C. zonatus 27 May 18 12 mi. SSW Boracal Rio, 100 ft., Veracruz While walking through a thicket of trees where I expected to find C. rufinucha I found a pair of zonatus. They were calling loudly in bush tree about 10 feet above the ground. The presence of lunds in this rather low-thicket suggests there is some degree of ecological overlap between the two cactus wrens in this area. The places frequented by zonatus here are drier than any in which I have seen the species and there are no epiphytes - a seemingly necessary thing in all other places I have seen the wren - with possible exception of the area near San Fernando, Chiapas. Charles Lamb said there were one in the tall eucalyptus below the evergreen forest trees in the Sierra Cantipee, south of Lake Catemaco. Yesterday I heard wrens calling from the tall green trees lining the Rio Atoyac - but they are not around camp. Wrens of this species are browner than those from the Barraza Meloc and appear to be larger-tailed also & generally larger. It is strange to find them in the dry habitat, especially when around Fortin; they seemed to prefer the tallest, richest, thickest vegetation, where all types of epiphytes are abundant on the trees. Possibly there is an ecological zone here in the arid low-lands with habitat requirements different from the population in the coffee belt at higher elevation. If so this explanation for absence of C. rufinucha in southern Veracruz may be competition with the wren - although I suspect there is some rod & vegetation change involved also.