Silver-beaked Tanager (Ramphocelus carbo)
Male Silver-beaked Tanager, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, July 2001 - click for larger image Manaus, Brazil
July 2001

The Silver-beaked Tanager is found in the northern half of South America east of the Andes but is missing from south-east Brazil where its geographic replacement is the Brazilian Tanager (Ramphocelus bresilius).

It eats fruit, insects which it gleans on foliage, and, in some cases, nectar.

Male Silver-beaked Tanager, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, July 2001 - click for larger image It is a common bird which frequents forest borders, clearings and gardens. It is usually associated with water.

The male can look very dark but in good light it is possible to make out the rich maroon tones and the deep crimson on the throat and chest. The male's mandible is a gleaming silvery-white while that of the female is greyish, The female is reddish brown above and paler below. I'm not sure if photo 3 shows a female or a sub-adult male.
Female Silver-beaked Tanager, Caxiuanã, Pará, Brazil, November 2005 - click for larger image They are noisy birds and are usually to be seen in small groups of 4 to 8 birds.

There are illustrations in Ridgely & Tudor, Volume 1, Plate 18; Hilty & Brown, Plate 51; and Ridgely & Greenfield, Plate 89.
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