Ruby-crowned Tanager

18 cm. Male blue-black. Rear crown with a scarlet streak. White under-wing linings. <NThe female is rufous above, grayer on head. Light buff field around the eye. Bright rufous rump and tail. Below ochraceous, white on the chin. Dusky streaks on the breast give the female a flammulated appearance. Call a high "chit" or "tsik". Song a repeted "che-chweek...che-chweek....". Song has individual variations vocalizations 2, 4 and 6 .. Forages in subcanopy, thickets, and dense tangles at woodland borders for fruits and insects. Visits feeders with fruits. Follows occasionally army ant swarms ^159 . Infrequently observed in mixed species flocks. Cup nest in thickets etc. October-January ^159 . Relatively common in open secondary forest, primary forest border, thickets adjacent to forest, Occurs also in parks, orchards, plantations and secondary scrub. Throughout. In humid forests and borders of the littoral and also further inland in dryer forest habitat and scrub Rio Claro, Fazenda Paraiso, ^119 . To 1200 meters ^40 . 2584 Call. Fazenda Intervales, 11<10>30<10>97. Sunny, 27<91>C. Primary forest. With /Carpornis cucullatus .: 10722 Song. Serra das Rosas S<C4>o Paulo, near Franca, 11<10>7<10>98. Rain in the morning, then sunny, 27<91>C. Secondary forest. With /Saltator similis, Cyclarhis gujanensis .: 6647 Call. Picinguaba, east of Ubatuba, 11<10>20<10>98. Cloudy, 20<91>C. Secondary forest. With /Saltator fuliginosus, Drymophila ferruginea .: 5127 Song. Jureia-Peruibe, 10<10>13<10>99. Sunny, 20<91>C. Forest border.: 13136 Call. Jureia-Peruibe, 10<10>13<10>99. Sunny, 20<91>C. Forest border.: 14802 Song. 10<10>15<10>99, Corisco trail, Picinguaba, east of Ubatuba. Sunny, 30<91>C. Primary forest.: 11713 > Male: 11631 > Female: