LOCAL BANGKE. 47 



seem particularly fond of such shady retired 

 spots. Whenever I saw these little creatures 

 buzzing round a flower, with their wings vibrat- 

 ing so rapidly as to be scarcely visible, I was 

 reminded of the Sphinx-moths ; their movements 

 and habits are, indeed, in many respects very 

 similar." The Sphinx- moths are crepuscular in 

 their habits, and so are many of the Trochilidce, 

 1 inasmuch as numerous flowers open their blos- 

 soms and exhale their odours only on the ap- 

 [ proach of evening; we may instance the beautiful 

 large white Brugmanzia, the blossoms of which, 

 on a summer's evening (we speak of plants kept 

 I in greenhouses in our island), are then redolent 

 I of perfume. To various species of Humming- 

 | bird the Brugmanzia is very attractive ; and the 

 I DOCIMASTER, ENSIFEBUS has its bill enormously 

 i lengthened, in order to fit it as a probe for these 

 1 large deep tubular flowers. In fact, the dense 

 | shades of the mountain forests, where so many 

 | of these birds revel, create a continual twilight, 

 ! and preserve a humidity which gives the utmost 

 I luxuriance to vegetation. Here the variegated 

 I blossoms of the Orchidea, climbing Bauhinite, 

 Passiflora, and the yellow-blossomed Banisteria, 

 entwining the stems of forest trees, spread far and 

 high in air ; " and delicate flowers are unfolded 

 from the roots of the Theobromce, and from the 

 thick and rough bark of the Crescentia and the 

 1 GustavicB. In the midst of this abundance of 

 | flowers and leaves, and this luxuriantly wild en- 



