TROCHILID.E — THE HUMMIXG-BIRDS. 



451 



. Ojuv. 



Trorkilus a'fjan'tri. 



The chief characters of this species are to be found in tlie violet, 

 steel-bhie, or steel-green reflections of the hinder part of the gorget, vary- 

 ing with the situation of the feathers and tiie specimen, as distinguished 

 from the briglit fiery or coppery red of the other. The chin and ujjper 

 part of the tliroat extending beneath the eyes 

 are opacj^ue ^■elvety or greenisli black, without 

 metallic lustre, wliile iu T. colubris it is only the 

 extreme chin which is thus dull in appearance. 

 The bill is about .10 of an inch longer, the tail 

 less deejjly forked, and tinged with green at the 

 end. 



It is exceedingly difficult to distinguish the female of this species from 



that of T. colubris. The size is rather 

 larger, and tiie tail rounded, without any 

 distinct eniargination ; the middle feathers 

 being .15 of an incli longer than the lateral 

 ones, instead of actually shorter. Tlie 

 color is much the same. The primaries 

 are also much broader in tlie present sj^e- 

 cies. 



In both species the outer tail-feathers, 



though broader tlian in tlie male, are (juite 



acutely pointed on tlie terminal tliird, one 



side or tlie other of which is slightly concave, instead of being linear to near 



the end, and rounded without any concavity, as in Sclasplioms and CahjpU. 



H.\BITS. This Hunuiiing-Bird, originally described as a Mexican species, 

 is found from the highlands of that republic northward, not only to the 

 southern borders of the western United States, but as far north as the 58th 

 parallel. It was first discovered on the table-lands of Mexico, east of the 

 city, by Signer Floresi, a distinguished naturalist, who devoted himself to 

 the study of the Trochilidcc of Mexico, but was first added to tlie fauna of 

 North America by Dr. Heerniann, who detected it, and obtained several 

 specimens, within the burying-ground of Sacramento City, Cal. There sev- 

 eral pairs remained during the period of incubation, and reared their young, 

 finding both food and shelter among the flowering plants of tliat cemetery. 

 lie found several of their nests which were essentially similar to the T. 

 colubris. 



Dr. Cooper met with this species along the Moliave River. He saw the 

 first on the 3d of June. He also found one of their nests built in a dark 

 willow-thicket in the fork of a tree, eight feet from the ground. Those 

 afterwards found near Santa Barbara were all built near the end of hanging 

 branches of the sycamore, constructed of white down from willow catkins, 

 agglutinated by tlie bird's saliva, and thus fastened to the branch on which 

 it rested. These were built in the latter part of April, and early in May 



Troc/iitiis alexandri. 



