40 GENERAL DISTRIBUTION. 



them its attractions. At the same time the two 

 groups are utterly distinct, as is the territorial 

 range respectively assigned to them. No Sun- 

 bird is a native of America no Humming-bird 

 of India or Africa. 



Looking at the Trochilidce as a whole, we may 

 regard them as birds of a warm or temperate 

 climate, but there are exceptions to this rule, 

 for some species of migratory habits pass to the 

 south as far as Tierra del Fuego, where they 

 have been seen feeding on the flowers of the 

 Fuschia, even during storms of snow and sleet. 



Passing to the north, Nootka Sound and the 

 whole region of the Columbia River, on the Pa- 

 cific side of America, is visited during summer 

 by the gorgeous TROCHILUS RUFUS (Naturalist's 

 Library, ii. p. 71), one of the most brilliant of 

 the group ; while in Canada, and the Atlantic 

 portion of North America, as far as the 50th 

 degree of latitude and perhaps farther, it is re- 

 presented by the Trochilus Colibris, or RUBY- 

 THROATED HUMMING-BIRD (Naturalist's Li- 

 brary, vol. i. p. 85), a species of surpassing 

 beauty. 



In the Pacific, the humid island of Chiloe pre- 

 sents us with the TROCHILUS KINGII, as wejl as 

 other species; and the celebrated isle of Juan 

 Fernandez has two species, TROCHILUS STO- 

 KESII (Naturalist's Library, vol. ii. p. 55), and 

 TROCHILUS FERNANDENSIS, which are not found 

 on the adjacent continent. It is very remark- 



