The common nose notes of yellow-rumped tanagers are very similar in sound, motivation and functions to the typical nose notes of crimson tanagers. Melodic (and usually quite soft) "Kioo" or "Klioo" notes are the most distinctive and easily recognizable notes uttered by male Yellow-rumped Tanagers during typical Dawn Calling. Yellow-rumped tanagers appear to utter nasal comments, just as crimson tanagers do under similar circumstances.
The yellow-backed tanager appears to make hoarse sounds with considerable frequency in only two situations.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I49
All this would suggest that the Hoarse Flourishes are indeed intermediate between the "Tzzheet" Notes and the "Kioo" or "Klioo" Notes, produced by the intermediate motivation. Notes which are divided or like pure Rattles which are transposed to a higher key. They are intergrade with both "Tzzheet". It seems probable, therefore, that they were produced by the motive which is intermediate between that of the typical pure Rattles and that of the typical "Tzzheet" notes, i.e.
Almost all the hoarse flourishes associated with "Tzzheet" notes and thin rattles are of the type that can be transcribed as "Eeyah."^. The complex "Tzzheet" note—Thin Rattle—Hees Flourish performances, considered as a unit, seem to intergrade with both series of "Tzzheet" notes and single Hees Flourishes. If the individual patterns retain the same functions when pronounced together as they do when pronounced separately (and my observations would suggest that they do), then the "Tzzheet" - Dun Rattle.
Such ambivalent performances may have the same functions as the stereotyped "Tzzheet" - Thin Rattle - Hoarse Flourish patterns, but they. Apparently, they do not pronounce the stereotypical series of nasal notes and "Tzzheet" notes (or some other primarily sexual pattern) in regular alternations like the series of nasal notes and. The notes, when uttered by themselves, do not appear to be as strongly sexual as the "Tzzheet" notes of the Yellow-rumped Tanagers, but their association with the Rattle-Flourishes would suggest so.
12 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I49 violent dispute (including many contact fights) between two adult
Of all the non-vocal display patterns of yellow-rumped tanagers, the flight patterns are perhaps the most interesting and complex. Yellow-rumped tanagers apparently do not have a general ruffle pattern involving all head and body plumage at the same time, like that of crimson-backs. The shrug is a more or less extreme raising of all the yellow feathers in the lower back and rump.
The wings are usually drooping at the same time (but not spread to an appreciable extent). It occurs in a wide variety of social situations, but it appears to be much more. Various types of back-ruffling performances are illustrated in figures 2 to 6 along with some notes on the circumstances in which they were observed.
His entire performance was very reminiscent of the initial stage in Juvenile Subsong or Whispering Warbles development in young male red-backed tanagers. Most of the other yellow-rumped males in the same area at this time were molting from juvenile to adult plumage.
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Posture of a male immediately after turning away from a female at the height of the breeding season. Female yellow-rumped tanagers may rufie the feathers on the chest and abdomen in Bill-up Tail-up positions in sexual situations [siv. 24], but this probably. The top of the head appears rounded with the highest point near the center of the crown.
The feathers of the chin, throat and cheeks are also raised, perhaps more moderately than on the "round" of the head. This was accompanied by a moderate amount of backsliding, with the usual drooping of the wings. The head feathers may have been raised, at least occasionally, but apparently never to an extreme degree.
This appears to be characteristic of nearly all tropical members of the American group of "nine-primaried") songbirds. The male uttered pure Rambles and/or Thin Rolls, facing the female, while the female remained silent in the direction of the male. This eerie behavior of male yellow-rumped tanagers is very reminiscent of the Burst of Male Song Sparrows (Melodia Melospiza) described by Nice, 1943, but seems to be performed much less frequently.
Holding the arms in an asymmetrical position after copulation may be related to asymmetrical bearing. 5 YELLOW RUMPLED TANAGER — $2 MONTH. of wings from male red-backed tanagers before mating.
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The major vocal patterns of yellow-rumped tanagers intergrade more frequently and more conspicuously with each other than the corresponding patterns of any other American "nine-primary" songbird whose behavior has been studied. The only other groups of animals in which a similar contrast between species with intergrading vocal patterns and species with distinct, non-intergrading patterns has been recognized is the mammalian order of primates. They can convey complicated messages (ie the exact combination of tendencies in the animal that produces the notes) invery.
They can be difficult to read or decipher due to their complexity or easily confused with other (related) vocal patterns, simply because they are not always very distinctive in sound (they must resemble the other notes they are between ). These disadvantages can be avoided if the intermediate vocal patterns are usually or always accompanied by other information that will make their meaning clear. Thus among primates the species or classes of individuals that express much. intermediate or intergrading vocal patterns are daily and/or highly sociable and/or are to stay in very close contact with the other members of their own family group.
Any individual of these species or classes hearing calls or notes from another individual of the same species will usually perceive visual, olfactory or tactile signals or other stimuli from its companions and/or receive visual or olfactory cues from the physical environment at the same time. visual, olfactory, or tactile aids must enable the receiving individual to grasp the meaning or significance of any vocal pattern, even when. the latter is difficult to decipher or ambiguous in itself. It is possible that the different types of vocal repertoire in different species of tanagers are adaptive in much the same way as the corresponding types of repertoire in primates. SOME PATTERNS OF ORANGE-HEADED TANAGERS Two adult male orange-headed tanagers at the New York Zoo.
SOME PATTERNS OF ORANGE-RUMPED TANAGERS Two adult male orange-rumped tanagers in the New York Zoo
Perhaps yellow-rumped tanagers can "afford" many intermediate notes simply because they are usually within sight, as well as sound, of their most important social companions, competitors, and rivals throughout the year. They must receive visual cues and stimuli with a greater proportion of the vocalizations to which they should respond than other species that are more isolated during the breeding season. A FEW PATTERNS OF ORANGE-CROWNED TANAGERS Two adult male orange-headed tanagers in the New York Zoo .. 5 THE YELLOW-CROWNED T^ANAGER— MOYNIHAN 29 One of them was particularly interested in a female silverbill. One of them was particularly interested in a female silver-billed tanager, while the other appeared to have formed pair bonds with a young black-throated tanager {R.nigrogularis).
The Orange-rumped Tanagers were observed to perform rapid movements, gaping movements, head ruffling (see Figure 4d), dorsal tuck movements, ventral tuck movements and 'silent song', and were heard to utter nasal notes and. The combination of yawning with head lowering and neck extension may itself be ritualized to form a "head forward threat", like that of many other songbirds (see Andrew, 1961). This was reminiscent of the head-down posture of yellow-rumped tanagers (except that the gaping posture was maintained the entire time).
Once a bird was seen performing back-smoking involving the black feathers in the middle of the back as well as the orange feathers on the rump and loin. The most extreme stomach fluff observed is shown in Figure 5c. This is considerably less extreme than the most exaggerated belly fluff of yellow-rumped or crimson-backed tanagers, however. Both orange-rumped tanagers also uttered moderately loud (but not metallic) notes that could be transcribed as "Whit" or "Tsit.".
SOME PATTERNS OF BLACK-THROATED TANAGERS
The notes of these silver-billed tanagers are "short hostile notes" and homologous to the nose notes of the crimson tanagers. I might add that none of the black-throated tanagers observed near Iquitos or at the New York Zoo pronounced notes more like the nasal notes of other species. Notes of the black-throated tanagers and silver-billed tanagers at Iquitos are an example of a type of mimicry.
It may be significant that the short hostile notes of silver-billed tanagers in Trinidad, where the black-throated tanager is absent, are quite different in sound.). It is equally possible that the similarities between the nasal notes of yellow-rumped tanagers and crimson-backed tanagers facilitate associations between these two. It also uttered "Tsit" notes, softer and less metallic than the Iquitos birds, alone and immediately before and/or after Rangler.
-throat nager could also have been. imitated, or learned part of his repertoire from, the orange cross manager in the same cellar.).
GENERAL COMMENT
32 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I49 genera are very similar to the corresponding displays of Ramphocelus
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
SUMMARY
They emit nasal notes, rattles and melodious "Kioo" or "Klioo" notes, plus a large number of midtones and calls, all or most of which alternate with each other. The relatively large frequency of intermediate and intergrading vocal patterns may be a result of the extreme gregariousness of the species. Yellow-rumped tanagers appear to have more distinct types of display and partially independent display components than all or most related species.
Many of the vocal patterns of yellow-headed tanagers are very similar to those of brown-headed bush tanagers (Chlorospingus opthalmicus). There is no display or combination of displays for the genus Ramphocelus as a whole. The display repertoire of some .. species of other genera is no more different from that of some species of Ramphocelus than the latter are from each other .. there is some evidence that there are many differences between the repertoire of the yellow-tailed tanager and that of the sympatric scarlet-backed tanager {R. dimidiatus) perform other functions instead of or in addition to maintaining reproductive isolation between the two species.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
34 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 1 49 MOYNIHAN, M
