ARACHNECHTHBA. 35? 



Genus ARACHNECHTHRA, Cabanis, 1850. 



I retain the genus Arachnechthra for those Indian Sim-birds in 

 which the tail in both sexes is short and rounded, the covering-mem- 

 brane of the nostril bare, and the bill slender and much curved 

 downwards. The type of the genus Cinnyris, in which genus these 

 Sun-birds have latterly been placed, is C. splendida from Africa, and 

 this species has the upper tail-coverts very ample, reaching quite to 

 the tip of the tail. I cannot therefore consider the Indian species, 

 which I retain in Araclmeclitlira, at all congeneric with this African 

 bird. 



In the genus Arachneclitlira the sexes are very different in colora- 

 tion, the males being clothed in metallic colours and the females 

 being greenish above and yellow beneath. The females of the 

 different species resemble each other very closely and are difficult 

 to separate, except in the case of a few. 



Key to the Species. 



a. Chin and throat dark-coloured and 



metallic. 

 a'. Lower plumage, below the breast, 



dark-coloured. 

 a". Upper plumage uniformly of one 



colour. 



a'". Abdomen snuff-brown .... A. lotenia tf, p. 358. 

 V". Abdomen violet-black .... A. asiatica cJ,p.360, 

 b". Upper plumage green, black, and 



blue .? A. hasselti rf, p. 360. 



b' . Lower plumage, below the breast, 



yellow. 



c". Back olive-yellow. 

 c'". Forehead and anterior part of 



crown violet-blue A. pectoralis <$ , p. 361. 



d'". Forehead and anterior part 



of crown like back, 

 a*. Pectoral tufts yellow and 

 flame-colour ; bill from 



gape -8 A. flammcwillaris $ , p. 362. 



b 1 . Pectoral tufts entirely yel- 

 low ; bill from gape more 



than -9 A. andamanica 3 , p. 363. 



d". Back crimson. 



e'". Upper tail-coverts metallic 



red A . minima J , p. 363. 



f". Upper tail-coverts metallic 



purple A. zeylonica $ , p. 364. 



b. Chin and throat palo-coloured and non- 



metallic. 



c'. Entire lower plumage yellow. 

 e". Rump and upper tail-coverts of 

 the same colour as the back. 



