THE HUMMING BIRDS. 371 



base of Oacachiles Mountain in February; more so, in fact, than C. 

 costcv. It was not observed at San Jose until some time after iny 

 arrival, though it occurred in canons only 2 or 3 miles to the westward. 

 About the last of April it was common in orchards at San Jose. 



" While incubating, this species is very confiding and courageous, 

 sometimes remaining upon the nest until removed from it by the band. 

 A nest taken April 23 was placed underneath an awning or shade of 

 boughs and weeds in front of a farmhouse. It was surrounded by 

 downy heads of composite plants and could scarcely be distinguished 

 from them, having as usual, been made of raw cotton." 



The two nests of this species obtained by Mr. Belding are very neat 

 structures, quite different in appearance from the nest of any other 

 North American Hummer, though they differ much from one another. 

 The finer of the two (No. 18563, San Jose, April 23,) is a compactly 

 felted mass composed chiefly of raw cotton, but this coated exteriorly 

 with spiders' webs and light brown fine fibrous materials. It is securely 

 fastened to two forks of a twig and rests between them. The shape is 

 very irregular, owing to the manner in which it is secured to the twigs, 

 but on top the transverse diameter is about 1.50 inches, the cavity being 

 about 1 inch across and about 0.60 of an inch deep. The two eggs 

 measure respectively 0.32 by 0.50 and 0.34 by 0.49, being essentially 

 identical in size and shape with those of Calypte costce, from which it is 

 apparently quite impossible to distinguish them. The other nes.t (No. 

 18564, Arroyo, north of Santiago Peak, May 9) is quite different both 

 in shape and material. It is very regularly but shallowly cup-shaped, 

 averaging a little over 1.50 inches in external diameter, but only about 

 0.80 of an inch in extreme height. The cavity is about 1 inch across 

 by a little over 0.50 of an inch in depth. The material is chiefly raw 

 cotton, but this much mixed, especially outwardly, with fine leaf-stems, 

 seed capsules, spiders' webs, etc., besides one or two soft white feathers. 

 Like the other nest, this one is supported between two twigs. The 

 eggs measure respectively 0.34 by 0.49 and 0.32 by 0.50. 



Genus IACHE ELLIOT. 



Circe GOULD, Mon. Troch., pt.xm, May 1, 1857. Type, Cynanthus latiroslris SWAINS. 



(Preoccupied ; Mert., 1835, Acal.) 

 lache ELLIOT, Class, and Synop. Troch., March, 1879, 234. Type, Cynanthus latirostris 



SWAINS. 



GENERIC CHARACTERS. Similar to Ghlorostilbon GOULD,* but bill 

 longer. Bill decidedly longer than head, nearly or quite straight, the 

 nostrils entirely uncovered by feathers, though overhung by a conspic- 

 uous operculum ; the length of the exposed culinen equaling or exceed- 

 ing the distance from the bend of the wing to the tips of the longest 

 secondaries; tail deeply emarginate, the longest (lateral) feathers 



* Chlorostilbon GOULD, Mon. Troch., pt. v, 1853; Introd. Troch., oct. ed., 1861, 175. 

 Type, TrocMlus pucherani BOURC. and MULS. 



