98 
BULLETIN OF THE NUTTALL 
To prove this it would be necessary to go back in the history of the 
species, and commence at the beginning. Gmelin seems to be the 
first author who conferred a Latin name upon the Rufous-throated 
Hummer, which he did in his “ Systema Naturae ” (1788), Vol. I, p. 
497, sp. 57, and described it as follows: “ Trochilus rufus .... 
rostrum pedesque nigri ; colli pennae laterales nonnullae elongatae mo- 
biles ; tectrices alarum obscure virescentes ; rectrices splendide rufae 
acuminatce, linea media longitudinali et apice nigris; cauda cuneataP 
Moreover, he gives the habitat as “in sinu Arnericae Natka,” and 
quotes as his synonyms the Ruffed Honey-Sucker of Pennant’s 
“Arctic Zoology,” Vol. II, p. 290, No. 177, and the Ruff-necked'' 
Humming-Bird of Latham’s “ Synopsis,” Vol. II, p. 785, No. 56, t. 35, ^ 
whose specimen, as Latham informs us, came from Nootka Sound. 
Now, as it is well known that the southern bird with the broad rec- 
trices has a wide dispersion, going far to the north on the Pacific 
coast, it might be said, “ How are we to know that the specimen from 
Nootka Sound was not this species, and that it was the one called 
alleni by Mr. Henshaw'?” Fortunately this can be satisfactorily 
determined, and all doubts removed, by turning to the “ Fauna 
Boreali Americana” (Birds), and on page 324 we find that Swain- 
son, in his article on the Trochilm {Selasphorus) rufus of Gmelin, 
makes the following statement : “ The discovery of this superb 
species in the cold and inhospitable regions of Nootka Sound is due 
to our great navigator. Captain Cook, while to Dr. Latham belongs 
the honor of first making it known to science. Bp a singular chance 
we have at this moment before us one of the identical specimens, in per- 
fect preservation, collected by the naturalists of that expedition ; it was 
presented by the late Sir Joseph Banks to Mr. Bullock, and was 
purchased by us at a very high price at the dispersion of that col- 
lector's museum by public auction.” In his description of the form 
of this bird, he says : “ The tail, although short, is more cuneated 
than rounded, the two middle pairs being longest, all are narrowed 
and obtusely pointed at their extremities, but the two outer pairs are 
particularly narrow P It will thus be seen, I think, that the species 
described by Gmelin from Nootka Sound was, without doubt, the 
bird with narrow rectrices, as Swainson’s specimen was a typical 
one, if indeed it may not have been the original type ; and he was 
too keen a naturalist not to have noticed the peculiar notch in the 
rectrices next the median pair, observed in the bird with the 
broad tail-feathers. He also speaks of the throat as being equally 
