The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1898-09-24
HUMMING BIRDS.

Only Species That Can Move Backward
While Poised on the Wing.
Most OF the hummers sip honey from
the flowers. Poised on wings that
move SO rapidly that they appear like
a semi-circle of film around their
swaying bodies, the birds insert their
long beaks into the tubes Of the flow
ers and extract nectar with relish. It
is true that some Of the warblers and
kinglets will sometimes poise in this
way before a leaf and peck an insect
from its surface, but this occurs rare
ly, and is not a regular habit of these
birds. The susurrus of the RUNNERS
wings, as he balances in the air or
darts from fioWer to flower, has given
the birding his name. One of the most
wonderful features Of hummer fight
is the birds ability to move backward
while on the wing-probably the only
instance in which a bird is able to ac-
complish- this feat. MIR. Ridgway says
that this movement is greatly assisted
panded tail.
There are, however, a few exceptions
to this rapid manner of flight, even in
the hummer family One of the most
striking is that of the giant humming
bird, which flaps it's wings in a slow,
leisurely way as it hovers over flow-
er, much like the desultory vibrations
of. large butterf1y's wings. During
flight it's tail is constantly expanded
and closed like a fan and it's body is
kept in an almost vertical position
and seems to be suspended from a CEN
tral point. It is not to be wondered
at that the humming birds are sought
for decorative purposes. Their rich
colors and bright ornaments make
them a tempting prize to the lovers OF
gaudy fashion. Vast numbers are
slaughtered in Mexico and South
America, being killed with fine shot
or caught with nets and lime. On ac-
count of this ruthless destruction some
species are said to be on the verge
of extinction and, of course, it will
be exterminated first At a sale held
in london nson-M March 1883, more than
J $4,000 hummer skins were disposed Of,
and in one week 100000 hummers and
other American birds were sold in
London at auction. A brilliant hum
mer fitting airily amid the foliage and
flowers is a thing of beauty and a
joy forever" on woman's bonnet
such decoration is little short Of
garish. All the colors of the spec
trum, with many intermingled tints,
are combined in their plumage, so that
some of them seem to be truly kaleido-
scopic. One Of the most striking or
naments of many of the hummers is
the 'gorget,' as it is called-that is,
a cleaning throat patch of imbricated
feathers. In the common ruby throat
it is ruby, as the name implies; in sew
eral species, like Costa's humming bird,
the tips of the feathers are purple
and the basal portions snow white.
In Others they CLEAN in the most metal
licsred or violet. Sometimes the feath-
ers of these gorgets are elongated into
a beautiful ruff on each side of the
neck or into a bearded tuft reaching
down from the chin.
Still more wonderful are the crests
worn by number of the species. There,
whose head is surrounded by tall,
slender topknot that looks like min
iature pyramid, while a pointed beard
of almost the same length depends
from it's chin. Princess Helena's CO.
quette has a double crest, both parts
running to sharp point, making them
look like two tiny horns, while its
gorget is decorated at it's base with a
semi-circle of elongated feathers that
stream out like pennants. The span
gled cOquette has a crest of the fin
est spray spread out in the form of
a round fan, dappled with metallic
black spots s.
No less varied and wonderful are the
tails of the hummers. Robert Ridg-
way says: "The shape and develop
ment of the tail feathers Of the hum
ming birds vary to a degree that has
no parallel among other birds, many
Of the forms assumed being also
entirely unique There are deeply
forked and scissor-shaped tails,
wedge-shaped tails, double-rounded
and double-emarginated tails, tails
with streamers Of curious forms, tails
whose quaint and elaborate structures
defy description by any specific terms.
Several species have long feathers that
sweep around in graceful festocns,
either running parallel or crossing
each oIner. These pennants are often
free Of vanes, save at the end, where
there is a broad, fan-like expansion.
In one form these elongated append
ages make a graceful double curve and
cross each other twice. IN another
they bend outward and then turn and
cross each other near the end like
two curved swords. London News.
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