FRINGILLID.K — THE FINCHES. 



I I 



equal ; the seconri quill lonsrest ; the first less than the In 

 shorter than the wiiiu:!. 



Tail very nearly even, 



The single North Ameri- 

 can species of this genus has 

 no near relative in tropical 

 America ; indeed, no other 

 species at present known 

 can be said to be strictly 

 congeneric. 



In all essential details of 

 external strnctitre, and in 

 every respect as to haliits 

 and nidification, the type of 

 the genus (G. cmrulea) is 

 much more like the species of Ciianospiza than those of Hcdi/mclcs, with 

 which latter it has usually been included. 



Gjtiraca canilea. 



Guiraca caerulea, Swainson. 



BLUE GK03BEAK. 



/ 



> 



Loxia coemlen, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, T7tiG, 306. — Wilson, Am. Orn. Ill, 181], 78, pi. .xxiv, 

 f. 6. — ? Wagler, Isis, 1831, 525. Guiraca cceruUa, Swainson, Birds Mex. in Pliil. 

 Mag. I, 1827, 438. — Baiiid, Birds N. Am. 1858, 499. — Cooper, Orn. Cal. I, 230. 

 Frinyilla ccvruka, AuD. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 140 ; V, 508, pi. cxxii. Cuccoborus 

 cmrulcm, Sw. Birds II, 1837, 277. —AuD. Syn. 1839. — Ib. Birds Am. Ill, 1841, 204, 

 pi. cciv. — Cabanis, Mus. Hein. 1851, 152. — Finsch, Abh. Nat. Brem. 1870, 339 

 (Mazatlan). Cyanoloxia ccerulea, Bp. Conspectus, 1850, 502. Oaniaplioea ccerulea, Bp. 

 Blue Grosbeak, Pennant, Arc. Zoi)l. II, 1785, 351. 



Sp. Char. Brilliant blue; darker across the middle of the back. Space around base 



of the bill and lores, with tail-feathers, 

 black. Two bands on the wing across the 

 tips of the middle and secondary coverts, 

 with outer edges of tertiaries, reddish- 

 brown, or perhaps chestnut. Feathers on 

 the posterior portion of the under sur- 

 face tipped narrowly with grayish-white. 

 Length, 7.25 ; wing, 3.00 ; tail, 2.80. 



Female yellowish-brown above, brown- 

 ish-yellow beneath ; darkest across the 

 bieast. Wing-coverts and tertials broadly 

 edged with brownish-yellow. Sometimes a 

 faint trace of l)lue on the tail. The young 

 resembles the female. 



Had. More .southern United States from 

 Atlantic to Pacific, south to Costa Rica. 



Xalapa (ScL. 1859, 365) ; Oaxaca (Scl. 1859. 378) ; Cordova (Scl. 1856, 301) ; Cuba (Cab. 



J. IV, 9); Vera Paz (Salvin, Ibis, III, 352); Costa Rica (Lawr. IX, 102); Vera Cruz, 



winter CSriM. M. B. S. T. 5.52) : Yucatan (Lawr. IX. 200), 



Gf'irnrn rfpritlea 



