8 



ODD FAMILIES 



The Ruby-Throated Hummingbird 1 represents the 

 Family which contains the smallest of all birds. When the 

 trumpet-vine on your veranda is in flower, you will see this 

 delicate creature dart into view, like a large-winged insect, 



h 



I 



RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD. 



and poise itself easily and gracefully in mid-air at the mouth 

 of the most conspicuous flower. Its tiny wings beat the air 

 with such extreme rapidity and machine-like regularity that 

 you see only a gray, fan-shaped blur on each side of the living 

 bird. It holds itself in position with the greatest exactitude, 



1 Troch'i-lus col'u-bris. Length, 3.2.5 inches. 



