January i, 1891] 



THE HUMMING BIRD. 



three inches long, pointed, and most handsome, four 

 of the tail coverts are very long ; the two central 

 being in very adult males, sometimes nearly four feet 

 long, and three inches wide ; the next two nearly as 

 long, and the others much smaller. Wings pure 

 black ; tail black, with three internal feathers on each 

 side white, the third edged with black ; Breast 

 vinous red, flanks, abdomen and under tail coverts car- 

 mine ; feet black ; bill reddish yellow. 



Female : — Head and back bronzy green ; 'rump, 

 wing, and tail coverts, golden green ; wings black ; 

 tail black, with three internal feathers on each side 

 crossed alternatively with black and white ; throat 

 bronzy green ; breast and abdomen, dark grey ; under 

 tail coverts carmine ; feet black; bill black, with a 

 yellow border on the under mandible. 



Total length . . . 



... 5 feet. 



Tail 



9 inches 



Wing ... 



... 8 „ 



Leg 



... 2 



Bill 



... 1 



Native countries : — South Mexico and Guatemala. 



Pharomacrus mocina Var costaricensis Boucard, 

 1879, Ornithological Miscellany, Part XL, page 21. 



Male : — Exactly as the preceding species ; but 

 less vinous red on the breast and the wing; and the 

 tail coverts are shorter and narrower. 



Found in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Veragua. 



Type in Museum Boucard. 



To be continued. 



An Easy Way of Making One Hundred 

 Pounds Sterling a Year in Collecting 

 Specimens of Natural History at Leisure 

 Time. 



The object of this article is to facilitate to every 

 one the means of collecting, preserving and sending 

 home collections of natural history. 



By attending exactly to the following instructions, 

 any resident in Europe, excepting France, England, 

 Germany, Belgium, Austria, and other neighbouring 

 Countries which have been well explored ; and in 

 Asia, Africa, America, or Oceania, may collect easily 

 in one year specimens worth one hundred pounds 

 sterling. 



To obtain this result, it is necessary only to employ 

 Sundays and other holidays in exploring the neigh- 

 bourhoods of the place of residence, and collect 

 Reptiles, Fishes, Insects, Shells, Seeds, etc., etc. 



These scientific excursions will not only be very 

 instructive and amusing ; but, at the same time, very 

 favourable to health and interests. 



I have never enjoyed better health than during the 

 fifteen years I have been living in America as a 

 Traveller-Naturalist. 



I shall now proceed to show that, in one year, it 

 is easy to collect 250 specimens of Reptiles and 

 Fishes, 4,000 Insects, and 1,200 Shells. 



Supposing that not more than fifty days can be 

 employed in making collections ; this will require as 

 fruit of each day's labour 5 Reptiles, 80 Insects, and 

 24 Shells. 



The success of a collector must be very bad, or the 

 country very poor, if a larger number than the above 

 be not obtained ; because in all my voyages, I have 

 always collected easily in one day, 10 Reptiles, 100 

 Insects, and 30 shells, and sometimes many more. 



Reptiles may be sold with facility at one shilling 

 each, the Insects at one pound sterling per hundred, 

 and the Shells at one pound per hundred ; so that it 

 would only be necessary to collect very few Crustacea;, 

 Seeds, bright- coloured Insects, or any thing else, 

 to obtain for them the sum of ^33 in order to arrive 

 at the total of ^100 for the year. Therefore, if in 

 fifty days you can obtain such a result, it is quite sure 

 that any person who can dispose of all his time, will 

 collect in the year objects of natural history worth 

 ^"200 or more, especially if he collects also Bird and 

 Mammal Skins. 



But, in the first as in the second case, to obtain this 

 result, it is necessary to attend exactly to the following 

 instructions ; the value of collections depending chiefly 

 how they are collected as well as their perfect state of 

 preservation. 



I invite all persons who intend collecting objects 

 of natural history to come and see me. I will give 

 them all the necessary instructions to facilitate their 

 success, and a few practical lessons, which may be 

 very useful to them. Persons living abroad can 

 write. 



REPTILES AND FISHES. 



Reptiles are divided in four Orders. 



1. Chelonii, or Turtles and Tortoises. 



2. Saurii, or Lizards, Camelions, etc. 



3. Ophidii, or Snakes. 



4. Batracii, or Frogs. 



Turtles and Tortoises are to be collected in the 

 sea, the rivers, the lakes, near the water, and in the 

 damp plains. 



Other Reptiles must be searched for under stones, 

 bark of decayed trees, on old walls, on branches and 

 trunks of trees, near rivers and on the ground. 



They may be taken with the hand or with nippers 

 and put into a bottle with alcohol. 



Several species of snakes are venomous ; before 

 taking, it will be necessary to strike them one or two 

 blows in the middle of the back-bone with a very 

 flexible stick, taking care not to spoil the skin. 



Fish may be caught with fishing rods or nets, in the 

 sea, rivers, lakes, etc., and put immediately in a bottle 

 with alcohol, especially if you are in a hot country, 

 and far from your residence. 



When you get back to your house, they should be 

 taken out of the bottles, and cleaned in a linen cloth ; 

 then make an incision in the belly of the animal to 

 allow the penetration of the alcohol in the intestines, 

 and put them in a large bottle containing fresh 

 alcohol or any other strong spirit. 



To be continued* 



