Like
the cuckoo, it follows the summer wherever it flies.
"'The ruby-throated humming-bird [Footnote: Trochilus Rubus] is the only
species that is known in Canada. With us it builds and breeds, and then
returns to summer skies and warmer airs. The length of the humming-bird is
only three inches and a half, and four and a quarter in extent from one
tip of the wing to the other When on the wing the bird has the form of a
cross, the wings forming no curve, though the tail is depressed during the
time that it is poised in the act of sucking the honey of the flower. The
tongue is long and slender; the bill long and straight; the legs are very
short, so that the feet are hardly visible when on the wing. They are
seldom seen walking, but rest on the slender sprigs when tired. The flight
is so rapid that it seems without effort. The humming sound is produced by
the wing, in the act of keeping itself balanced while feeding in this
position. They resemble the hawk-moth, which also keeps up a constant
vibratory motion with its wings. This little creature is of a temper as
fierce and fiery as its plumes, often attacking birds of treble its size;
but it seems very little disturbed by the near approach of the human
species, often entering open windows, and hovering around the flowers in
the flower-stand; it has even been known to approach the vase on the
table, and insert its bill among the flowers, quite fearless of those
persons who sat in the room.
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