LONG-TAILED HUMMING BIED. 233 



water, and in one instance overhanging the sea waves, suspended 

 to a twig of wild vine. The account is as follows : — 



" Suddenly I heard the whirr of a humming bird, and on 

 looking up, I saw a female Polytmus hovering opposite the nest 

 with a mass of silk-cotton in her beak. Deterred by the sight 

 of me, she presently retired to a twig a few paces distant, on 

 which she sat. I immediately sank down among the rocks as 

 gently as possible, and remained perfectly still. In a few 

 seconds she came again, and after hovering a moment, disap- 

 peared behind one of the projections, whence in a few seconds 

 she emerged again and flew off. I then examined the place 

 and found to my delight a new nest. 



" I again sat down on the stones in front, where I could see 

 the nest, not concealing myself, but remaining motionless, waiting 

 for the bird's reappearance. I had not to wait long ; a loud 

 whirr, and there she was, suspended in the air before her nest. 

 She soon espied me, and came within a foot of my eyes, hovering 

 just in front of my face. I remained still, however, when I 

 heard the whirring of another just above me, perhaps the mate, 

 but I durst not look towards him, lest the turning of my head 

 should frighten the female. In a minute or two the other was 

 gone, and she alighted again on the twig, where she sat some 

 little time preening her feathers, and apparently clearing her 

 mouth from the cotton fibres, for she swiftly projected the 

 tongue an inch and a half from the beak, continuing the same 

 curve as that of the beak. 



" When she arose, it was to perform a very interesting action, 

 for she flew to the face of the rock, which was thickly clothed 

 with soft downy moss, and, hovering on the wing as if before 

 a flower, began to pluck the moss until she had a large bunch 

 of it in her beak. Then I saw her fly to the nest, and having 

 seated herseU in it proceeded to place the new materials, pressing 

 and arranging and interweaving the whole with her beak, while 

 she fashioned the cup-like form of the interior by the pressure 

 of her white breast, moving round and round as she sat. My 

 presence appeared to be no hindrance to her proceedings, 

 although only a few feet distant ; at length she left the place 

 and I left also." 



The bird whose proceedings are thus vividly described is a 

 lovely species, remarkable for the very groat length of the two 



