ORDER PASSERES. Humming-Bird. Trochilus. THESE beautiful little creatures are the most diminutive of all the feathered race. They are found only in America, and most abundantly in the hottest parts of South America, between the tropics. There are birds which very much resemble them, found both in Asia and Africa; but they differ in some respects, and naturalists now call them by other names, and confine that of humming-bird to these little gems of the American forest. The brightness of their colours, and the elegance of their forms, can only be imagined by those who have seen them. When flying in the sun, they look as if they were covered with gems and gold. The native American Indians, struck with the splendour of their hues, have called them "the hairs of the sun." The smallest humming-bird is of a grey violet colour, and the size of a bee. There are others, three or four inches long; and one, called the giant hum ming-bird, is about the size of the common martin. Little idea of the brilliancy of their colouring can be conveyed by description, as we have before observed; and yet the very reading of such exquisite hues excites the imagination, and makes a bright vision of these gleaming creatures float before our eyes. Here is one, the amethyst humming-bird: "throat and part of the neck brilliant amethyst, changing into purple brown." Here is the Surinam humming-bird: "green gold above, beneath greyish white; crescent of red on the breast." Here is another from Nootka Sound: "head rich variable green and gold, ruby-coloured ruff round the neck." Now look at the superb humming-bird: "crown of head sky-blue; throat brilliant scarlet; back, wings, and tail, gold green; pale beneath." Some of these beautiful creatures have splendid tufts on their heads. One has a crest of emerald green: another, of the brightest glossy blue: another, a large cluster of violet plumes: another has a gold tuft over each eye. Are not your eyes dazzled by these brilliant colours? Truly we could fancy ours are while we write of them. The flight of these little birds is so rapid, that the motion of the wings cannot be perceived; and when the bird is hovering in the air, it appears to be quite immoveable. The quick motion of the wings produces the humming sound from which the bird derives its name. This little creature has a very long tongue, curiously formed, so as to enable it to suck up the nectar from the bells of flowers. This nectar is its chief, if not its only food. It is seen to pause for a few instants before a flower, with its long tongue inserted into it. Then it darts like an arrow to another, plunging its tongue into the bosom of every flower it visits, in search of its sweet food. These birds are never seen on the ground: they pass the night and the heat of the day among the branches of the trees. They are not birds of song: were they, it must be the music of fairy-land. But though they cannot be said to sing, they utter a short cry, as they fly from one flowering plant to another: this cry is described as resembling the syllables te-re, more or less sharp and strong. It was long supposed impossible to bring the humming-bird alive to this country; but one instance has occurred, as the following well-authenticated anecdote, related by Dr. Latham, will show. “A young man, a few days before he departed from Jamaica, surprised a female humming-bird while she was hatching. Having caught it, and desiring to procure the nest without injuring it, he cut the branch on which it was, and carried the whole on ship-board. The bird became sufficiently tame to suffer herself to be fed with honey and water during the passage; and hatched two young ones. The mother, however, did not long survive; but the young ones were brought to England, and continued some time in the possession of Lady Hammond. These little creatures readily took honey from the lips of her ladyship with their bills. One of them did not live long, but the other survived at least two months after their arrival." It is difficult to keep these lovely and delicate creatures alive in a state of captivity, even in a climate much more favourable to their preservation than ours. Dr. Latham mentions, as a rare occurrence, the success of general Davis, who kept several ruby humming-birds alive for some months. He fed them with honey and syrup, which he dropped into the tubes of artificial flowers; so that the little creatures might suck it out with their long tongues, as they did from the natural flowers in a state of freedom. In the centre of each of these artificial flowers, a tube, formed of a piece of tobacco-pipe, was fixed; and this became the receptacle of the honey. It was a very elegant device, to make the drinking vessels of the little captives resemble those natural vases, out of which they were wont to sip their daily portion in the flowery fields where they first fluttered their brilliant wings, with other gay creatures of their kind. But, happily, even with the most ingenious contrivances, they cannot long be kept alive when deprived of freedom; and therefore few are caught for that purpose. THE HUMMING-BIRDS. Bright birds of the sun, how has every hue Swift as an arrow ye hasten along: Now ye are gleaming the lilies among; Now through the gardens of roses you speed; Now on the lofty magnolias you feed. Gay birds of the sun! your plumes are as bright, |