CHRYSOMITRIS. 431 
6. Chrysomitris mexicana. 
Carduelis mexicanus, Sw. Phil. Mag. new ser. i. p. 435°; Wagl. Isis, 1831, p. 525. 
Chrysomitris mexicana, Bp. Consp. Av. i. p. 5162; Baird, U. S. Bound. Surv. i., Birds, p. 14°; 
Sel. P. Z. S. 1856, p. 303°; 1858, p. 303°; 1859, pp. 3657, 380°; Scl. & Salv. Ibis, 1859, 
p. 19°; 1860, p. 34"; P. Z. S. 1864, p. 353"; Lawr. Ann. Lye. N. Y. vii. p. 882”; ix. 
p. 103"; Dugés, La Nat. i. p. 140; Sumichrast, Mem. Bost. Soc. N. H. i. p. 550”; Salv. 
This, 1869, p. 314*°; P. Z.S.1870, p.190%"; Cat. Strickl. Coll. p. 214"; Grayson, Pr. Bost. 
Soc. N. H. xiv. p. 282°; Boucard, P. Z. S. 1883, p. 445 *°. 
Astragalinus mexicanus, Cab. Mus. Hein. i. p. 159"; J. f. Orn. 1861, p. 7”. 
Astragalinus columbianus, Cab. J. £. Orn. 1861, p. 94°. 
Chrysomitris columbiand$, Lawr. Ann. Lyc. N. Y. ix. p. 103°; Frantz. J. f. Orn. 1869, p. 302”. 
Fringilla melanoxantha, Licht. Preis-Verz. Mex. Vig. p. 2 (ef. J. f. Orn. 1863, p- 56”), 
Chrysomitris psaltria, Bp. Consp. Av. i. p. 5167”. 
Chrysomitris psaltria, var. mexicana, Baird, Brew., & Ridgw. N. Am. B. i. p. 478°; Lawr. Mem. 
Bost. Soc. N. H. ii. p. 278”. 
Supra chalybeo-nigra, speculo alari et secundariis internis in pogonio externo ad apicem albis, cauda nigra, 
rectricibus tribus utrinque externis in pogonio interno medialiter albis; subtus omnino flava; rostro 
flavido, culmine ad apicem fusco, pedibus corylinis. Long. tota 42, alee 2°5, caudsee rect. med. 1°6, lat. 1°8, 
rostri a rictu 0-4, tarsi 0-5. (Descr. maris ex Quezaltenango, Guatemala. Mus. nostr.) 
Q supra olivacea, alis et cauda fuscis olivaceo limbatis; subtus a gula ad pectus pallide olivaceis, ventre flavo. 
(Deser. feminze ex Coban, Guatemala. Mus. nostr.) 
Hab. Mexico, Rio Grande valley, Santa Catarina in Nuevo Leon, Agua Nueva in 
Coahuila, Parras (Couch), Tres Marias Islands (Grayson !, Forrer), Guanajuato 
(Dugeés 1+), Temiscaltepec, Real del Monte (Bullock), Jalapa (de Oca"), Oaxaca 6, 
Totontepec (Boucard®), Orizaba (Sumichrast 5), Cordova (Sallé>), Yucatan 
(Gaumer *°); Guatema.a (Constancia ® 18), Duefias 1°, San Gerénimo, Coban (0. 8. & 
Ff, D. G.); Costa Rica (Hoffmann, v. Frantzius**), San José (v. Frantzius ), 
Barranca (Carmiol 1°); Panama, Veraguas (Arcé 1”), Lion Hill (Jf‘Leannan 11 12), 
Throughout Mexico and Central America C. mexicana is very constant in its colours; 
in the male the whole upper surface is black, and the lateral tail-feathers have a large 
white spot on their inner webs. In the north-western portion of South America birds 
with these characteristics are also found, but with them in some parts of Colombia 
birds occur in which the white spots of the tail show a tendency to disappear, whilst in 
others the tail is wholly black. These latter birds have been called C. coloméiana, but 
they are not specifically distinguishable from C. mexicana. In North America a Siskin 
called C. psaltria by Say occurs in the Southern Rocky Mountains to the Pacific; in this 
bird the whole of the upper surface of the body is olive colour instead of black, the 
vertex and upper tail-coverts alone being black. On comparing typical specimens of 
C. mexicana and C. psaltria the difference between the two is very obvious indeed; but 
in Arizona birds in every intermediate form of plumage have been found, and this has 
led American ornithologists, after giving this Arizona bird the name of C. arizone, to 
treat both it and C. mexicana as races of C. psaltria. From the fact of the great 
