346 TROCHILID^. 



prickles of the fruit, the whole structure being thus held firmly in its place ; this nest 

 was very shallow, not being subject to oscillation by wind. Another nest was in a 

 coffee-tree. The third was placed on the upper shoots of a dahlia which grew in the 

 garden of the house. The hen bird seemed to have the entire duty of rearing the 

 young, as no male ever approached the nest. When the hen was sitting she would 

 allow an observer to go quite close and even to hold the branch still from being swayed 

 by the wind without evincing any alarm. But it was only when a hot sun was shining 

 that she would allow so close an inspection ; on dull and rainy days four or five yards 

 was the nearest approach permitted. After being disturbed she would soon return, 

 bringing a small piece of lichen in her bill, which, after settling in her nest, she 

 would attach to the outside. When sitting, the whole cavity of the nest was filled with 

 her puffed-out feathers, the wings, except their tips, being entirely concealed by the 

 feathers of the back. When the young were first hatched they looked little black 

 shapeless things with long necks and hardly any bill ; they soon, however, grew and 

 entirely filled the nest. The old bird was never observed to sit after the young were 

 hatched ; she seemed to leave them alike in sun and rain. When feeding them she 

 would stand on the edge of the nest with her body nearly upright. One of the young 

 ones first flew on 15 th October. It was standing on the edge of the nest and, being 

 alarmed, attempted to fly, but fell amongst the flowers below ; on being replaced in the 

 nest it essayed again to fly, nothing daunted by its first failure — the second time with 

 better success, for it flew over a wall close by and settled on a tree on the other side. 

 The same day the old bird was seen feeding it, and it was observed to fly again with 

 increased vigour to an orange-tree, where it tried at first to rest on one of the fruit, but 

 failing, found a more fitting perch on the edge of a leaf. It was not seen again. The 

 other young one flew two days later. 



The down of the seeds of the willow and bulrush are favourite materials for the lining 

 of the nest of B. enicura, whilst lichen is freely used outside. 



Willow trees grow plentifully near Duenas, especially on the borders of the lake. 

 About the latter males were sometimes noticed to congregate in some numbers ; but 

 the special attraction to these trees was not apparent. 



2. Doricha elizse. 



Trochilus eliza, Less. & Delattre, Eev. Zool. 1839, p. 20 \ 



Thaumastura elizm, Gould, Mon. Troch. ill. 1. 155 (May 1857) ' ; de Oca, Pr. Ac. Phil. 1860, p. 552 ' ; 



La Nat. iii. p. 17, t. — ^ 

 Doricha elizm, Gould, Intr. Troch. p. 94 ° ; Boucard, Ann. See. Linn. Lyon, xxii. p. 22 ' ; P. Z. S. 



1883, p. 451''; Ferrari-Perez, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. ix. p. 157 ^ Salv. Ibis, 1889, p. 365'; 



Cat. Birds Brit, Mus. xvi. p. 382 '°. 



Supra nitenti-aureo-viridis ; capite summo obsouriore : subtus gula micanti-rosaceo-rubra, plaga infra oculos 

 fusea, pectore albo, abdomine medio et teotricibus subcaudaUbus albidis, hypoehondriis aureo-viridi 

 lavatis ; caudae rectricibus quatuor mediis dorso concoloribus, reUquis (fcribus utrinque) purpureo-nigris, 



