Gold-ringed Tanager

Like the other Bangsia tanagers, the gold-ringed tanager is a plump bird with a relatively short tail. They are approximately 16cm in length and typically weigh between 35-45 grams. Adult birds are mostly dark green with a yellow breast. The prominent "gold ring" facial markings of adults, described below, make the bird easy to identify, with the only possible confused species being the slaty-capped shrike-vireo. Detailed descriptions were provided by F. Gary Stiles, based on birds captured at Alto de Pisones in Risaralda Department:

Adult male. The head, throat, and sides of the breast are glossy black, with a ring around the olive-green cheeks and auriculars that is formed by the bright yellow postocular and malar stripes and postauricular bar. The centre of the breast is bright orange-yellow, with the remaining underparts being bright olive-green. The bird's back is dark green, with the rump and upper tail coverts a paler, brighter green. The central tail feathers (rectrices) are dull olive while the outer feathers are dusky, edged with olive. The wings are blackish with the wing coverts and secondaries edged with dull blue. The iris is dark red, the bill is black (upper mandible) and horn coloured (lower mandible), and the tarsi and feet are greyish.

Adult female. …

The gold-ringed tanager is found on the slopes of the western cordillera of the Andes. Its altitudinal range is from 1350-2195masl, though most birds are found at or above the 1700m level. The only site where the birds are seen at levels as low as 1350m is in the area of San José del Palmar in the Chocó Department. It is thought that this may be related to the absence of the black-and-gold tanager at this site. At any given site the birds occupy a narrow altitude range of 100-200m, corresponding to the principal cloud interception point of the Pacific slope.

Gold-ringed tanagers forage solitarily, in pairs, and in family groups, and also join mixed feeding flocks. Males are most likely to be seen foraging alone. These tanagers usually forage among moss and epiphytes on tree branches, typically from the upper understory to the mid-canopy level. They are often described as moving in a deliberate or even "sluggish" manner. They have been observed bashing fruits against a branch to access the contents. They have also been seen pecking at objects on the ground, sometimes in pairs but usually alone, moving and jumping across the floor in a manner likened to that of a swainson's thrush.