ISSN 1809-127X (online edition)
© 2011 Check List and Authors
Open Access | Freely available at www.checklist.org.br

* Corresponding author. E-mail: jbugoni@yahoo.com.br

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may be found all year long in this region.

The Hepatic Tanager Piranga flava (Vieillot, 1822) is
widespread in the Americas and ranges from southwestern
United States to northern Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil
(Sick 1997). In southern Brazil, specifically in the states
of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, the species is
considered rare (Belton 1994; Rosario 1996).

In the state of Rio Grande do Sul, only three reliable
records in the western part of the state and five in the
northern/northeastern part were reported by Belton
(1994) between 1970 and 1983. Thus, thereisaremarkable
gap of distribution in the central and southeastern regions
of the state, since the origins of three old specimens from
this area are controversial (Belton 1994; Bencke 1997).

Here we investigate and compile the historical and
recent occurrence of P flava in southeastern Rio Grande do
Sul. To access label information about the old specimens
mentioned in Belton (1994) we consulted curators of
ornithological collections of National Museum of Natural
History (France), British Museum of Natural History
(England) and Senckenberg Museum (Germany). The
literature was reviewed through systematic searches
in online databases (Web of Science, Scopus and Google
Schoolar) using the combination of the common and
scientific names of species and terms referring to the
geographical area. For each publication found its own
reference list was inspected. Additionally, we present our
documented recent records of the species obtained in our
intensive bird surveys in southeastern Rio Grande do Sul
carried out between 2008 and 2010.

We had access to information about the two old
specimens whose origin was questioned by Belton (1994).
The first represents a skin of a sub-adult male labeled
as having been collected in 1881 by Joyner in Pelotas
and is currently found in the British Museum of Natural
History (BMNH 1885.6.7.363) (Hein van Grouw, personal
communication). However, it is not possible to confirm the
origin of this specimen because Joyner’s collection has
been discredited given that it contains species that have

Check List | Volume 7 | Issue 6 | 2011

Chek List

Journal of species lists and distribution

Aves, Cardinalidae, Piranga flava (Vieillot, 1822): Filling
gaps by means of historical and recent records in the
state of Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil

Jeferson Vizentin-Bugoni’ and Fernando Pereira Jacobs

Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Instituto de Biologia, Departamento de Zoologia e Genética. CEP 96010-900. Capao do Leao, RS, Brazil.

ABSTRACT: The Hepatic Tanager Piranga flava (Vieillot, 1822) is considered rare in southern Brazil and its occurrence in
southeastern Rio Grande do Sul is controversial. Here, our aims were to investigate and compile the historical and recent
evidences of the species in this region by consulting museums, literature and providing documented recent records. We
confirmed the origins of two old specimens and provided nineteen recent records obtained in five sites between 2008 and
2010. Our results show that Piranga flava occurs in southeastern of Rio Grande do Sul since the late 1800s and currently

never been recorded around Pelotas (Ihering 1899; Belton
1994).

The second specimen corresponds to a skin of an adult
male found in the National Museum of Natural History
(MNHN 1892-1981), in Paris, as quoted by Hellmayr
(1936). The label indicates that this specimen was
collected in Pelotas in 1884 by “von Ritter” (Figure 1; Jean-
Marc Pons and Anne Previato, personal communication).
Carlos Ritter lived in Pelotas at the time and probably
collected and sent the specimen to Ihering who, in turn,
may have sent it to Count Hans von Berlepsch, in Europe.

Additionally, there is another male specimen in the
Senckenberg Museum, Germany (Gerald Mayr, personal
communication). The label (number 59104) indicates that
it was collected in “Camaquan - Rio Grande do Sul” by
Ihering on 24 July 1888. This site probably corresponds
to the mouth of the Rio Camaqua, where Ihering resided at
the time. Curiously, Ihering did not refer to this specimen
in later publications (Ihering 1889). This suggests that it
was sent to Hans von Berlepsch unidentified or there was

FIGURE 1. Skin of an adult male of Piranga flava deposited in the National
Museum of Natural History (MNHN 1892-1981), Paris. The label (detail)
indicates that it was collected in the Pelotas region in 1884 by Carlos
Ritter (“v. Ritter’), a collaborator of H. von Ihering. Photo by Anne
Previato.

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simply insufficient time to include it in the publication,
remaining unknown until now. Thus, there is no reason
to discredit the origin of these two specimens, which
makes possible to infer the occurrence of Piranga flava in
southeastern Rio Grande do Sul in the late 1800s.

In the literature, we found another male specimen
from Rio Grande do Sul. It may be found in the museum
collection of Colégio Maua sited in the municipality of
Santa Cruz do Sul. However, its origin cannot be reliably
inferred as discussed by Bencke (1997).

In addition to these specimens, we obtained 19 recent
records of P flava (Figures 2 and 3) between December
2008 and October 2010 in the southeastern Rio Grande
do Sul (Table 1; Figure 4). Fifteen recent records were at
the Campus Universitario of the Universidade Federal de
Pelotas (UFPEL), one in the Area de Protecdo Ambiental
Dunas, one on the edge of a woodland patch in the Horto
Botanico Irmao Teodoro Luis of UFPEL, one in a riparian
forest along Arroio Pelotas and one in a riparian forest
of Arroio Candiotinha. The first two sites are mainly
urban and the other three are used for livestock grazing
and agriculture. All birds were detected by means of
vocalizations and 13 of these records included sightings.
Thirteen records referred to solitary individuals and the
other six involved two or three individuals (Table 1).

] j Ll. r
FIGURE 2. Piranga flava (female) photographed in the municipality of
Pelotas, southern Brazil. Photo by F. P. Jacobs.

The avifauna of southeastern Rio Grande do Sul is
relatively well known (Belton 1994; Mauricio and Dias
1998; 2000). Furthermore, the vocalization, behavior
and plumage of P flava make it a conspicuous species
(Sick 1997). Thus, the scarcity of records in this region
probably reflects the low population density of the
species. Moreover, the rarity of the species was also noted
in the northeastern Rio Grande do Sul in historical times
(Berlepsch and Ihering 1885).

The recent records obtained span over three
consecutive years, which demonstrates the regular
presence of P flava in southeastern Rio Grande do Sul.
Thus, its distribution area is wider in about 300 km from
that reported by Belton (1994) and 120 km from that
described by Azpiroz (2003), who maps the occurrence of
the species throughout Uruguay.

In Rio Grande do Sul, P flava is considered a summer
resident that migrates northward after the breeding
season (Belton 1994; Bencke 2001). Our study presents
recent records covering all seasons and demonstrates that

Check List | Volume 7 | Issue 6 | 2011

Vizentin-Bugoni and Jacobs | Distribution of Piranga flava in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

FIGURE 3. Piranga flava (male) photographed in the municipality of
Capao do Leao, southern Brazil. Photo by J. Vizentin-Bugoni.

the species can be found all year long in the southeastern
Rio Grande do Sul. This fact is consistent with the status
of occurrence verified in Uruguay (Azpiroz 2003).
However, the possibility that part of the population
migrates beyond the limits of Rio Grande do Sul during
the non-breeding period (autumn and winter) cannot be
excluded.

It is unlikely that the individuals recently recorded are
originated from captivity. In the state of Rio Grande do Sul,
only two individuals of P flava from the cage bird trade
were found among a total of approximately five thousand
individuals apprehended by environmental authorities
(Araujo et al. 2010; Martins-Ferreira and Glock 2004).
Furthermore, no individuals of this species were received
between 2000 and 2010 in the Center for Rehabilitation
of Wild Fauna of UFPEL (Nucleo de Reabilitagao da Fauna
Silvestre), which is the largest institution responsible for
receiving wildlife apprehended from illegal trade within
the studied region (Marco Coimbra and Luiz Fernando
Minello, personal communication).

a “—,____ Rio Grande do Sul
a

Patos

Lagoon

“Atlantic Ocean

325

Uruguay

Ww 53°W sw sw

FIGURE 4. Distribution of recent (squares) and historical (triangles)
records of Piranga flava in southeastern Rio Grande do Sul, southern
Brazil. Map produced by Elisa Milach.

Our observations of solitary individuals or small group
sizes of P flava, their preference for open habitats and the
capacity to explore anthropic areas are consistent with
previous descriptions of the species’ biology (Narosky and
Yzurieta 1987; Sick 1997).

In conclusion, our study confirms the occurrence of
Piranga flava in the southeastern Rio Grande do Sul in the
late 1800’s and reports an unknown specimen. Moreover,
we show that this species currently occurs in the region,
where it can be found all year long.

866

Vizentin-Bugoni and Jacobs | Distribution of Piranga flava in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

TABLE 1. Recent records of Piranga flava in southeastern Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil, including details of site, date of records, type of
evidence and information on group size, habitat and behavior (additional observations). 1 = Tape-record by EP. Jacobs available on <www.xeno-canto.

TYPE OF
ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS
EVIDENCE
Observed A single male foraging on insects in Acacia leaves.

Tape-recorded'

A female and two males foraging on fruits of Syzygium
jambolanum (Lam.) DC. (Myrtaceae).

org/30579>.
GEOGRAPHIC
SITE/ MUNICIPALITY DATE OF RECORD
COORDINATES
17 December 2008
6 March 2009
7 May 2009
26 February 2010
8 March 2010
12 May 2010
17 May 2010
Campus of Universidade Federal 31°48'00" S,
de Pelotas / Capao do Leao 52°25’03” W 1 July 2010
14 July 2010
20 July 2010
30 July 2010
06 August 2010
13 September 2010
27 September 2010
13 October 2010
Area de Protecdo Ambiental Sil4iby Sl Sy, ;
27 April 2009
Dunas / Pelotas 52°15’21” W
Horto Botanico Irmao Teodoro 31°48'47” S,
; ia i 8 May 2009
Luis / Capao do Leao 52°26'11” W
Arroio Pelotas / Pelotas 31°40’28" S,
14 August 2009
52°12’21” W
Arroio Candiotinha / Pinheiro 31°30’21” S,
16 November 2009
Machado 53°33’10” W

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: We thank Leandro Bugoni, Maraisa Braga and
Adeline Franco for comments on the first draft, Darius Tubelis, Glayson
Bencke and Cristian Joenck for valuable suggestions on the manuscript.
Jean-Marc Pons, Anne Previato, Hein van Grouw and Gerald Mayr kindly
provided information about the specimens. Anne Previato provided
photos of a specimen. Center for Rehabilitation of Wild Fauna of UFPEL
provided unpublished data about cage birds in the Pelotas region. Raquel
Ludtke identified Syzigium jambolanum.

LITERATURE CITED

Araujo, A.C.B., E.R. Behr, S.J. Longhi, P.T:S. Menezes and M.R. Kanieski.
2010. Diagnéstico sobre a avifauna apreendida e entregue
espontaneamente na Regido Central do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil.
Revista Brasileira de Biociéncias 8(3): 279-284.

Azpiroz, A.B. 2003. Aves del Uruguay. Lista e introduccion a su biologia e
conservacion. Montevideo: GUPECA. 104 p.

Belton, W. 1994. Aves do Rio Grande do Sul: distribuicdo e biologia. Sao
Leopoldo: Editora UNISINOS. 584 p.

Bencke, G.A. 1997. Sobre a colecao de aves do Museu do Colégio Maua,
Santa Cruz do Sul (RS). Biociéncias 5(1): 143-164.

Berlepsch, H. von and H. von lhering. 1885. Die Vogel der Umgegend von
Taquara do Mundo Novo, Prov. Rio Grande do Sul. Zeitschrift fur die
gesammte Ornithologie 2: 97-184.

Ihering, H. v. 1899. As aves do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul.
Anudrio do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul para o ano 1900: 113-154.

Check List | Volume 7 | Issue 6 | 2011

Heard One individual calling on top of Eucalyptus.
A single female calling perched on Luehea divaricata Mart.
Observed
(Malvaceae) top.
Observed A female and a male calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Heard One individual calling amidst a clump of Melaleuca leucadendra
ear’
(L.) L. (Myrtaceae).
Heard One individual calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Observed A single male calling in a tree.
Observed A single male calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Observed A single male calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Observed A female and a male foraging on insects on Schinus leaves.
Photographed A female and a male foraging on insects in M. leucadendra leaves.
Heard At least two individuals calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Heard One individual calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Heard One individual calling in Eucalyptus treetop.
Photographed A single female calling perched on isolated Pinus.
A single female calling in Eucalyptus treetop at edge of forest
Observed
patch.
Observed A male and a female calling perched on isolated tree.
Observed A single male calling and singing in the canopy of riparian forest

Martins-Ferreira, C. and L. Glock. 2004. Diagnéstico preliminar da
avifauna traficada no Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. Biociéncias 12(1):
21-30.

Mauricio, G.N. and R.A. Dias. 1998. Range extensions and new records
for forest birds in southern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Bulletin of the
British Ornithologists’ Club 118(1): 14-25.

Mauricio, G.N. and R.A. Dias. 2000. New distributional information for
birds in southern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, and the first record of
the Rufous Gnateater Conopophaga lineata for Uruguay. Bulletin of
the British Ornithologists’ Club 120: 14-25.

Narosky, T. and D. Yzurieta. 1987. Guia para la identificaci6n de las aves de
Argentina y Uruguay. Buenos Aires: Vazquez Mazzini Editores. 345 p.

Rosario, L.A. 1996. As aves em Santa Catarina: distribuicdo geogrdfica e
meio ambiente. Florianépolis: FATMA. 326 p.

Sick, H. 1997. Ornitologia Brasileira. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Nova
Fronteira. 912 p.

RECEIVED: March 2011

LAST REVISED: September 2011

ACCEPTED: October 2011

PUBLISHED ONLINE: December 2011
EDITORIAL RESPONSIBILITY: Darius P. Tubelis

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