Characteristics of the Mountain Linnet, 489 



possess at present, I should, on the contrary, deem it to be 

 very familiar and confiding. This I just cursorily mention as 

 a caution to those who would infer the general character and 

 disposition of a species from observation of an individual. 

 Animals of the same kind often differ greatly in individual 

 character; and this is remarkably apparent in a brood of 

 ten young bottletits which I have this season reared : it was 

 observable even before they had left the nest. 



The bramble finch, like many other species, but chiefly 

 those which have deciduous terminal edgings to their winter 

 plumage, as the linnets, redstarts, stonechat, pied flycatcher, 

 and some of the siskins and grosbeaks, is very much hand- 

 somer when two years old than when in its first summer 

 livery. The tints of all these birds are considerably brighter 

 after they have moulted twice, and then (as is particularly 

 observable in the common redstart) a few only of the new 

 feathers are fringed with winter edgings. 



I cannot exactly reconcile the mountain linnet, or twite, 

 which, in these parts, is a regular winter visitant, with Mr. 

 Selby's description of it. That gentleman remarks that " it 

 is rather larger than the common linnet, being bulkier in the 

 body, and having a longer tail." Now, all the twites which 

 I have seen (and they amount to many dozens) have invariably 

 been considerably smaller than the common linnet, being 

 intermediate in size between that bird and the redpole. Far- 

 ther, Mr. Selby*s account of it seems to imply that it exhibits 

 a marked seasonal change in the tints of its plumage ; " ren- 

 dering its summer appearance different from that which it bears 

 through the rest of the year." I have specimens in summer 

 plumage ; and the only difference I can perceive is an increased 

 brightness of colour on the rump plumage, the terminal edg- 

 ings of which have disappeared ; but this is by no means con- 

 spicuous, being a much slighter difference than is observable 

 in the common linnet and the redpole. In other respects, 

 Mr. Selby's description of the mountain linnet entirely agrees 

 with my birds; only that I see no sexual difference in the 

 colour of the upper parts, the rump excepted. Montagu 

 describes the twite to be " rather larger than the linnet ; " 

 and says, also, " the top of the head and rump red." But 

 here he is certainly mistaken as regards the head ; for I can 

 say decidedly that the twite (of these parts) has at no time 

 any red upon the crown. These discrepancies almost lead 

 one to suspect that two different species are yet confused 

 together under the name of mountain linnet ; as, I am quite 

 convinced, is the case with the redpole. See the Field Na* 

 turalisfs Magazine for April, 1834, p. 172. 



Tooting, Surrej/, May 29. 1834. 



