320 FINCHES, SPARROWS, ETC. 



KEY TO ADULT MALES. 



1. Throat with black patch la"wrencei, p. 323. 



1'. Throat without black patch. 

 2. Back yellow. 



3. Body pale yellow. Rocky Mountain plateau . pallidus, p. 321. 

 3'. Body bright yellow. 



4. In winter, browner, with broader wing- markings. Pacific coast. 



salicamans, p. 321. 

 4'. In winter less brown, with narrower wing markings. East of 

 Rocky Mountains to Atlantic coast .... tristis, p. 320. 

 2'. Back olive green or black. 



3. Back without black. Rocky Mountains to California. 



psaltria, p. 322. 

 3'. Back wholly or partly black. 



4. Back and ear coverts solid black. Mexico and Central Texas. 



mexicanus, p. 322. 



4'. Back or ear coverts mixed with olive gi-een. Colorado and New 



Mexico to Pacific arizonae, p. 322. 



629. Astragalinus tristis {Linn.}. Goldfinch. 



Adult male in summer. — Whole body canary yellow, in sharp contrast to 

 black crown, wings, and tail ; wings with white bars and tail feathers with 

 white patches. Adult female in summer: upper parts olive brown, some- 

 times tinged with green or gray ; wings and tail dull blackish brown ; 

 white markings duller ; under parts grayish white, more or less tinged 

 with yellow. Adult male in winter: similar to female in summer, but 

 wings and tail deep black, broadly and clearly marked Avith white. Adult 

 female in winter: similar to sunmier plumage, but more tinged with 

 brownish, white markings broader and more tinged with buffy. Young: 

 similar to winter adults, but browner, wing markings and general suffusion 

 cinnamon ; shoulder patch mixed with black instead of unicolored as in the 

 male. Male: length (skins) 4.26-4.79. wing 2.78-2.96, tail 1.71-2.02, bill 

 .38-.41. Female: length (skins) 4.27-4.76, wing 2.59-2.79, tail 1.56-1.84, 

 bill .37-.41. 



Distribution. — Breeds in Transition and Upper Sonoran zones from the 

 southern British Provinces south to Kentucky and Kansas, east of the 

 Rocky Mountains ; winters south to the Gulf of Mexico. 



Nest. — A neat cup-shaped structure of compactly woven plant fibers, 

 lined with down and other soft materials ; placed in tall bushes or low 

 trees. Eggs : 3 to 5, plain pale bluish or bluish white. 



Food. — Largely weed seed. 



The goldfinches, or wild canaries, as they are popularly called in 

 their many forms, if not as cultivated songsters as their caged rela- 

 tives, have much sweeter call-notes and a happy round of their own. 

 Their indolent lisping notes have a tinge of sadness, but as they 

 raise their heads from a thistle or sunflower to give them, and then 

 flit lightly off and go sauntering in undulating flight through the 

 air the gentle- spirited birds seem as light-hearted as butterflies. 



In their home life they are among the most charming of birds, 

 being tender, devoted mates and watchful parents. 



