TROCHILUS COLUBRIS, Linn.
Ruby-throated Humming-bird.
Ti'ochilus Colubi'is, Linn. Syst. Nat., tom. i. p. 191.—lb. Gen. Hist., vol. iv. p. 344.—Bonap.
Syn. Birds of U . States, p. 98.—Wils. Am. Om., vol. ii. p. 26. pi. 10. figs. 3, 4.—
Vieill. Eney. Meth. Om., part ii. p. 569.—Jard. Nat. Lib. Humming-birds, vol. i.
p. 85. pi. 5.—Reichenb. Aufz. der Col., p. 12.—Audub. Birds o f Am., vol. i.
pi. xlvii.— lb. Om. Bio., vol. i. p. 248.—Sagra, Voy. de Cuba, pi. 21. fig. 1.—
Swains, and Rich. Eaun. Bor. Am. part ii. Birds, pp. xxvi, xxxvi, 323.
The Red-throated Humming-bird, Edw. Nat. Hist. &c., vol. i. p. 38. pi. 38.
Red-throated Honeg-mcker, Penn. Arct. Zool., vol. ii. p. 176.
Mellisuga Carolinensis gutture rubro, Briss. Om., tom. iii. p. 716. pi. xxxvi. figs. 5, 6.
. colubi'is, Steph. Cont. of Shaw, Gen. Zool., vol. xiv. p. 247.
L e Rubis, Buff. Hist. Nat. des Ois., tom. vi. p. 13.—Vieill. Ois. Dor., tom. i. pp. 66, 69, 70.
pis. 31, 32, 33.—-Vieill. Ois. de l’Am., tom. i. pis. 31, 32.
L'Oiseau-mouche a gosier dore, Vieill. Ois. Dor., tom. i. p. 89. pi. 46.
Omismya Colwbris, Less. Hist. Nat. des Ois.-mou., pp. xvj. 151. pis. 48, 48».—lb. Les Troch.,
p. 1. pi. i.—lb. Ind. Gen. et Syn. des Ois. duGen. Trochilus, p. xxxiv.
Mellisuga colwbris, Gray and Mitcb. Gen. of Birds, vol. i. p. 113, Mellisuga, p. 82.
The Humming-bird, Catesb. Nat. Hist, of Car. &c.,vol. i. p. 65. pi. 65.
ilthough every species o f Humming-bird inhabits either the great continent o f America or the islands
»mediately adjacent, the snbject o f the present memoir is the only one usually seen in a state o f nature by
hose travellers who wend their way across the Atlantic to the western world. S . . . ^
It was on the 2 1 st o f May, 1857, that my earnest day-thoughts and not unfrequent mgbt-dreams o f thirty
ears were realised by the sight o f a living Humming-bird. To describe my feelings on the occasion
1 k „„ ...V • I leave them then to the imagination o f my readers rather than make the attempt.
B I n n e r I shall’not give any narration o f my own respecting this beautiful little bird, about which
„ much has been written by Wilson, Audubon, and others, but adopt the fairer course o f giving cop,on
•xtracts from the eloquent writings o f those authors, and content myself with affording some additional
. .. a crjppips its disposition in a state o f captivity, &c. Second only to
„formation respecting. h e o f nature was J p l e i r e I derived from a
h e gratification o s g , Hs c01mtry; „„fortunately, their existence here was o f short
mccessful attempt to hr, g liv in g exa p ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ be ^
luration, but they I. « * ^ , work_ that many 0f the members o f this family are migra-
■ H and some are restricted to exceedingly limited areas. The Trochilus
;ory, while others are sta y ^ ^ ^ ]ife ^ speot ]n passing from north
M i i n s is Pre-.em‘"f"jly “ f Z a y be s lid to extend over nearly forty degrees o f latitude, or from ten
:0 south, and mce ^ America„ I have received it ,n abundance
to fifty degrees north, on the e ^ ^ ^ ^ c(mntry Dr Richardson
From Guatemala Mcxico t a and Mr Drummond found it breeding on the banks o f the
observed it on the plains ^ fev01]red with its presence are May, June, July,
Elk Kiver. The months m which the ^ a[ld M the seas0„ advances,
August and portions o /.h e country, including Canada and even
gradually passes on towards the ^ breeds in all the above-mentioned countries, and frequently
some parts of the Hudson’s Bay tern ory. h t soutbern migration commences, and the
raises two broods a year. About the midd o ^ ^ ^ is ^ ^ a is
bird winters in the more genial and war ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ p m0Tement t0 aIld from e,ther
necessary to say respecti,ig i t s ed the broadopen daytime only, and not by night,
country is very gradual, and that p J ^ being somewhat early the season
as has been suspected by Audubon. ^ ^ the ^ hbourhood of New York during the second week
my attempts to discover a living ^ ^ southern city of Philadelphia that my wish
in May were futile, and it was no unt ^ cdebrated Bartram's garden, whither I was conducted by
was gratified by the;sight o a single ■ ; ^ ^ many olber kind attentions ■ ___________