secure sufficient material to enable me to characterize them satisfactorily. They are involved in much confusion and require careful revision.
- ↑ W. W. Brown, jr., on label.
- ↑ Thirteen specimens from Panama (mainland).
