372 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1890. 



about equal in length to the distance from the tips of the longest sec- 

 ondaries to that of the longest primary, the shortest (middle) feathers 

 less than half as long as the wing. (Female with lateral rectrices 

 shorter, and tail therefore less deeply emarginated.) Adult males me- 

 tallic grass-green above, the tail-feathers blue black with dull gray tips 

 (broadest on middle feathers) ; downy thigh tufts pure white ; under 

 tail-coverts with more or less of white: rest of lower parts metallic 

 green, bluish green, or blue ; bill pale brownish (red in life) on basal 

 portion, blackish at end, Adult females metallic grass-green above, 

 pale grayish beneath, the two exterior tail-feathers tipped with pale 

 brownish gray, and all with the basal half green. 



This genus comes so very close to Chloro stilbon that I am unable to 

 give satisfactory characters for its separation ; indeed, some of the 

 Central American species of Chlorostilbon resemble the species of lachc 

 quite as much, both in coloration and form, as the type of the former 

 genus (C. pucherani). In fact, I am unable to see why the two so-called 

 genera, together with Riccordia REICH.,* of the Bahamas, Cuba, Haiti, 

 and Porto Rico, should not be merged into one genus. 



The number of species embraced in the so-called genus lache is very 

 uncertain, only two of the five which have been described possessing 

 very definite characters. I have at this moment before me the types of 

 I. magica (Muls. and Terr.) and I. doubledayi (Bourc.), besides typical 

 specimens of J. lawrencei Berl., a good series of J. latirostris (Sw.), and 

 a fine adult male of what should be, from the locality, the 1. nitida of 

 Salvin. The five names above mentioned belong to two quite distinct 

 groups, I. magica and 1. lawrencei being closely related to J. latirostris, 

 while /. nitida is allied to I. doubledayi. Of the latter group I have 

 only three specimens for comparison, all adult males, as follows : The 

 type of I. doubledayi, kindly lent by the American Museum of Natural 

 History in New York City; a specimen from Tehuantepec, collected by 

 Professor Sumichrast (No. 57794, U. S. National Museum), and referred 

 by Mr. Lawrence to /. doubledayi ; and a most perfect example collected 

 by Mr. O. T. Baron, at Dos Arroyos, State of Guerrero, Mexico, the 

 region from which Mr. Salvin's recently described 1. nitida was ob- 

 tained. These three specimen are so much alike, however, that I have 

 little hesitation in referring them to one species, especially the first and 

 last, the Tehuantepec specimen being much more different from the 

 other two than they are from one another. I am therefore not able to 

 decide, without more specimens, how many forms of the doubledayi 

 group should be recognized, but would not be much surprised if /. 



* Riccordia REICH., Aufz. der Colib., 1853, 10. Type, Trochilus riccordi GERV. Siwr- 

 adinus BONAP., Rev. et Mag. Zool., 1854, 255. Same type. 



This so-called genus embraces four species, as follows: R. riccordi (GKRV.), of 

 Cuba and two of the Bahama islands (Andros and Abaco) ; R. bracei (LAWR.) from 

 New Providence, Bahamas ; R. elegans (VIEILL.), from Haiti, and R. maiigwi (ViEiLL.), 

 from Porto Hico. 



