The Portland daily press., 1865-02-18
Saturday Morning, Feb. 1s, 1865.
Humming-birds.


II is not a little remarkable that humming.
birds are confined to the New World and It's
adjacent islands. Some persons still maintap
however, that they existin India and Africa
and Mr. Gould states that he had once a
stormy alteration with gentleman who con-
tended that the humming-bird was found in
England, and that he had seen it fly in Devon
shire. The object to which he alluded was
the hummiDg-blrd moth; and the birds sup
posed TO, belong to this family in India and
Africa are OF a totally different group, the
Nectarinld3, or Sunbirds; the only points OF
resemblance between them and the Trochili-
d@ being their diminutive size and snowy
plumage.
But although humming birds are confined
to the New World and the West Indies, their
range in America is enormous. They have
been found as high as the sixty-frst parallel
on the Pacific coast, and as low as the Terra
del Fuego, fitting about in snow storms
The migration OF birds is assuredly one of
the most interesting studies in natural history.
We admire the grand fight OF the eagle as he
sweeps through the storm clouds. but we
know the strength of his mighty pinions, and
can comprehend how he battles successfully
with. the tempest, but our admiration is
changed to amazement when we find the deli
cate and fragile humming-bird, scarcely larger
than a big bee, and apparently fitted only
3
zones OF the globe, and flying through sun
shine and storm, heat and cold, from the fiery
tropics to the snow and ice of the Rocky
Mountains on the north and Cape Horn on the
south.
This migratory habit of the humming bird
enables visitors to the Canadas and North
America tomake the acquaintance of one Of
the most beautiful species This is the Tro-
chilus Colubria or red-throated humming-
bird, which migrates in great numbers in
summer from the Gulf of Mexico northward.
Mr.. Gould dwels lovingly on his first sight of
these charming birds; and we, too, we'll re-
member the first time we saw one of these
little creatures. Wei had landed at Halifax,
at the latter end OF August, and quite unpre-
pared for the meteor-like vision, we were
greatly puzzled to account for the flashes of
light that darted before us on the gardens of
the Government House, until suddenly re-
membering that we were in the summer-land
of humming-birds, we were no longer at
loss to give a name tc the aerial beings,
which, like the hues Of roses stepped in LIQUID
fire, now darted joyously from flower to
flower, and now hung motionless in the air,
probing in the azure blossoms with their long
bills. abn>f
b, AT later period of the year, when enjoy
ing the hospitality OF Sir James Robinson,
late Chief Justice of Canada, at Toronto, we
had the pleasure Of seeing the garden on
which we looked, glittering with these birds.
which darted from tree to tree and flower to
flower in countless numbers and that we NAV
not be thought exaggerating, here is letter
written lately to Mr.. Could from gentleman
residing in Toronto: 80 i9e $40
. Il wish you could have been with Ms last
summer; you would have had chance of
watching your favorite humming- birds to
your hearts content. I do not in the least ex-
aggerate when say, that during the time
-horse-chestnuts were in flower, there were
hundreds of these little tiny creatures about
my grounds. While sitting in my library 1
could hear their sharp, querulous notes as the
males fought like so many bantam cocks with
each other On one large chestnut tree. lust
at the corner of the house, they -swarmed
about the foliage like SO many bees. and as
the top branches of the tree were close to NV
bedroom windows, every now and then one
bird more bold than the rest would dart into
the open window, and perch upon the ward