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ERIOCNEMIS ALIN A.
Metallic Puff-lee.

Ornismyia Aline, Boure. Rey. Zool. 1842 p. 373
Ormsmya Aline, Ib. Ann. Sci. Phys. &e. de tee 1842, p. 344. pl. 19

> ays 5 : eee 2 a> pp. | Nte :
a eens Alii Gray and Mitch. Gen. of Birds, vol. i. p. 114 i locharis, sp. 6
Eriopus aline, Bonap. Consp. Gen. Av., p- 80, Eriopus, sp. 6 ie
Engyete Aline, Reich. Auf. der Col., p. 9. oe:

Eriocnemys alina, Bonap. Rev. Zool. 1854 p- 252
. » P. ADA,

No one species of the well ;
s -defined genus Ey Ss 1S mor autifi ‘
g zocnemis 18 more beautifully plumaged than the fully adult male

of ae little Bird, neither is there any one of them that has the peculiar puff-like decoration of the legs
carried to so great an extent; no Bee ever hurried towards its hive with leos mor . load eae
turned a more glittering breast towards the light, tl ‘ : ae z oe ae Oe poe oe
Mie Having <0 Rear eae = ae pees. ae Se being one mass of green nctiallhe
M. Bourcier, when introducing it to the notice of ae fe a i a ae oe ee
Wo Faia. ana Se ices ate anes , ae £ world, s nonld have given it that of Aline, in
gives great pleasure to assist in perpetuating the name of a lady to whom

such an act of courtesy has been rendered.
ae cee having been said about the beauty of the bird and its name, my next duty would be, were it
possible, to give some account of its habits and economy; but on these points nothing is known, and I am
merely able to state that it is a native of the rich district in the neighbourhood On Santa Fé de Bogota,
whence nearly all the specimens sent to Europe have been forwarded. Although by no means a scarce bird,
it is far less common than the EL. cupreiventris and E. vestitus. There seems to be less difference in the
colouring of the sexes of this species than in either of the others; but I observe that there is considerable
diversity in the amount of the metallic colouring in individuals of the same sex, and I think it not unlikely
that the bird attains a considerable age, and a high state of health and vigour, before it acquires the
excessively glittering metallic hues seen in some specimens. It is somewhat singular that some of these
very fine males exhibit a white or broken appearance in the centre of the chest, a mark which I believe to be
perfectly natural ; again, this bird, when fully adult, independently of its glittering breast, has a narrow well-
defined band of the same colour across the forehead, immediately behind the bill, in which respect it differs
from all the other members of its genus, and which probably induced Dr. Reichenbach to propose for it a
new generic name—a name, however, I have not found it desirable to adopt, believing as I do that the

feature indicated does not amount to more than specific importance.

Head, all the upper surface, wing-coverts and tail deep green, the upper tail-coverts and tail being some-
what brighter than the other parts ; wings dark purplish brown; line across the forehead, and all the under
surface, including the under tail-coverts, rich metallic glittering green ; legs thickly clothed with downy
white feathers ; bill black ; legs brown.

The Plate represents two males and a female of the natural size.

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