170 RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. 



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 ordi- 

 nary 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 ^; tarsus f-. 



Adult Female, in summer plumage. 



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

 cially the greenish-yellow of the wings. 



The Narrow-leaved Kalmia, or Laurel. 



Kalmia angustifolia, Willd., Sp. PL, vol. ii. p. 601. Pursch, Fl. Amer., vol. i. p. 296. 

 — Decandria Monogynia, Linn. — Rhododendra, Juss. 



This species is characterized by its petiolate, ternate, cuneato-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 bracteas 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. 



