( 250 ) 



the original description it is easily seen that this example cannot be the true type 

 of T. sophiae. Bourcier and Mulsant characterise their species as follows : " Dessus 

 du corps revtu de plumes soyeuses, d'un vert moins fonc6 et plus luisant sur la 

 nnqne, les convertures alaires et la moiti6 anterieure du dos, passant au vert cuivreux 

 sur le croupion et la couverture caudale, dont les dernieres plumes sont d'un bleu 

 d'acier . . . Couverture sous-caudale, forme'e de plumes d'un vert bronze, ou d'un 

 gris bronze, e'troitement borde' de blanc." This entirely disagrees with the Costa 

 Rica form, in which the uropygium and upper tail-coverts are strongly glossed with 

 coppery or purplish, while the lower tail-coverts are decidedly steel-blue with greyish 

 edges. On the other hand, the above terms apply perfectly well to S. saucerottei, 

 of Western Colombia, which is also found in Bogota collections.* This species 

 (of which the Munich Museum possesses a couple from Cali, the type locality) has 

 the rump and upper tail-coverts bronzy green, the longest feathers only dull steel 

 bluish with coppery margins, and the under tail-coverts dusky brown, edged with 

 whitish. 



Moreover, there is in the Paris Museum a nearly adult specimen f from 

 Colombia (id est Bogota), named and presented by Bourcier himself, which 

 corresponds exactly to the description of T. sophiae and, besides, agrees in every 

 respect with typical S. saucerottei from Cali ! Hence, there seems little doubt that 

 T. sophiae is the same as S. saucerottei^ while the bird found in Costa Rica and 

 Nicaragua ought to be called S. ho/manni (Cab. & Heine). } Those who might 

 object that so excellent an expert as Bourcier would not have described the same 

 species under two different names I would remind of the case of Lafresnaya saiil 

 (Del. & Bourc.). This species was first made known by Delattre and Bourcier 

 under the name Trochilus saiil, but in another paper published nearly simultane- 

 ously it was redescribed as T. gayi by Bourcier and Mulsant ! || 



Mr. Ridgway (I.e.) accepts S. sophiae as the oldest specific title for the group. 

 It appears, however, that the article in the Revue Zoologique containing the account 

 of Trochilus saucerottei Del. & Bourc.,1[ has a slight priority, as may be inferred from 

 a note in the same periodical (on page 314) concerning the memoir in the Annales 

 des Sciences phys. et nat. etc. de Lyon** 



Therefore, the nomenclature of the various forms has to stand as follows : 



(a) Saucer ottia saucerottei saucerottei (Del. & Bourc.). 



Trochilus Saucerrottei (err. typogr.) Delattre & Bourcier, Rev. Zool. ix. p. 311 (Sept. 1846. " Caly, 



Nouvelle Grenade "). 

 Trochilus Sophiae Bourcier & Mulsant, Ann. Sci. phys. et nat., d'Agric. etc. Lyon ix. p. 318 (1846. 



Bogota). 

 Sancerottia sophiae saucerrottei (sic) Ridgway, Bull. U.S. Mus. No. 50, v, 1911. p. 436. 



Hab. Western parts of Colombia (Cauca, Cali, etc.), also in Bogota 

 collections. 



* Mons. Simon has an absolutely typical Bogota skin. 



f "No. 852, Amazilia sophiae (Bourc. & Muls.). Don de M. Bourcier, Colombia." 



J Hemithylaca Hoffmanni Cabanis & Heine, Mug. Heinan. iii. p. 38 (March 1860. Costa Eica). 



Trochilus Saiil Delattre & Bourcier, Rtv. Zool. ix. p. 309 (Sept. 1846. Quito, Ecuador). 



|j Trochilux Gayi Bourcier & Mulsant, Ann. Sci. phys. et not., d'Agric., etc., Lyon ix. p. 326 (1846. 

 loc. ign.) 



^ Pev. Zool. ix. p. 311 (Sept. 1846. Caly, " Nouvelle Grenade"). 



** "Tel est le titre d'un travail que cet ornithologiste [viz. Bourcier] va insurer dans les Annales de 

 la Soc. Roy. d" Agriculture . . ." 



