1852.] , 61 



extends from the shaft along the outer side ; upper mandible light brown, lower 

 light yellow. Tarsus and feet flesh colored ; iris dark brown. 

 Habitat. Western Texas. 



Obs. This interesting bird I shot on the prairie near San Antonio, on the 25th 

 of April, 1851, and, at the time, took it for the Z. savanna (Wilson,) which it 

 much resembled in ' its habits, but upon examination it proved to be totally 

 distinct. I found but one specimen, which is a male. 



I have named this in honor of my friend Mr. John Cassin, the Corresponding 

 Secretary of this Society, to vv'hose indefatigable labor in the department of 

 Ornithology we are so much indebted. 



The Committee to which was referred the followmg paper by Col. 

 McCall, reported in favor of publication in the Proceedings, 



Note 071 Carpodacus frontalis, (^Say,) with descriptiotv of a new species of the same 



ge?i7is, from Santa Fe, New Mexico. 



By Col. George A. McCall, U. S. A. 



In the Proceedings of this Academy for the months of May and June, 1851, 

 was published some account of such Birds as I had met with during the preced- 

 ing year in Texas and New Mexico. In that paper, under the name oiCarpoda- 

 cus frontalis. Say, I gave an account of the habits of a bird I had found at 

 Santa Fe. 



At the time I first observed the bird to which I allude, I believed it to be of 

 a species not previously described, and I brought \\\t\\ me from New Mexico 

 specimens of the adult birds, the young, the nest and the eggs. But on my ar- 

 rival in this city, a comparison with C. frontalis resulted in the decision that 

 my specimens were of that species ; they were accordingly presented to the 

 Academy as such, together with an account of their habits. Recently, however, 

 my attention has been called to these birds (a close examination of them having 

 been made by Dr. Wilson and Mr. Cassin) and a satisfactory conclusion has 

 been arrived at, that the birds referred to do not belong to the s'^ecies frontalis, 

 but are of a species not previously described ; I therefore propose the name fami- 

 liaris, and annex hereto an accurate description which w^as taken from an ex- 

 amination of a number of specimens, killed at Santa Fe in the spring of 1850. 



~Carj)odacns familiaris .* 



Adult male. Front, sides of head, chin, throat and rump, crimson; crow^n, 

 hind-neck and fore part of back, brownish crimson passing into brown on the 

 after part of the back ; fore part of the breast brownish crimson fading into light 

 dusky brown on the abdomen, which, with the under tail coverts, is striped wath 

 blackish brown ; wungs and tail, dusky brown, each feather edged with pale 

 brown, which is broadest on the wing coverts ; bill robust and curved on the 

 ridge, and together with the legs and feet dark dusky; iris black. Length, six 

 inches one line, alar extent ten inches ; wdng from the flexure three and a quar- 

 ter inches. 



The female, (in size rather less than the male,) is above, of a dusky brown 

 edged with light brown ; beneath, pale brown longitudinally striped with dark 

 brown ; wings and tail dusky, edged with pale brown. The young on the first 

 of May were nearly full fledged, and were similar in color to the female, though 

 lighter. 



It will be seen from the foregoing description that the present species differs 

 from C. frontalis in having the crimson less decidedly defined that color being 

 diff'used over a greater part of the body, and gradually fading into brown. 



