wn ee AR lil INTRODUCTION. ed to us the O. Estelle and O. Adele ; while in 1846 the fine O. Chimborazo D’Orbigny introduc in 1849 the same gentleman made us aware of the term Oreotrochilus. was brought to light through the researches of M. Bourcier ; of the little less beautiful O. Pichincha, and I, on my own par All these birds inhabit loftier elevations than any other genus of Humming-Birds ; here the melting snows and the warmth of the sun call forth existence t, had the pleasure of making known the O. melanogaster and O. leucopleurus. ll in regions just beneath the line w for they love to dwe and I question if any other insessorial birds seek their food pine flora and a peculiar character of insect life ; at so great an elevation as the O. Chimborazo and O. Pichincha. en found to the northward of Ecuador, while to the south they range alor an al As far as our present knowledge extends, no spe- cies has be ag the high lands of Peru and Bolivia. Genus Orreorrocuitus, Gould. (“Opos, mons, et tpoxiros, trochilus ; Mountain Humming-Bird.) Generic characters. Male.—Bill longer than the he tail large, the feathers narrow and rigid ; ad, almost cylindrical, and slightly incurved ; wings rather long and powerful ; tarsi clothed; feet strong ; hind toe and nail about the same length as the middle toe and nail; throat luminous. Female. Unadorned. Vol. Il. PL. 68. 77. OREOTROCHILUS CHIMBORAZO Orotrochilus Chimborazo, Cab. et Hein. Mus. Hein. Theil iii. p. 15, note. Habitat. Immediately below the snow-line round the cone of the volcanic mountain Chimborazo. Mr. Fraser, who killed many examples at Panza, at an altitude of 14,000 feet, says, “ Irides hazel; bill, legs and feet black. To be seen occasionally on the Arbor Maria, but feeds generally on a red thistle. It is conor and by no means shy, and has rather a pretty song, oft repeated, and to be heard at a considerable distance. In bad weather, when the wind is high, this bird is said to creep under and into the clumps of Paja (a species of Stipa).”’ 78. OREOTROCHILUS PICHINCHA . : ies ; : : : : : : ; ; : Vol. it, Elgos: Orotrochilus Pichinchae, Cab. et Hein. Mus. Hein. Theil iii. p. 15 Habitat. The snow-line of the volcanic mountains of Pichincha and Cotopaxi in Ecuador “ . ’ 1 ] 1 a oe ( It.), many examples. The Pichincha Humming-Bird, like the DAY rar ‘ se .r i j | iborazo, is found only close under the line of perpetual snow; but this species, according to the present state > us x c ( 2 Iz Tle > . > 7 1 istri > ‘ - 1 of our knowledge, is more widely distributed than the latter, being found not only on Pichincha, but also on Anti sana an c st visi ; ichi ana and Cotopaxi. Upon my first visit to Guagua Pichincha these birds were feeding entirely on the ground . a hunting the little moss-covered clumps as fast as the snow melted. They are not uncommon in this locality, b , ' : nin this locality, but always met with singly. They are very restle 4 | \ gly. ‘They are very restless, but not shy, seldom remaining on one clump more than a second then away to another, perhaps a yard dis S een | away to another, perhaps a yard distant. Sometimes they would take a rapid flight of 40 or 50 yards. O my second visit, the Cl ir } ir msigni ing i : ee : y : uquiragua (Chuquiraga insignis, Humb.) being in flower, they were feeding from it like tl Quindi ‘}: ae a Loe - . ot) et ae ee 2 of Chimborazo, but still occasionally hunted the mossy clumps. They flit with a b 1 occasionally settle, with the feathers all ruffled, on the t f the Cl ae a 5 é ’ ss Oo Oo 1e 1 + ao . ay ~ 7 ad ee p uquiragua or other small plant. In this y observations and those of Professor Jameson go, they differ fr i ! ee. . go, they er from O. Chimborazo. | he ground, and all birds were apparently scarce and shyer; tl irds 1 were chasing each other, in twos and threes, like flasl f li ae : , ‘ S, like flashes ‘ ine.” — Fraser i 7 : , é of lightning.” — Fraser in Proc. of Zool. Soc. part xxvill. p. 79. 79. OrEoTROCHILUS EsTELL& Orotrochilus Estell i , | | : | . etre s Lstellae . et Hein. Mus ] il ii ae e, Cab. et Hein. Mus. Hein. Theil iii. eG. Habitat. The high lands near La Paz in Bolivia. 80. OREOTROCHILUS LEUCOPLEURUS, Gould Orotrochilus leucopleurus, Cab. et Hein. Mus. Hein. Theil iii yee ** Oreotrochilus leucopterus, Reichenb.”’, Cab. et Hein ib lrochilus Milleri, Lodd. MS. : Fraser in Proc. of Zool. Soc. part xi Habitat. The Chilian Andes. Aina }O, 1G.