556 R U F F - N E C K E D HUMMING BIRD.
tremulously uttered as ^whirl s and s f e ^ s thioijgh the air, l i e
musket-ball, a< e^npaniod.also by KonnMhing like the whirr of the Night
Hawk, On the 29th of ffiay,, I found a nest of this'spedes in aforked
branch of the Nootka B r a m b l e ^ ^ ^ ^ . The female was sitting
on two eggs, of the same shape and colour as those of the common
WWW, Tl„. n e t also was perfectly similar, hnfc somewhat dooper
mm I approached, the female came hovering round the nest, and soon
after, whf e ¿U was still,, she resumed her place contentedly.'®
Dr TO W K S H N D ' S note is as « o w s : - " Nootka Sound Humming
Bird, TmmVm rufm, Ah-p„ete-ltime. of the Chinook«.,, On a clear day
the made may'fSe seen t o W t o a'gr** height in the air, and descend,
instantly near the earth, then mount a ^ ' t o the same altitude i at
first, performing in the evolution t h e W t f a large circle During the
HB itSastranK"ami H which H I
compared to nothing but the rubbing together ^ the' limbs of trees,
during,a high wind. I heard « i s singula note repeatedly last sprin,
and summer, but did not then discover to what it belonged!' 1 J i ( | nut
supp'ose i | | o be a bird at all, and least of all a — I Ml I
observer thinks it' almost fepoilble that so small a ^ M can be
capable p t producing so much sound. I have never observed 'this habit
upon a dull or cloudy day."
I • • B P«>.lme„ith i f t&j t t f this H
aMaehed to the twig to which the bird h a s t e n e d it, mpamiaMe
friend Miss | R H | ha, figured, it for • I well as the plant, about
« h , c h t l u , e lovely ^ „ . aroropresente,!. The nest, which measure,
two rncte and a M m height, and an inch and feee' quarters m
breadth, at the upper part, xs composed externally of mossfe, lxchens;
mm H B H in t e r™« , and feed -
with tine cottony soed-dovvri.
•J'Hoti,u.l s Ki:n %«(. N-„. roi ; ( y igJ
TKOCHHUS OOI.HE1S, IND: ORTFTT. vol. i. p. 3 i s
• THOCHILA (STAASPHONTRS) Jtutus, Summon '1
',"iqMTr;gtTKi -a BU*
Adult Male. Plate c B j lXXIX. 2.
Bill long, straight, subulate, somewhat depressed at the base acute •
upper mandible With'the dorsal line-lferight, the'ridge narrow at the'
R U F F - N E C K E D HUMMING BIRD.
hasp, broad and convex toward' thé end, the sides convex, the edges
overlapping, the tip acuminate ; lower manàible with the angle very
long and extremely narrow, thé dorsal line straight, the edges erect,
the, tip acuminate. Nostrils basal, linear.
Mead of ordinary size, oblong ; neck short ; body slender. Feet
very small ; tarsus very short, feathered more than half-way down, toes
small ; the lateral equal,, the middle toe not much longer, the hind toe
a little shorter than the lateral, anterior toes united at the base ; claws
rather long, arched, compressed, laterally grooved, very acute.
Plumage soft and blendt^i: feathers on ibe throat, fore part and
sides of the neck oi'long-obovate, with the filamients towards the end
thickened and fattened, with metallic gloss," 'ffiose on the sides of the
nook elongated and erectile. Wings rather short, extremely narrow,
falcate, pointed ; the primaries rapidly graduated, the second being
lo|gestjf:ïisi[t only slightly longer than the first ; these two quills taper
to a point ; the rest are broader, and gradually become less pointed ;
the secondaries are extremely short, and onl|i five in number: • Tail
rather long, broad, graduated, the lateral feathers four and: a half
twelfths of an inch shorter than the central ; the latter are extremely
broad, measuring four and a half twelfths across, and the rest gradually
diminish to the lateral, which are: very narrow ; all obtusely pointed.
Bill brownish-black « toes brown, elaws dusky. The general colour
of the upper parts is bright cinnamon or reddish-orange ; the Head
bronzed green, the-wings dusky, thi- eovcrts glossed with green, the
primaries with purplish ; each of the tail-feathers has a narrow longitudinal
lanceolate median streak toward the end: The loral space, a
narrow, band over the eye, another beneath it, and the auriculars are
reddish-orange ; the, seale-lik.: feathers of the throat and sides of the
neck are splendent fire-red, .purplish-red, yellowish-red, greenish-yellow
or yelowisl-greên, according to the lightin which they are viewed ;
behind them, on t h R w e r part of the neck, is a broad band of reddishwhite;
the rest: fithe lower parts are like the upper, the abdomen inclining
to white.
Length to end of tail 3TV inches ; bill along the ridge along the
edge of lower mandible ?« ; wing from flexure Iff ; t a i l l | i ; tarsus J | ;
hind toe its claw $ ; middle toe ,?», its claw
Adult Female. Plate (gCCLXXIX. Fig. 3.