EUCEPHALA CERULEA. 



Blue-chinned Sapphire. 



Trochilus cteruleus, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., torn. vii. p. 361.— lb. Ency. Meth. Om, 



part 2. p. 563. 

 L Oiseau-mouche a gosier bleu, Aud. et Vieill. Ois. dor., torn. i. p. 82. pi. 40. Sonn. Edit. Buff. 



Hist. Nat. des Ois., torn. liii. p. 829.— lb. Sonn. Edit., torn. xvii. p. 186. 

 Ornismya Audebertii, Less. Hist. Nat. des Ois. Mou., pp. xxx, 164. pi. 51. lb. Traite d'Orn., 



p. 281. — lb. Ind. Gen. et Syn. des Ois. du Gen. Trochilus, p. xxxvii. — Bourc. Ann. 



de la Soc. Sci. de Lyon, torn. v. 1842, p. 310. pi. 16. 

 Hylocharis e&ruka, Gray and Mitch. Gen. of Birds, vol. i. p. 114, Hylocharis, sp. 34. 



coeruleus, Bonap. Rev. et Mag. de Zool. 1854, p. 255. 



Thawnatias caeruleus, Bonap. Consp. Gen. Av., p. 78, Thamnatim, sp. 12. 

 Chlorestes coerulea, Reich. Aufz. der Col., p. 7. 



This species is known to scientific ornithologists by two specific names — ccerulea and Audeberti ; the former 

 of which, having the priority, is the one adopted in the present work. 



The Eucephala ccendea may be stated to be one of the very commonest of the Trochilidse, hundreds, nay 

 thousands, being annually sent to Europe, and mounted under glass shades for ornamental purposes. As may 

 be supposed, these great numbers do not all come from the same source : some are sent from Brazil, others 

 from Cayenne, and others from the island of Trinidad. I must here remark that there are two very well- 

 marked varieties of this bird, indicated by the greater or lesser amount of blue on the throat ; in all other 

 respects they closely assimilate. The countries favourable to the existence of the variety with the deep hlue 

 colouring of the chin — the one figured on the accompanying Plate — are, French Guiana, Cayenne, Para, and 

 the islands of Tobago and Trinidad ; while the Antilles, Venezuela, and the borders of the Chamacures, a 

 tributary of the Amazon on the eastern dip of the Andes, are as favourable to the other. The specimens I 

 possess from the latter locality were procured by Mr. Hauxwell, while my Venezuelan examples were 

 collected by the late Mr. Dyson. 



Mr. William Tucker informs me that in Trinidad it is principally found in the large woods, but is some- 

 times met with in the more open parts of the country and on the pasture lands ; and that it frequents 

 flowers of all kinds, but appears to be especially partial to those of the Bois immorteL 



Mr. Reeves states, that though this species is common at Bahia it is very rare in the province of Rio 

 de Janeiro. 



The nest and eggs of this bird have been figured by M. Bourcier in the fifth volume of the " Annates des 

 Sciences Physiques, &c, de Lyon," and is accompanied by the following description : — 



" Ce nid represente un demi-ovale obliquement coupe ; il est forme d'un melange du duvet cotonneux que 

 contiennent les capsules du fromager a fruit rond (Bombax globoswn), et de celui que fournit le Baobab 

 (Adansonia digitatd), vulgairement appelle Pain de singe. Sa paroi externe, a laquelle adherent quelques 

 corps etrangers, est recouverte d'un leger reseau de fils d'araignees. 



" Ce nid etait plaque vers l'extremite de la page inferieure d'une feuille de Bambou, dont la plicature lui 

 oflfrait un abri contre les rayons du soleil et contre la pluie. Dans sa cavite se trouvaient deux oeufs blancs 



et de forme cylindrique." 



The Eucephala ccerulea is a bird of great beauty, and differs from most others in the depth of the green 

 colouring of the chest and under surface, which it is quite impossible to represent in a drawing. The female 

 differs in the lighter colouring of the green of the upper surface and in the almost white throat and abdomen, 

 the former, however, as well as the flanks, being beautifully spotted with glittering green ; the outer tail- 

 feathers also of this sex are tipped with greyish-white. 



The male has the crown and sides of the head, the upper surface of the body, wing- and tail-coverts deep 

 grass-green ; wings dark purplish-brown ; tail dark steel-blue, with green reflexions ; chin a deep shining 

 blue ; 2 11 the under surface dark glittering green ; upper mandible dark brown ; under mandible reddish 



flesh-colour. 



The female has the head and all the upper surface bronzy-green ; wings and tail as in the male, except 

 that the outer feather of the latter is tipped with grey; under surface white, with a spot of glittering green 

 at the tips of the feathers of the throat and flanks ; under tail-coverts green. 



The figures in the accompanying Plate are intended to represent the sexes of the size of life, on a plant 

 the botanical name of which is Eugenia Brasiliensis. 



