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1. Purple Long-tailed Sunbird, Nectarinea platura. 2. Emerald Bird of Paradise, Paradisea apoda. 3. Stokes's Humming-bird, Trochilus Stokesii. 4. Nepaul Sunbird, Nectarinea Nepalensis. 5. Malachite S. B., Nectarinea famosa. 6. Vieillot's H. B., Trochilus chalybeus. 7. Tufted-necked H. B., Trochilus ornatus. 8. Hoopoe, Upupa epops. 9. Red-throated H. B., Trochilus colubris. 10. Amethyst-throated S. B., Nectarinea amethystina. 11. Topaz-throated H. B., Trochilus pella.

1. THE thin-billed birds have been considered by an eminent naturalist1 "the most interesting of the animal world," as the smallest birds and the most brilliantly adorned are contained in this group. Here are found the hoopoes, the delicate humming-birds, the sunbirds of the torrid zone, and the far-famed birds of Paradise.

2. The hoopoes, which are a group of brilliant African birds, occasionally seen in Europe, are not found in this country. One of these birds, which is of a reddish-gray and black color above, and white below, with an ample crest of orangebrown feathers, strays occasionally to the British isles, where it attracts considerable attention. An African species, not

found in Europe, is said to glitter in the sunlight with the most brilliant hues of azure2 and emerald3 green.

3. The HUMMING-BIRDS, of which more than a hundred species are known to exist, are wholly confined to the American continent and the adjacent islands. These beautiful "flower birds," "the jewels of ornithology," have excited the admiration of all who have observed them, by their delicate forms and the dazzling splendor of their plumage. "The humming-bird! the humming-bird! So fairy-like and bright;

It lives among the sunny flowers,

A creature of delight."-MRS. HOWITT.

They are the smallest of the feathered races, some species being exceeded in size and weight by several of the insect tribe.

4. These fairy birds swarm in the tropical forests of South America, fairly covering the dense growth of wild flowers, whose blossoms only give way in beauty to the sparkling tints of their airy tenants.

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They also abound in gardens, and seem to delight in the society of man, becoming familiar and destitute of fear, hovering near a shrub in bloom while the flowers are plucked from the opposite side.

5. Only three or four species of humming-birds are found within the limits of the United States, and of these the redthroated, or northern humming-bird, well known for its golden-green back, purple wings, and ruby-colored throat, is the most common. It is three inches and a half long from the tip of its bill to the end of its tail. It is often seen hovering among the arbors of honeysuckles and beds of flowers, poising itself in the air for the space of two or three seconds, with a murmuring noise made by the rapid motion of its scarcely visible wings, thrusting its long tubular tongue into the flowers in search of food, and then suddenly darting off with a rapidity so great that the eye can not follow it.

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"When morning dawns, and the bless'd sun again
Lifts his red glories from the eastern main,
Then round our woodbines, wet with glittering dews,
The flower-fed humming-bird his round pursues;
Sips with inserted tube the honeyed blooms,
And chirps his gratitude as round he roams;
While richest roses, though in crimson dress'd,
Shrink from the splendor of his gorgeous breast.

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"The purple amethyst, the emerald's green,
Contrasted mingle with the ruby's sheen,
While over all a tissue is put on

Of golden gauze, by fairy fingers spun.
What heavenly tints in mingled radiance1o fly!
Each rapid movement gives a different dye;11
Like scales of burnish'd gold they dazzling show,
Now sink to shade, now like a furnace glow."

8. Humming-birds were long supposed to feed only upon the honey or sweet juices of flowers, but later observations have proved that they feed upon insects also. The females are without the splendid plumage of the males, and are clothed in modest dress. The nests of the several species vary greatly in form and structure; but in all they are made of the softest, warmest, and most delicate materials.

9. The SUNBIRDS, so called from their splendid glossy plumage, which appears really gorgeous when played upon by the sunbeams, are found chiefly in the tropical regions of Asia and Africa, although a few species occur in South America and the adjacent islands. The appearance which these birds present has been thus described:

"Each spangled12 back bright sprinkled specks adorn;

Each plume imbibes the rosy-tinctured morn;

Spread on each wing the florid seasons glow,

Shaded and verged with the celestial bow;13
Where colors blend an ever-varying dye,
And, wanton, 14 in their gay exchanges vie."

"15

10. The birds of Paradise, which are mostly natives of New Guinea, include some of the most singular and magnificent of the feathered tribes. The emerald bird of Paradise, which is about the size of a common pigeon, is the one best. known, and is said to surpass all other birds in its beauty of form, and the vivid and changing tints of its plumage.

"Bright in the orient16 realms of morn,
All beauty's richest hues adorn

The bird of Paradise."-HEMANS.

Its body, breast, and lower parts are of a deep rich brown; the forehead is velvety black, spotted with green; the head yellow; the throat of a rich golden green; the sides of the tail of a golden yellow; in addition to which there are two long thread-like feathers which extend from the tail nearly two feet in length.

11. Of these long and beautiful feathers the bird is so proud that it will not suffer the least speck of dirt to remain on them; and it is constantly examining its plumage to see that there are no spots on it. In its wild state this bird always flies and sits with its face to the wind, lest its elegant plumes should be disarranged. The female is without the long floating plumes of the male, and her colors are less brilliant.

12. But, although Nature has robed in beauty the birds of the torrid zone, she has denied them the charms of song, while, with a wise compensation,17 she has given the latter to the more modest-robed denizens 18 of colder climes. Thus, while prodigal19 of her gifts, she bestows them with a frugal20 hand: she scatters blessings upon all, but gives not to each the same tokens of her favor.

"Wide o'er the winding umbrage"1 of the floods,
Like vivid blossoms glowing from afar,

Thick swarm the brighter birds. For Nature's hand,
That with a sportive vanity has decked

The plumy nations, there her gayest hues
Profusely pours. But, if she bids them shine,
Arrayed in all the beauteous beams of day,

Yet frugal still, she humbles them in song."-THOMSON.

1 NĂT'-U-RAL-IST, one who studies natural! DYE, hue; color. history.

2 AZ-URE, the fine blue color of the sky.

12 SPAN-GLED, covered with brilliant spots or spangles.

3 EM-E-RALD, a precious stone of a green 13 Bow, the rainbow.

color.

4 SPRITE, a spirit.

5 BLOOM, blossoms; flowers.

6 Rû'-BY, red.

7 POIS-ING, balancing.

8 MAIN, the sea.

14 WAN'-TON, sportive: frolicsome.

15 VIE, strive for superiority.

16 O'-RI-ENT, eastern.

17 COM-PEN-SA'-TION, that which is given to make up some loss.

18 DEN'-I-ZENS, inhabitants.

9 AM-E-THYST, a precious stone of a bluish 19 PROD'-I-GAL, profuse.

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20 FRU-GAL, not wasteful.

21 UM ́-BRAĠE, shade; screen of trees.

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1. Great Green Macaw, Macrocercus militaris. 2. Nuthatch, Sitta Carolinensis. 3. Red-billed Toucan, Ramphastos erythorynchus. 4. Papuan Lory, Psittacus Papuensis. 5. Crested Cockatoo, Plyctolophus Leadbeateri. 6. Swindern's Love Bird, Agapoenis Swinderianus. 7. Alexandrine Ring-Parrakeet, Palæornis Alexandri. 8. House Wren, Sylvia domestica. 9. Carolina Parrot, Psittacus Carolinensis. 10. Red-headed Woodpecker, Picus erythrocephalus. 11. Golden-winged Woodpecker, Picus auratus. American Cuckoo, Cuculus Americanus.

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1. THE third order of birds, which is included by some in the great division of the perchers, is composed of what are called the climbing-birds, most of which are distinguished from the birds of the other orders by having two toes turned backward and two forward, a provision' which eminently2 fits them for climbing the trunks of trees and hanging among their branches. In this division are found the woodpeckers, the creepers, the toucans, the cuckoos, and the parrots.

2. Of the numerous family of the woodpeckers, which are widely scattered over both the Eastern and Western continents, twenty different species are found within the United States. Of these the golden-winged and the red-headed seem

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