4G8 NOKTII AMERICAN BIHIKS. 



Gkxls THAUMATIAS, Honap. 



Gkn. CiiAi:. Very siinihir in f^etieral Ibrni to HefiopicJicK, but the tail emarjrinated, 

 instead of luundtMl, tlie leathers narrower and less ronndeil at the ends. The coloration 

 <|iiite diderent, Sexe5 alike, in all the speeies. Color nearly unilbrni green, with the 

 anal rcu'ioii white, the wings an<l tail dusky. Many species with the whole lower parts, 

 except laterally, pure white. One species (7'. chiouunis) with the tail white, except the 

 ends of th(> feathers ahd the intermedia?. 



The species are all of rather .small size and rather plain appearance, from 

 the uniforniity of their tureen, or <,a'een and white, coloring. They belong to 

 northern South America, and to Cential America north to Guatemala. 



'i'he genus is included in the Xorth American fauna solely upon the 

 accidental occurrence of one species {T. linncei) in Eastern Massachusetts. 



Thaumatias linnsei, Boxap. 



LINNiET7S'S EMERALD. 



Tlwinnntifis Jiiimci, Boxap. H^'v. et Mag. de Zool. 1854, 255. Thaumatias I. Gould, 

 Monog. Trochilid. pi. ! 7'rodiilus tobaci, Gmel. Syst. Nat. I, 498. i TrochihiH toha- 

 gotsiSf Lath. Ind. Orn. I, 31«). f Trochilu^ fobin/o, Shaw, Gen. Zool. viii, 350. Or- 

 nisinifn ciridissiiiui, Less. Hist. Xat. 257, pi. Ixxv. f JjOiscau-mouche ii poitrinc vcrte 

 {TruchU'is riwci'lafiis), Arr>. et Vif.ii.i.. (Ms. Dor. toui. I, 87, pl. xliv. ArgyrtrUi 

 tiiacuhifa, MAY^-Aun, lliuls K. Mass. l*7o, 128 (Cambridge, Mass.!). 



" .». Continuous green, darker above, more brilliant, and of an emerald tint on 



1. throat and juguluni : crissum. anal region, and middle of the abdomen, white. 



Primaries i»lain dusky. Tail blai-kish, with a faint reflection of dark blue subterminally, 



and of dull green l)asally, the lateral feathers obscurely tipped with dull dark ashy. 



S,'xe< alike. Wing, about 2.00 : bill, .70. 



Hah. Northern Brazil, Guiana. Tobago, and B< tgcta (Gould) ? ? Accidental in the 

 easteiii I'nited States (Cauii)ridge, Ma.ss., Mavnard). 



This race much resenildes the T. (ffhirentris, CRF.iriiENB.) BoNAP. (GoULD, 

 MonoLi. Troch., Vol. V, ]». ccci ), of Brazil, but is .said to be smaller and with 

 less white on the abdomen and the under tail-coverts tinged with gray. 



Hahits. The single specimen of this Humming- Bird, referred to by both 

 Mr. Mayuard and Mr. Allen ^ as having been taken in Massachusetts, is said 

 to have been sliot bv Mr. William Brewster in the summer of 1868, in Cam- 

 bridge, near Blount Auburn. It was secured by accident, and was presumed 

 tf) be, when taken, a female specimen of Trochiliis coliihris. It was sent to 

 Mr. Vickary, of Lynn, to be mounted, and the question has been raised if 

 by chance a South American bird may not have been substituted for the 

 original. This, however, A»r. Vickary is positive could not have happened. 

 Nothing distinctive wa^, observed as to its habits. In view, however, of the 

 possibility of an error, the propriety of including it in our fauna is very 

 questionable. 



1 .\iii. rraturalist, l«*J9-70. 



