CLASS AVES. 



165 



PIG. 279. 



Troch'ihis cdl'ubris. 

 Kuby-throated Humming-bird. ( .) 



PIG. 280. 



Humming-birds are peculiarly American. About 450 

 species are recognized, yet 

 only one, the Ruby-throated, 



visits the North Atlantic 



States, and but ten any part 



of the United States. They 



are the smallest as well as 



the gayest of birds, blending 



in their rich plumage the 



rarest colors of flower and 



gem. Their bills, shaped ac- 

 cording to the form of the 



blossom they are designed to 



penetrate for insects, vary 



greatly some being short 



and straight, others longer 



than their bodies, and yet 



others greatly curved. The 



Humming-bird can fly so rap- 

 idly that the eye can scarcely 



follow its flight, or, by beating the air with its wings, 



sustain itself in front of a flower 

 almost immovable. Many species 

 build tiny, cup-shaped nests of vege- 

 table down, with an outer coating 

 of lichens glued on with saliva. 

 Each contains two little white eggs, 

 the size of a pea. 



The Swift* alights readily on a 



* This bird is so called from its great power 

 of flight. One species of this group (Collocdl'la 

 es cu len' (a) is the principal maker of the " Edible 

 ChatU'ra pelas'gia. birds' nests." The bird constructs these out of its 



Chimney-swallow, or Swift. (J.) glutinous saliva. When washed and soaked, they 



Nest of Humming-bird. 



PIG. 381. 



