chin ; the upper half of the throat is covered by scalt'-like feathers of a brilliant and changeable
ruby-red colour, the feathers round which, towards the breast and on the sides of the
neck, are white, which becomes more obscure on the body, vent, and under tail covers: the
sides are dusky, but glossed with green.
Form.— B ill perfectly straight in its entire length. Wings short; the quills narrow, and
not reaching to the end of the tail; the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth quills are very deeply
and obliquely notched at the tip of their outer webs, in such a marked and peculiar manner,
as to give an idea that the notch was artificial. The tail is rather short, but distinctly forked;
the two outer feathers are nearly equal, the rest gradually diminish: they have an obtusely
pointed form, being narrowed towards their ends ; bat those in the middle are broader.
Dimensions.
Inch. Lin. , Inch. Lin. Inchi Ian. Length, total . . . 3 6 Length of bill above . 0 7J Length of middle toe . 6 2
„ of tail . . 1 1 „ of bill to rictus . 0 9£ i, ’ of its nail . . 0'
„ of wing . . 1 7 « °f tarsus . • 0 I f Depth of fork of tail . . 0 ,4
—Sw.
[113.] 2. T r o c h i l u s ( S e l a s p h o r u s ) r u f u s . ^Swainson.) Cinnamon, or
NootJca Humming-bird.
Ge n u s , Trochilus, L in n . Swains. Sub-genus, Selasphorus*, Sw a in s.
Ruff-necked Humming-bird. L a t h . Syn., ii., p. 785, pi. 35. Gen. Hist., iv., p. 350.
Trochilus rufus. Gm e l . Syst., i., p. 497.
Trochilus collaris. L a t h . Ind. Ora., i., p. 318.
Ruff-necked Honey-sucker. P e n n . Jrct. Zool., ii., p. 177.
L e Sasin. V i e i l . Ois. dor., pi. 61,62.
Humming-bird. Cook’s Third Voyage, ii., 297-
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 honour of first making it known to science. By a singular chance,
we have at this moment before us one of the identical specimens, in perfect
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 collector’s museum by public
auction. We are likewise able to vouch for its geographic range, to the southTh.
’2t\ciff$o(>os, splendorem f erens.
ward, as far as the table-land of Mexico, near Real del Monte ; specimens from
that part having been obligingly sent us for examination by our friend, Mr.
Taylor, and which are now in the magnificent collection of Mr. Loddiges.—Sw.
DESCRIPTION
. Of a full-plumaged male, in Mr. Swainson’s museum.
Colour.—General tint of the upper plumage, rufous or cinnamon*, which covers the
head, ears, neck, back, rump, upper tail covers, and margins of the tail feathers, the crown
and the wing covers, however, have a strong coppery-greenish gloss; but which does not
extend to the ears, the upper line above the eye, or to that between the eye and bill; the
greater and lesser quills, and the middle of the tail feathers with their tips, are all of a pale
dusky brown, slightly glossed with violet. Under plumage: the whole of the chin and throat
is covered by scale-like feathers, of a fire-like colour and lustre, equally brilliant with the
throat of T . moschitus, but with more of a red and less of an orange gloss; the tints, however,
..Lang«, in almost every direction of light, and in all are exquisitely splendid. The middle of
the breast and vent are nearly pure white; but all the sides and the under tail covers are of
the same colour as the back. Legs and feet dark-brown.—The female, as described by Dr.
Latham, chiefly differs in being green-gold, where the male is cinnamon ; the throat being
merely spotted with the glowing ruby colour of the male.
Form._B ill rem arkably straight for its entire length, and gibbous both above and beneath
towards the tip. The wings, in comparison with those of many other forms in this family,
are short and resemble those of T . colvbris: the primaries are narrow and pointed, and the
first is shorter than the second. The ta«, although short, is more cuneated than rounded,
the two midrlle pairs being longest: all are narrowed and obtusely pointed at their extremities,
but the two outer pairs are particularly narrow. The feathers on the sides of the throat are
gradually elongated, as they recede from the ears and seem capable of being raised into two
tufts. Dimensions.
Inch Lin h total . . 2 ' 10 ‘ Length of tail from vent . 1Inc h. L0in * Length of bill above . .I0nch # L7“1'
? of wing . . 1 7 ,, of tail beyond wings 0 . 3f „ of bill to rictus . 0 8S
—Sw.
Dull reddish-orange.—Syme.