548 RUBY-CROWNED REGULUS. 



dible straight; acute. Nostrils basal, elliptical, half-closed above by a 

 membrane, covered over by the feathers. The whole form is slender, al- 

 though the bird looks somewhat bulky, on account of the loose texture 

 of the feathers. Legs rather long ; tarsus slender, longer than the mid- 

 dle toe, much compressed, covered anteriorly with a few indistinct scu- 

 tella ; toes scutellate above, the lateral ones nearly equal and free ; hind 

 toe stouter ; claws weak, compressed, arched, acute. 



Plumage very loose and tufty. Short bristles at the base of the bill. 

 Feathers of the head elongated, silky. Wings of ordinary length, the 

 third and fourth primaries longest. Tail of twelve feathers, emarginate, 

 of ordinary length. 



Bill black, yellow at the base of the lower, and on the edges of the 

 upper mandible. Iris light brown. Feet yellowish-brown, the under 

 parts yellow. The general colour of the upper parts is dull olivaceous, 

 lighter behind. The eye is encircled with greyish-white, of which colour 

 also are the tips of the wing-coverts. Quills and tail dusky, edged with 

 greenish-yellow. The silky feathers of the crown of the head vermilion. 

 The under parts greyish-white. 



Length 4| inches, extent of wings 6 ; bill I ; tarsus |. 



Adult Female, in summer plumage. Plate CXCV. Fig. 2. 

 The female resembles the male, but the tints are in general duller, 

 especially the greenish-yellow of the wings. 



The Narrow-leaved Kalmia, or Laurel* 



Kalmia angustifolia, Willd. Sp. PI. vol. ii. p. 601 Pursh, Fl. Amer. vol. i. 



p. 296. — Decandria Monogynia, Linn. Rhododendra, Juss. 



This species is characterized by its petiolate, ternate, cunea to-oblong 

 leaves, which are obtuse and tinged with red beneath. The corymbs of 

 beautiful deep rose-coloured flowers are lateral ; the peduncles and calyx 

 downy, and the bracteoe smooth. It grows to the height of two or even 

 sometimes four feet, and is common in the Northern States and British 

 Provinces ; flowers from the end of June to the middle of August. 



