Thaumatias Milleri

Miller’s Emerald was first described by M. Bourcier of Paris in the “Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London,” the specific name of Milleri being adopted by him from the late Mr. George Loddiges’ MSS.

It is not known why Mr. Loddiges gave the bird this specific appellation, unless it was from a desire to perpetuate the name of a surgeon in the Royal Navy, who paid considerable attention to the Hummingbirds while stationed on the Pacific side of South America.

The Thaumatias Milleri is a diminutive and chastely-coloured species, distinguished by its snow-white breast and glittering crown; in size it is very similar to T. brevirostris, with which it might be confounded had it a less brilliant forehead. The native habitat of the species is the Andes of Columbia and the countries lying to the westward towards the upper part of the Rivers Negro and Amazon: most of the specimens which have reached this country are from Bogota. It is by no means a common bird, and but few collectors are in possession of examples; we are, indeed, so little acquainted with it that it would be unsafe to say if the female differs in plumage from her mate; in all probability she is very similarly coloured, but her hues are less bright and contrasted in all their tints, particularly in the glittering portion of the crown and occiput.

The crown, sides of the head, and the sides and back of the neck rich glittering grass-green; upper surface and wing-coverts bronzy green; wings purplish black; tail-feathers greyish green with a transversal mark of brown near the tip of all but the two central ones; throat snow-white; under surface of the body greyish white washed with green on the flanks, the green meeting and forming a band across the breast; upper mandible and tip of the lower mandible black; the basal portion fleshy.

The Plate represents the birds of the natural size. The plant is the Comparettia falcata.

References

More hummingbirds in the genus Thaumatias

• Thaumatias candidus White-breasted Emerald
• Thaumatias chionopectus Snowy-throated Emerald
• Thaumatias leucogaster White-throated Emerald
• Thaumatias viridiceps Green-headed Emerald
• Thaumatias nitidifrons Brilliant-fronted Emerald
• Thaumatias brevirostris Short-billed Emerald
• Thaumatias affinis Allied Emerald
• Thaumatias chionurus White-tailed Emerald
• Thaumatias albiventris White-bellied Emerald
• Thaumatias Linnæi Linnæus’ Emerald