58 cassell's book of birds. 



one inch deep within, the sides about a quarter of an inch thick, the inner margin a little overarching, 

 so as to narrow the opening ; the total diameter at the top one inch and a half. The eggs are of a long 

 oval form and i)ure white, save that when fresh the contents produce a reddish tinge, from the 

 thinness of the shell. The above are the usual form, dimensions, and materials of the nest. Variations, 

 however, often occur from local causes : thus, in one from a rocky situation only moss is used, and the 

 base is prolonged to a point ; one now before me is wholly composed of pure silk-cotton, bound 

 profusely with the finest web, undistinguishable except on the closest examination, not a fragment of 

 lichen mars the beautiful uniformity of its appearance ; others are studded all over with lichens, and 

 have a peculiar rustic prettiness. Insects constitute the principal food of this species, which obtains 

 them from the flower-cups, and also catches them whilst on the wing." 



The WOOD-NYMPHS (Lawportiis) possess a straight or moderately-cur^'ed beak, which is 

 broad at its base and incised at its extremity ; the long toes are armed with short, high, and very 

 decidedly-hooked claws ; the wings are slender, and the tail broad, rounded or slightly incised at its 

 extremity. The sexes vary considerably in their coloration. 



THE MANGO HUMMING BIRD. 



The Mango Humming Bird {Lampornis ma>igo) represents a group recognisable by their long, 

 flat, broad, and curved beak, and by their short, rounded tail. In this species, which is about four 

 inches and three-quarters long and seven inches and a half broad, with wing measuring two inches 

 and three-quarters and tail one inch and a half, the entire mantle is of metallic green, glistening with 

 a bright copper shade ; the greyish black quills gleam with violet, and the centre tail-feathers, which 

 are green shaded with red above, are blueish red beneath, and have a brilliant purplish black border ; 

 the exterior tail-feathers are entirely blueish red, with a similar edge. The throat, neck, breast, and 

 upper part of the belly are of rich velvety black, shading into steel-blue at the sides; the lower portion 

 of the belly is of copper-green. The beak of the adult is black, that of the young brown, and the 

 foot black. The female is paler than her mate on the mantle, and white striped with black on the 

 under side ; her body is four inches and three-quarters long and seven and a half broad ; the wing 

 measures two inches and three-quarters and the tail one inch and a half. 



The Mango, we learn from M. Boucier, though one of the most widely-spread members of its 

 family, is only to be met with in hot localities ; and whenever it occurs in the interior of a country, it 

 is invariably in the warmest valleys. In disposition it is wild and quarrelsome, for although it lives 

 in societies, several always being together, it is continually engaged in fighting with its companions 

 and in driving away all other birds that approach the trees in which it is breeding. It inhabits 

 Bolivia, Guiana, and Brazil. The adult does not assume its perfect plimnage until the end of the 

 second year, and in the interval passes through so many changes that the variety of appearance it 

 presents has given rise to the various names under which these birds have been described ; those 

 obtained in Bolivia are a trifle the largest, and have the bands of green and blue at the sides of the 

 neck a little less brilliant ; in fact, the hotter the climate in which they dwell the brighter is their • 

 general appearance — the black of the throat is more intense, the green on the back and rump finer, 

 and the violet of the tail more lustrous. The flight of this species is very rapid. Mr. Reeves informs 

 us that in Brazil the Lanipornis mango is found in Rio Janeiro, Minos Gerves, St. Paul's, Santa 

 Catherina, and Para. The Mango frequents gardens as well as the forests, and is very common in Rio 

 in some seasons and equally scarce at others. The nest, according to Gould, is a round cup-shaped 

 stiucture, placed near the extremity of a small horizontal branch, and is composed of any cottony or 

 similar material that may be at hand, bound together with cobwebs, and ornamented with numerous 



