PTEROGLOSSUS WIEDI, sturm.
Prince Maximilian’s Araçari.
S p e c i f i c C h a r a c t e r .
Pier, mandibula superiore flavido-alba, culmine per totam longitudinem fa s c ia angustd, margine
tomiorum a d basin mandibulaque inferiore n ig r is ; rostro toto basi albocincto; femoribus
viridibus.
Head, neck and throat deep black, with a very slight tinge of rufous on the ear-coverts; upper
surface, wings and tail deep g re en ; lower part of the beak and rump blood-red ; upper
tail-coverts green, blotched with blood-red ; under surface pale greenish yellow, faintly
stained with blood-red next the black of the throat and with a broad band of the same hue
across the middle of the bo d y ; thighs and vent green ; upper mandible creamy white, with
a narrow line of black along the culmen and a conspicuous vertical mark of the same
colour near the base; under mandible black; both mandibles with a raised ridge of a
creamy white at the base; orbits very dark blackish g re y ; irides dark brown ; legs
greyish green.
Total length, 18 inches; bill, 4 r ; wing, 5£; tail, ; tarsi, l i.
Pteroglossus Araqari, Prinz Max. Von Wied, Beit, zur Nat. von Bras. iv. Bd. i. Abth.
p. 283.
Wiedii, Sturm’s Edit, of Gould’s Mon. of Ramph., pi.
W h e n speaking of the true Pteroglossus Araqari, in the first edition of this work, I remarked that I was at
a loss to determine whether that bird, which is a native of Cayenne and Guiana, be identical with a somewhat
similar one from the Brazils, and which, although closely resembling it in colour and size, iuvariably
possesses characters which at once indicate its country. The variations to which I allude consist in the
examples from Cayenne having the mandibles more attenuated and hooked, the teeth more defined, the black
mark on the culmen much more expanded, and the black of the throat bounded by a line of fine red, which
although traceable in the other is much more obscure; the thighs also are dull olive-green with strong
dashes of reddish brown, so predominant in some specimens as to obscure the green entirely, while in the
Brazilian birds the thighs are wholly green ; besides which, I have invariably found the true Arapari to be
of a larger size. Whether these differences are specific, or only to be considered as variations dependent
upon difference of climate and other local circumstances, is a question not easy to determine ; I am inclined,
however, to believe that they constitute two distinct species. The Messrs. Sturm, after pointing out the
differences above alluded to, have given to the Brazilian bird the specific appellation of P. Wiedii, in honour
of His Highness The Prince Maximilian of Wied, a compliment most justly bestowed, since few travellers
have done more to advance ornithology, or taken a greater interest in Natural History generally.
Skins of this bird are frequently found in collections from Bahia and from Rio de Janeiro. M. Natterer
killed it at Mattagrossa near Borba, and also received specimens from Mattodentro, the neighbourhood of
Rio de Janeiro and San Paulo. In the stomachs of those he examined were found the remains of insects
and the pips of oranges.
The Prince Maximilian of Wied informs me that its voice consists of two short notes, having the
sound of “ Culik ! Culik ! ’’—that, like the Ramphastos Ariel, it inhabits all the great forests of the Brazils
traversed by him, and that it has precisely similar habits. During the breeding season it lives in pairs;
afterwards it congregates in small flocks, which fly from one tree to another in search of fruits. Their
flight is performed without much motion of the wings. In the cold season they leave the forests for the
plantations near the coast, become very fat, and are killed in great numbers and eaten by the inhabitants,
their flesh forming excellent food. In its native wilds it may be often seen perched on the naked branches
of the loftiest trees, and while perched is said to make a flirting motion of the tail similar to that of the
Magpie, Pica caudata. Like the other species of the family, it is in the habit of assembling round and
teasing the birds of prey that may visit its locality, particularly owls. The eggs are deposited in the
hollows of trees, and are white and two in number.
The figures are of the natural size.