CREEPER. 237 



A. — Length scarcely four inches. Bill strait, except near the tip, 

 where the curvature begins ; colour dusky ; crown of the head fine 

 gilded green ; through the eye from the bill black, uniting with 

 the hind part of the neck, which is also black ; back deep glossy 

 green, changing to blue on the rump ; the rest of the wings and tail, 

 lower belly, thighs, and vent dusky black; from the chin to the 

 middle of the belly scarlet crimson, but the throat is gilded ; legs 

 dusky. 



Inhabits Malacca. — From the drawings of Sir J. Anstruther; 

 not uncommon at Mosainbique. 



26.— GREEN-GOLD CREEPER. 



Certhia omnicolor, Ind. Orn. i. 286. Gm. Lin. i. 483. Seb. Mus. i. f. 69. 5. Klein 



Ord. 107. 8. Buf. v. 513. 

 Soui-manga a toutes couleurs, Ois. dor. ii. 67. 

 Green-gold Creeper, Gen. Syn. ii. 716. Shaw's Zool. viii. 200. 



ACCORDING to Seba, this is eight inches in length. Bill one 

 inch and a half, tail two inches and a quarter; the whole plumage 

 green, with a shade of all colours, in which the gold bears the 

 greatest share. Seba adds, that the young falls a prey to the great 

 spider,* but this is not peculiar to the brood of this species, for it is 

 the case with respect to every other, whenever this insect can gain 

 the superiority .f— M. Brisson quotes Seba for the bird, named by 

 Linnaeus as the Lotenia, yet describes one only five inches and a half 

 long ; and Linnaeus quotes both Brisson and Seba, but these two 

 cannot be the same, from the great difference in size : both this and 

 Loten's are found at Ceylon. The nest in Seba's work is roundish, 

 or oval at top, and placed between the forks of branches made of 

 downy matter, and contains two young. 



* Aranea avicularia. f See Seba i. t. 69. and Merian Surin. pi. 18. 



