144 AFRICAN SUN-BIRDS. 



There is a little Sun-Bird, with blue bands 

 glossed with violet, called the Blue-banded Sun- 

 Bird, and which flies in small flocks of eight or ten 

 together. And there is another, the Violet-banded 

 Sun-Bird, still more tiny. And another still, with 

 tufts on either side of brilliant scarlet. Then 

 there is another, called the Fine-backed Sun-Bird. 

 Its head and neck are of a glowing purple, with 

 a bronze-like lustre. The upper parts of the bird 

 are coloured like the petals of the auricula, with 

 a constantly changing lustre. There are no tufts, 

 but on each wing is a patch of the richest violet. 



Another beautiful bird has a patch of emerald- 

 green upon its throat ; and the fore-parts of the 

 neck and breast are of the brightest scarlet, 

 changing into purple. 



This gay plumage disappears when the mating 

 season is over, and the bird becomes of a dull 

 brown, tinted with yellow. 



Then there is the Amethyst-throated Sun-Bird, 

 the plumage of which is thick and soft as velvet. 

 On the throat is an oval patch of rich purple, and 

 the wing-feathers are of the same beautiful tint. 



