THE EUBY-THEOATED HUMMING-BIRD. 



227 



extreme of its own territories, launching itself furiously at any bird that may seem to be 

 au intruder. It has even been seen to attack the royal eagle itself, and to perch itself upon 

 the head of its gigantic enemy, pecking away with hearty good will, and scattering the 

 eagle's feathers in a stream as the affrighted bird dashed screaming through the air, vainly 

 attempting to rid itself of its puny foe. 



The Ruby-throat is very easily tamed, and is a most loving and trustful little creature. 

 Mr. Webber, in the work to which I have already made allusion, has given a most 

 interesting account of a number of 

 Ruby-throats which he succeeded 

 in taming. On several occasions 

 he had enticed the living meteors 

 into his room by placing vases of 

 tempting flowers on the table, and 

 adroitly closing the sash as soon 

 as they were engaged with the 

 flowers, but he had always lost 

 them through theu- dashing at the 

 window and striking themselves 

 against the glass. At last, how- 

 ever, his attempts were crowned 

 with success, and "this time I 

 succeeded in secviring an un- 

 injured captive, which, to my 

 inexpressible delight, proved to 

 be one of the Ruby-throated 

 species, the most splendid and 

 diminutive that comes north of 

 Florida. It immediately suggested 

 itself to me that a mixture of two 

 parts refined loaf-sugar, with one 

 of fine honey, in ten of water, 

 would make about the nearest 

 approach to the nectar of flowers. 



AVhile my sister ran to prepare 

 it, I gradually opened my hand to 

 look at my prisoner, and saw, to 

 my no little amusement as well 

 as suspicion, that it was actually 

 ' playing 'possum' — feigning to be 

 dead most skilfully. It lay on 

 my open palm motionless for some 

 minutes, during which I watched 

 it in breathless curiosity. I saw 

 it gradually open its bright little 

 eyes to peep whether the way was 

 clear, and then close them slowly 

 as it caught my eye upon it. But 

 when the manufactured nectar 

 came, and a drop was touched 

 upon the point of its bill, it came 



to life very suddenly ; and in a moment was on its legs, drinking with eager gusto of the 

 refreshing draught from a silver tea-spoon, ■\^^len sated, it refused to take any more, and 

 sat perched with the coolest self-composure on my finger, and plumed itself quite as 

 artistically as if on its favourite spray. I was enchanted with the bold innocent 

 confidence with which it turned up its "keen black eyes to survey us, as much as to say, 

 'Well, good folks ' who are you?' 



q2 



^ \^ «/^'/./i. 



RUBY-THROATED HUMMING-BIRD.— rr(ic7ii!j(S coluiris. 

 AVOCET HUMMING-BIRD.— ylTOCcKo Recurmrostris. 



