Toucans (Ramphastidae)

Collared Araçari (Pteroglossus torquatus) - HBW 7, p. 265

French: Araçari à collier German: Halsbandarassari Spanish: Arasarí Acollarado
Other common names: Spot-breasted/Banded/Ringed/Red-rumped/Red-backed/Spot-chested Araçari; Stripe-billed Araçari (sanguineus); Pale-mandibled Araçari (erythropygius)

Taxonomy: Ramphastos torquatus J. F. Gmelin, 1788, Veracruz, Mexico.
Forms a superspecies with P. frantzii; although not in full contact, these two have hybridized, and they may be conspecific. Both belong to the “P. torquatus group”, which also includes P. aracari, P. castanotis and P. pluricinctus, all these species being closely related. Southern races sanguineus and erythropygius sometimes considered to represent one or two additional species, but they interbreed to a significant extent with each other in SW Colombia and NW Ecuador, as also does sanguineus with nominate torquatus in E Panama and NW Colombia, so they are better treated as races of present species; in addition, race nuchalis intergrades with sanguineus. Birds from SE Mexico (Chiapas), described as esperanzae, now lumped within nominate torquatus; those from NW Venezuela, named as race pectoralis, now included in nuchalis. Five subspecies currently recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution:

torquatus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788) - EC Mexico S to NW corner of Colombia.
erythrozonus Ridgway, 1912 - Yucatán Peninsula, S to Belize and NE Guatemala.
nuchalis Cabanis, 1862 - NE Colombia (area of Santa Marta Mts) and mountains of N Venezuela.

See all 5 subspecies

torquatus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788) - EC Mexico S to NW corner of Colombia.
erythrozonus Ridgway, 1912 - Yucatán Peninsula, S to Belize and NE Guatemala.
nuchalis Cabanis, 1862 - NE Colombia (area of Santa Marta Mts) and mountains of N Venezuela.
sanguineus Gould, 1854 - E Panama and N & NW Colombia S to NW Ecuador.
erythropygius Gould, 1843 - W Ecuador; recently recorded in extreme N Peru (Tumbes).