POLTTMUS. 213 



Hah. Guatemala. 



Male. Upper surface dark shining green, becoming bronzy on the upjjer tail 

 coverts. Under surface luminous grass-green. Base of primaries and secondaries 

 chestnut-red, rest of primaries purplish-brown. Under tail coverts white. Tail 

 very dark greenish-bronze, almost black on the lateral feathers, with the basal two 

 thirds of inner webs of the two outermost rectrices white. Bill black, feet brown. 

 Total length, 3| in. Wing, 2g in. Tail, 1 § in. Culmen, § in. 



Female. Differs in having the entire under surface grayish-white, mottled with 

 green and buff on the flanks. Base of four middle tail feathers bronzy-green, tii)s 

 black. Rest of plumage like that of the male. Total length, 3^ in. Wing, 21 in. 

 Tail, 1/g in. Culmen, }J in. 



3. liupherusa egregia. 



Euphenisa egregi'a,.SchAT. and Salt., P. Z. S. (18C8), p. 389; (1870), p. 210.— Lawr., Ann. N. Y. Lye. Nat. 

 Hist. {181)9), p. 146.— MuLS., Hist. Nat. Ois. Mouch., torn, i, p. 274. 



Ifab. Costa Rica, Veragua. 



3fale. Plumage of body as in E. exlmia. Tail differs in having the four central 

 feathers dark greenish-bronze, remainder white margined with black. Bill black, 

 feet flesh-color. Total length, 3| in. Wing, 25 in. Tail, 1^ in. Culmen, | in. 



The three species comprising the next genus have been assigned to various posi- 

 tions among the Trochilidne, but I think they are best placed here. They possess 

 characters that would ally them to various genera, and it cannot be said that they 

 are especially related to the members of any particular one of those known. This 

 of course makes it impossible to find a position for them as yet, which it Avould 

 seem they are especially designed to fill, and as is the case with many others, we 

 must wait further discoveries in the Family, before their exact place can be 

 ascertained. They are rather large birds, with a green plumage, and tails of green 

 and white, the feathers being narrow and pointed. 



Genus CVIIL— rOLYTMUS. 



Ttpr. 

 Polytmus, Bris!?., Oriiith. (1700). T. thaicmant ias, Linn. 



'Thaumatias, Bon., Compt. Kend. (18.50), p. .'?82, vol. 30. T. thaumanlias, Linn. 



Chrysobronchus, Bon., Rev. and Mag. Zool. (1834), p. 252. T. thaumanlias, Linn. 



' Bonaparte expressly states in the article here indicated that " Tliaumatias a ponr type T. (hau- 

 matias (lege thaumanlias), Linn.," which clearly proves, as I have already shown in the Ibis, 1878, 

 p. 30, that Mr. Gould and other.? are in error to refer Bonaparte's term to the members of the genus 

 AiiYRTRiA, with which the T. thaumanlias has nothing whatever to do. The fact that Bonajiarte 

 afterwards classed with the type of his genus, species of Aqyrtria is not snrprising, as his knowledge 

 of the Trochilidie was limited, and he knew many species only by their names; therefore, it was not 

 iinnsnal for hira in his writings to group together under one genus, numerous species with little or 

 no relationship, and belonging to very different genera. By no method can T/iaiimalia.^, Bon., be 

 properly construed as intended for any other species than the one here given as Polytmus thauman- 

 lias, and its allies included in the same genus. 



