548 



SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PICARLE— TROCHILI. 



Fig. 361. — Alexander Hum 

 mingbird, tail of young (f and $ 

 nat. size. (From Elliot.) 



rapidly narrowing with concave inner margin ; tail with black bars, and lateral feathers white- 

 tipped ; no rufous on tail in either sex. Length of ^ 3.25; extent 5.00; wing 1.75; tail 1.25 j 

 bill 0.66. Young $ begins by winter to show the red. Eastern N. Am., especially U. S., abun- 

 dant in summer, generally seen hovering about flowers, sometimes in flocks, extends N. to the 

 Fur Countries, W. to the Great Plains, and in winter S. to Cuba, Mexico, and Veragua ; breeds 

 from Florida to Labrador. Feeds on insects and sweets of Howers. Nest a beautiful struc- 

 ture, of downy substances, stuccoed with lichens outside ; eggs 2, white, 0.50 X 0.33. 

 T. alexan'dri. (To Dr. Alexandre, of Mexico, its discoverer. Figs. 356, 361.) Alexan- 

 der Hummingbird. Black-chinned Hummingbird. Sponge Hummer. Size and general 



appearance of T. coluhris. $ : Tail double-rounded ; central 

 emargiuation about 0.10, lateral graduation more ; the feathers 

 all acuminate, and whole-colored. Ujiper parts, including two 

 middle tail-featliers, as in T. coluhris. Gorget opaque velvety- 

 black, only posteriorly glittering with violet, sapphire, and em- 

 erald. Other under parts whitish, green on sides. Length 3.25 ; 

 wing l.^S ; tail 1.25 : bill from frontal feathers 0.75. ? : Tail 

 different from that of ^, both in shape aud color; simply 

 slightly rounded (without appreciable central emargiuation) ; 

 lateral feathers scarcely acuminate; middle feathers like back, darkening at ends; others with 

 broad purplish-black space near end, and white-tipped ; thus so closely resembling coluhris 9 

 that lack of decided emargiuation of tail is the principal character. No gorget, the throat 

 often with dusky specks. Eggs 0.50 X 0.32, indistinguishable from those of common Ruby- 

 throat. Pacific coast region from Lower California to British Columbia, aud E. to Rocky Mts. 

 and Texas ; winters in Mexico. 



T. violijugula'ris. (Lat. viola, a flower, the violet, as if diminutive of a digammated form of 

 Gr. 'iov, ion, used for violaceus, Gr. lotLbrjs, ioeides, of a violet-blue color, and Lat. jugularis, 

 of the jugulum or throat.) Violet-throated Hummingbird. Adult $ : Above, metallic 

 golden-green ; sides dull-green ; flanks less green, the feathers tipped with brown ; gorgelet 

 violet glancing to steel-blue ; wings dusky-purplish with a buff line along edge of manus, the 

 coverts dull-green ; primaries broad to the tip, that of the first recurved ; tail slightly forked ; 

 its feathers broad except the last pair, which are narrowly linear ; shafts of the outer pair 

 abruptly angulated; middle feathers and base of seccmd pair metallic green ; rest dusky-purplish ; 

 under tail-coverts white with green spots. Length 3.60; wing 1.80; tail 1.20; bill 0.75. A 



very dubious species, 



known only from the 



type specimen, taken 



Apr. 5, 1883, at Santa 



Barbara, S. Cala. (See 



Bull. Coop. Club, Sept. 



15, 1899, p. 99.) Tro- 



chilus violajugulum \^sic^ Jeffries, Auk, April, 1888, 



p. 168; A. 0. U. Committee's Suppl. List, 1889, p. 10; 



A. 0. U. List, 2d ed. 1895, No. 429. 1. T. violijugularis 



COUES, Key, 4th ed. 1890, p. 903. 



CALYP'TE. (Gr. KaXvurfi, Kalupte, a proper name.) 



Helmet Hummers. Crown of ^ with metallic scales 



like the gorget, which is prolonged into a ruff; outer pri- 

 mary not attenuate ; tail of ^ forked, the outer feather abruptly narrow and linear, of 9 

 slightly double-rounded. No peculiarity of primaries. Bill ordinary, as in Selasphorus or 

 Trochilus ; black. No rufous color anywhere. Tail of ^ unvaried ; of 9 white-tipped. (Our 

 only genus with bill ordinary and scales on crown of ^.) 



Fig. 

 nat. size. 



3G3. — Anna Hummingbird, 

 (From Elliot.) 



Fig. 362. — Anna Hummingbird, d", 9 , 

 nat. size. (From Elliot.) 



