148 
KUBY -CRESTED HUMMING-B1KK. 
the most brilliant topaz yellow. It is impossible to 
convey by words the idea of these tints ; and having 
mentioned those substances to which they approach 
nearest, imagination must be left to conceive the 
rest. The other parts of this bird are darkly coloured ; 
the back and rump, breast and belly, are a rich 
brown, with scarcely any variation of colour, and the 
vent is pure white. The wings are of the purplish 
brown, so common in this part to the whole species ; 
and the tail, broad and expansive, is a fine reddish 
brown, with a narrow band of a dark shade at the 
tip. The length is about three inches and a half. 
In some species the colour of the back is so dark 
around the ruby crest, as almost to appear a black 
band. 
In the birds of one year, the scaly parts on the 
head and throat are of a brownish gray, a few of the 
bright feathsrs here and there appearing, and the 
other parts of the plumage have generally a lighter 
tinge. In another specimen which we possess, appa- 
rently that of a still younger male, the upper parts 
are of a grayish brown, with rather conspicuous 
golden green reflections, the under parts of a clear 
grayish white, darker on the throat and forepart of 
the breast, and the quills want the purplish lustre. 
The female differs considerably from the male. It 
is scarcely three inches in length; above, it is of a 
brilliant golden green ; the under parts of a clear 
grayish brown. But the tail shows the greatest dif- 
ference in markings ; the two centre feathers are a 
