Identifier: birdlore141912nati (find matches)
Title: Bird lore
Year: 1899 (1890s)
Authors: National Committee of the Audubon Societies of America National Association of Audubon Societies for the Protection of Wild Birds and Animals National Audubon Society
Subjects: Birds Birds Ornithology
Publisher: New York City : Macmillan Co.
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Institution Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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times perchesin the open on a taut wire, where the light plays on every ruby feather of hisgorget, making him conspicuous out of all proportion to his size. While he rests thus, preening first one wing and then the other, it is afine chance to study the bird in detail—the upperparts feathered in glistening■green, with metallic tints of purple and blue upon wings and tail, and the won-derful ruby throat, separated from the dull gray-green breast by a line of light.From the end of his needle-like bill to the tail-tip he measures a trifle underthree and one-fourth inches, while the wings that make the resonant hum,suggesting the motive power of a machine rather than of a bird, measureonly about one and a-half inches on either side of the body. Truly this is ourleast bird, the competitor for this honor being the pert little cinnamonbrown Winter Wren, that measures a trifle over four inches, and the con-:fiding Golden-crowned Kinglet of the yellow-bordered orange crown, olivace- (i86)
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RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRDOrder—Macrochires Family—Trochilid^e Genus—Archilochus Species—Colubris National Association of Audubon Societies Educational Leaflet No. 56 , ill The Ruby-Throated Hummingbird 187 ous upper plumage, and dull white underparts, a bird that we see frequentlyin orchards during the migrations. Though this Kinglet is only about one pointlonger than the Wren, and about one-fourth of an inch longer than the Ruby-throat, it appears to be much larger on account of its fluffy breast feathers. So slim and compact is the Hummingbird that, seen at the usual distance,its plumage has more the appearance of metal work than the shaft and downof feathers. Its voice also has the sharp squeak of metallic contact, and isutterly unlike the usual bird note. I have heard precisely the same tone from amouse. But, at close range, all these qualities are transformed. This is a casewhen a bird in the hand gave me a different idea of that same bird in thebush, forevermore. Let it

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