G. E. Ven'ill — Fauna of the Island of Dominica. 331 



ence was directly the reverse, this species outnumbering E. holo- 

 sericeics, I should say, by at least four to one, and closely approach- 

 ing jB. exilis in numbers, so that it may have increased since he was 

 there. He also speaks of its frequenting "thick shady places," a 

 habit that we failed to observe. 



The females closely resemble the males but the colors are not 

 quite so bright, particularly the crimson on the throat and breast, 

 and they seem to be slightly smaller. The bill (exposed culmen), 

 varies greatly in length. Iris, legs, feet, and bill black. ^ 5|— 3^- 

 lt-7|, bill -92; 5i-3-lf-H, bill -85 ; 5i-2|-lf, bill 1-03. ? 5f-2i-|- 

 U-7, bill 1-04 ; 5-2|-Iy\, bill -97 ; 5-3^-l|-, bill -85. 



"Nest always placed at a considerable distance from the ground. One taken 

 April 9th was fully sixty feet from the ground in a catalpa tree." — (a. h. v.) 



This nest, though entirely finished, contained no eggs and evi- 

 dently had not been used. It is saddled on a good sized crotch (the 

 main branch ^V i"ch in diameter), that grew in a nearly horizontal 

 position. The nest is very compact, slightly elliptical in shape on 

 top, and composed of the brown scales from the leaves of ferns, 

 probably mainly tree-ferns, with a few large pieces of grey lichens 

 on the outside, mostly near the bottom. The bottom is covei'ed 

 with greenish white down, probably from young fern leaves, and 

 the whole nest is very firmly fastened to the branch by the same 

 material, running entirely around the twig. Inside, it is lined with 

 down from the silk-cotton tree. From side to side, in the largest 

 place, it measures 2^Xlf and is If high. The cavity is 1^X1 on 

 top and f deep. Plate xxv, fig. 1. 



30. Eulampis holosericeus (Linn.) "Pou Fou Tete-longue." Pat. and 

 Fr. (Crazy Crazy Long-head.) 



Not so common as the preceding, found at a rather greater ele- 

 vation (about 750-2000 feet), and principally on the windward side 

 of the island, though' by no means rare on the leeward side in certain 

 localities. In common with the last and H. exilis it is particularly 

 fond of the plantain and banana patches, which were our principal 

 collecting grounds for these three species. 



Mr. Taylor states that he found this the most abundant humming- 

 bird in Dominica, but according to our experience it was the least so, 

 with the exception of T. hicolor, which was not observed by him, 

 so that it seems as though this species must have greatl}'^ decreased 

 or the others increased since he was there, which well might happen 

 in the twenty-seven years between his visit and ours. 



Trans. Conn. Acad., Vol. VIII. 4-1 April, 1892. 



