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XXX
on another chase and another tussle. Iam persuaded that these were noswe oe : for one seemed
evidently afraid of the other, fleeing when the other pursued, Hou jadommitabls spirit ae ae
the ve of defiance ; and when resting after a battle, I noticed that this one held his be open as 1 ae
Sometimes they would suspend hostilities to suck a few blossoms ; but mutual pe was ai: to bring
them on suadie with the same result. In their tortuous and rapid evolutions, the light from hey necks
would stonsieale flash in the sun with gem-like radiance ; and, as they now and es poverss ae the
pbadlp-oxhanded tail, the outer feathers of which are crimson-purple, but when EOP the sun’s rays
fee nit orange-coloured light, added much to their beauty. A little Banana Quit (Contin eee, that
was peeping among the blossoms in his own quiet way, seemed now and then to look with surprise on the

combatants ; but when the one had driven his rival to a longer distance than usual, the victor set upon the

3 ° .
unoffending Quit, who soon yielded the point, and retired, humbly enough, to a neighbouring tree. The
war (for it was a thorough campaign, a regular succession of battles) lasted fully an hour, and then I was

. . : ine-Birds are be males.”
called away from the post of observation. Both of the Humming-Birds appeared to be me

‘All the Humming-Birds have more or less the habit, when in flight, of pausing in the air, and throwing
the body and tail into rapid and odd contortions. This is most observable in the Polytmus, from the effect
that such motions have on the long feathers of the tail. That the object of these quick turns is the capture
of insects I am sure, having watched one thus engaged pretty close to me. I observed it carefully, and
distinctly saw the minute flies in the air which it pursued and caught, and heard repeatedly the snapping
of the beak. My presence scarcely disturbed it, if at all.”

In some notes on the ‘ Habits of the Humming-Birds of the Amazon,’ kindly furnished me by Mr. Wallace,
that gentleman says—

“The great number of species that frequent flowers, do so, I am convinced, for the small insects found

there, and not for the nectar. In dozens, and perhaps hundreds, of common flower-frequenting species

which I have examined, the crop, stomach, and intestines have been entirely filled with minute beetles,
bees, ants, and spiders, which abound in most flowers in South America.

Very rarely, indeed, have I found
a trace of honey or of any liquid in the crop or stomach.

The flowers they most frequent are the various

species of Jnga, and the papilionaceous flowers of many large forest-trees. I have never seen them at the
Bignonias or any flowers but those which grow in large masses covering a whole tree or shrub, as they

ver stop at a single one. The little Emerald Hummer
i have seen in gardens and at the common orange,

visit perhaps a hundred flowers in a minute and ne

Asclepias, which often covers large spaces of waste

But there are many, such as Phaéthornis E)
which I have never seen at flowers.

ground in the tropics. remita, and some larger allied species,

These inhabit the gloomy forest-shades, wher

e they dart about among
the foliage, and I have distinctly observed the

m visit in rapid succession every leaf on a branch, balancing

ir beak closely over the under surface of each leaf, and thus
at may be upon them.

themselves vertically in the air, passing the

capturing, no doubt, any small insects th While doing this the two long feathers of
» Serving apparently as a rudder to assist them in performing the delicate
operation. I have seen others searching up and down stems and de

now and then picking off something,

their tail have a vibrating motion

ad sticks in the same manner, every
exactly as a Bush-strike or a Tree-creeper does, with this exception,
also capture insects in the true Fissirostral manner,
seen perched on the dead twig of
the tyrant Flycatchers and the J

that the Humming-Bird is constantly on the wing. They

How often may they be : é
Pees a lofty tree—the same station that is chosen by

h, like those birds, they dart off a short distance

ntical twig they had left. In the evening, too, just

acamars, and from whic

and, after a few whirls and balancings, return to the ide

Poy

  
    
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
   
 
 
  
   
   
   
 
   
  
   
  
  
     
     
    
      
     
      
    
    

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