. Our own birds : a familiar natural history of the birds of the United States . ists, was few; while, more recently, Lesson, who hasbeen considered a great exponent of the family, has,in his works upon that subject, only figured and de-scribed about one hundred and ten. But throughthe means of various travellers who have given thesubject their particular attention, the number has beengradually swelled, until at the present time it amountsto upwards of three hundred and twenty distinct andwell-defined species. This result is in a great meas-ure owing to the energetic exertions o
. Our own birds : a familiar natural history of the birds of the United States . ists, was few; while, more recently, Lesson, who hasbeen considered a great exponent of the family, has,in his works upon that subject, only figured and de-scribed about one hundred and ten. But throughthe means of various travellers who have given thesubject their particular attention, the number has beengradually swelled, until at the present time it amountsto upwards of three hundred and twenty distinct andwell-defined species. This result is in a great meas-ure owing to the energetic exertions of John Gouldof London and Charles Lucian Bonaparte, Prince ofCanino, whose collectors have distributed themselvesthroughout the continents of North and South Amer-ica, making search among unexplored regions for newspecies. The warm and ever-glowing countries of the Trop-ics seem to be the most favorite resort of this lovelytribe, before the brilliant fire of whose sparkling plu-mage the 2:orgeous colorings of all other featheredraces grow dull. There, revelling in the undying. Ruby-throated Humming Bird. (153) THE HUMMING BIRDS. 155 verdure of a perpetual Summer, these gems of theforest sport their charms amid the sweets of a thous-and flowers. Although by far the largest number of species ofthe Humming Birds are found in the* West Indies,the Brazils, and those countries which lie adjacentto the Equator, yet these are by no means the lim-its to which they are confined: they enjoy probablythe most extensive range of country, and experiencethe greatest variety of climate, of any known continents of North and South America, fromNootka Sound on the northwest and Canada on thenortheast, to Terra del Fuego on the south, can alonebe given as the limits of their migrations. The beau-tiful and lovely little bird discovered by Captain Cookon the borders of Nootka Sound, and which inhabitsthe whole northwest coast, is a lonely representativeof the genus in the ornithology of th
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1879
