46 



DUPONT'S. • 



PLATE VI. — FIG. 1. 



This is a bird of a very slender and elegant form; it is 

 named TrocHlus Dupontii, after M. Dupont, a French naturalist, 

 in whose possession is, or was, the only known specimen. It 

 appears to be a native of Mexico, where, especially about the 

 city of Guatemala, it is said to be tolerably abundant, frequenting 

 the gardens, and even the houses of the inhabitants, where there 

 are flowers to attract its presence. M. Lesson states that the 

 French name Zemes has been given to these birds, from the 

 idols so called, which were formerly worshipped by the Mexicans. 



"This species," says Mr. Gould, who calls it the Sparkling- tail, 

 and places it in the genus TrypMna, "if it be not one of the 

 most gaily coloured, is certainly one of the most beautiful of the 

 smaller members of the Trochilidcs; it is no less interesting from 

 the elegance and just proportions of its form, than for the sin- 

 gularly varied style of its plumage." 



The male bird, whose total length is about four inches, of 

 which the tail occupies two, has the plumage of the head and 

 back of a shining bronzy green,- the wings are dark purplish 

 brown; the throat a rich deep blue; across the breast is a 

 broad band of white, which extends up on either side like the 

 points of a crescent; the belly and tail coverts are also green, 

 with a bronzy reflection, and another patch of white occurs just 

 beneath the insertion of the tail, which has been called 'spark- 

 ling,' on account of being barred and variegated with white and 

 reddish brown, but chienV the former. 



The female is a very different looking bird, having a short 

 tail, and nearly all the under part of the plumage a light reddish 

 brown; the rich puqjle throat is also wanting. The same kind 

 of indentation at the terminations of the two longest tail feathers 

 occur in this species, as in the one last described, and on account 

 of this, and other peculiarities of structure, it has been placed 

 in the same genus as the Amethystine bird. 



