794 H U M M I N 



rich in gold and precious stones. Its bill is straight ; 

 the length of the bill and body about two inches, and 

 that of the tail, which is very pointed, as much more. 

 The centre of the forehead is covered with scaly 

 feathers, with very rich metallic reflections of blue and 

 green ; and from each side of the head in an oblique 

 line upwards from the eye, there arise six feathers, 

 which incline forward, and form a very peculiar tuft 

 upon each side of the head. The brilliance of those 

 feathers is beyond all possibility of description ; for, 

 according to the angle at which the light is reflected 

 from them, they show the colour of every gem and of 

 every metal when highly polished ; and the transition 

 from the one to the other of these is so rapid, that it 

 is impossible to say which is the master colour. The 

 gorget is a very rich purple, extending backwards 

 nearly to the middle of the neck, and forming a point 

 in front which is pendent over the breast. The breast, 

 the fore part of the belly, the lower sides of the neck, 

 and the shoulders, are pure white ; the lower part of 

 the belly and the upper part from the shoulders are 

 delicate bronze green ; the wings, which are very 

 long, are bronze brown, as are also the two central 

 feathers of the tail, but the remaining feathers of the 

 tail are white. The female wants the produced 

 feathers, but has the green on the body fully as bril- 

 liant as the male, and the top of the head a most 

 intense blue, behind which there is a patch of green 

 on the nape, separated from the green on the back by 

 pure while. Both birds are very lightly and elegantly 

 formed, and, taking them altogether, it is impossible 

 to imagine creatures possessed of more exquisite and 

 more varying beauties. 



VIOLET-EARED HUMMING-BIRD (T. auritus}. 

 Bright green in the upper part, and pure white in 

 the under, with the exception of the vent feathers, 

 which are greenish. A tuft of produced violet feathers, 

 projecting from the ear covert ; a black line from the 

 gape across the eye, the tail wedge-shaped, with the 

 extreme feathers white, and the four centre ones very 

 dark green. The female wants the produced feathers, 

 and has the under part greyish. This species is found 

 generally in the northern parts of South America. 



VIOLET-TUFTED HUMMING-BIRD ( T. petasophorus}. 

 This is a Brazilian species, with the general tint of 

 the plumage golden green in various shades, the wings 

 brown, and the under tail coverts white. From the 

 ear coverts there are two tufts of produced feathers 

 which extend downwards and backwards. Their 

 colour in some lights is violet, but in others it is golden 

 green ; the female is of a very intense emerald green. 



TUFTED-NECKED HCMMING-BIRD (T. ornatus). 

 This is a very singular species, especially in the orna- 

 mental feathers of the male, which appear in the shape 

 of a large crest covering the whole upper part of the 

 head, and in two tufts of produced feathers originat- 

 ing in the sides of the neck, and in shape and size 

 bearing some resemblance to vines. We believe it is 

 the species marked in the plate HUMMING-BIRDS, by 

 mistake, as T. auratus, which should have been the 

 last-mentioned species, save one, and named auritus. 

 The male has the crest and produced feathers of 

 bright brownish red, with a circular spot of pure 

 green on the tip of each feather. The throat arid 

 breast are brilliant green, surrounded by a margin of 

 chestnut. The upper parts are bronze green, with 

 blue reflections, the under part purplish green imme- 

 diately below the chestnut border, and passing into a 

 deeper tint on the belly. The rump is greyish white ; 



G-BIRD. 



the centre feather of the tail greenish, and the lateral 

 ones chestnut red. The female wants the produced 

 feathers, has the gorget pale chestnut, and the tail 

 feathers red crossed by a broad bar of green. 



THE SHIELDED HUMMING-BIRD (T. scutatus) lias 

 the forehead and gorget green, with a large tuft of 

 deep blue feathers of a downy consistency, and tipped 

 with yellow at the extremities on each side of the 

 neck. Thee are not found in the female. 



DELALAND'S HUMMING-BIRD (T. Delalandii). The 

 male of this species is one of the most singular of the 

 whole, especially in the form of its crest, from the 

 centre of which there rises one long and narrow 

 feather of a bright blue colour, and white at the tip. 

 The upper part is bright green, the under part rich 

 blue, the flanks and sides of the neck grey, and there 

 is a white spot composed of two or three scalv feathers 

 over each ear covert. This species is found in Brazil. 

 There is another species found in the same country 

 which resembles this one in the form of the crest 

 on the male, but the colours are different. 



STORE'S HUMMING-BIRD (T. Stokeii). This is, per- 

 haps, one of the most splendid of the w hole tribe ; 

 and the circumstance of its being found in the remote 

 island of Juan Fernandez, rendered celebrated by the 

 romance of Robinson Crusoe, tends to heighten the 

 interest. If De Foe in forming his romance had been 

 aware of the existence of this splendid little bird, he 

 would have, no doubt, turned it to great advantage. 

 This species is about four inches and a half in length, 

 of which the body and head occupy about two inches. 

 The head is adorned with a crest of scaly feathers, of 

 a rich blue colour, with purple reflections ; the whole 

 of the upper part from the nape to the tail coverts is 

 bright emerald green, the feathers scale-shaped, and 

 increasing in size as they approach the tail, where the 

 termination of the coverts is well defined. The tail 

 consists of ten feathers, which are long and remark- 

 ably strong in proportion to the size of the bird ; the 

 two middle ones are wholly green, the others are 

 green on their outer webs, and white on their inner, 

 except the outer ones, which have only the distal half 

 of the outer web green. A patch under and behind 

 the eye is purple with green reflections, and dotted 

 over with circular spots of metallic lustre, which are 

 variable from pale pink to deep violet, as the light is 

 differently reflected. The under part is white, with a 

 greenish tinge on the chin, and marked all over with 

 eye-shaped spots of bright emerald green. Alto- 

 gether the plumage of this bird is exceedingly rich. 



VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMING-BIRD ( T. sephanoides}. 

 This is a migrant species in South America, at least 

 in the southern parts. It is about four inches long, 

 rather compactly made ; has the bill straight ; a 

 flat purple crest on the head ; the upper part golden 

 green ; the under part yellow on the throat, white on 

 the sides of the neck, and reddish white on the breast 

 and belly. The feathers on the fore neck and breast 

 are scale-shaped, and each of them is marked with a 

 circular brown spot. These birds, though migrant in 

 Chili, are described as being very hardy. 



RUBY-CRESTED HUMMING-BIRD (T. moschitus), 

 This is a very common species ; but it is peculiar in 

 its attitude, and its colouring is exceedingly rich, and 

 varies greatly in different lights. It is between three 

 and four inches in length, but stoutly made, and has 

 the bill long and strong. There is no pioduced crest, 

 but the feathers on the upper part of the head to the 

 nape, and also those on the under part of the body 



