FINCHES. 191 



The winters when these happy, pretty little birds are com- 

 mon are always much enlivened by their presence, and those 

 years are richer for the naturalist which bring us their visits 

 from the arctic countries. 



VL LINOTA* 



A. BREWSTERi. ''^ Bvewstev'' s Linnet. One specimen,! 

 not clearly referable to any known species or variety, was ob- 

 tained by Mr. William Brewster, at Waltham, Mass., from 

 a flock of common '' Red-poUsc" 



a. It is described as follows in Messrs. Baird, Brewer, 

 and Ridgway's " North American Birds." 



" General appearance, somew^iat that of ^. Unarms^ but no 

 red on the crown, and the sides and rump tinged with sulphur 

 yellow ; no black gular spot. 5 ^f^^' Ground-color above, 

 light umber, becoming sulphur yellow on the rump, each 

 feather, even on the crown, with a distinct medial stripe of 

 dusk^^ Beneath, white, tinged with fulvous yellow anteriorly 

 and along the sides ; sides and crissum streaked with dusky. 

 Wings and tail, dusky; the former with two pale fulvous 

 bands ; the secondaries, primaries, and tail-feathers, narrowly 

 skirted with whitish sulphur yellow. A dusky loral spot, and 

 a rather distinct lighter superciliary stripe. Wing 3.00 ; 

 tail 2.50; tarsus .50 ; middle toe .30. Wing formula, 1, 2, 

 3, etc." 



Vn. PLECTROPHENAX. 



A. NIVALIS. Snoio BuntingP '' Snow-flaker An 

 inhabitant of the "far north," visiting New England in 

 winter, in large assemblies. J 



* Now Acanthis. — W. B. J A perfectly regular visitor to the 



'- Since named ^giothus flavirostris whole of New England, but less numer- 



var. hrewsteri. [Now Acanthis brew- ous inland than along the coast. The 



stern. — W. B.] bulk of the spacies passes to the south- 



t This specimen remains unique. It ward of Boston in November, and to 



is probably a hybrid between Acanthis the northward in March, but many 



linaria and Spinus pinus. — V^. B. large flocks remain through the entire 



'3 Sometimes called " White Snow- winter. At Brandon, Vermont, near 



bird," in distinction to the so-called the shores of Lake Champlain, Snow 



Black or Blue Snow-bird. Buntings are said to regularly spend 



