MEALY REDPOLL. 389 



" The males in autumn have the rump white, with a faint rosy- 

 tint and browm streaks ; slight reddish tints on the cheeks ; 

 brown streaks of the back margined with reddish ; the red on 

 the top of the head somewhat dull, and covered with very slight 

 reddish tints. 



" The female has the fore part of the head whitish ; red on 

 the top of the head ; the breast, the lower parts, and the rump 

 white, marked with brown streaks, which are pretty numerous 

 on the flanks. 



" Both sexes in icinter have the top of the head of a dull red, 

 the forehead white or reddish, marked with a black band ; 

 the lore and throat dull black ; the lower parts pure white, 

 more or less variegated with brown streaks ; the edges of the 

 feathers of the back of "a dull white or pale reddish." 



If M. Temminck uses the terms tchite and ti-hitish w^ith too 

 little qualification, his species is probably the JNIealy Linnet 

 of Mr. Gould, as well as the bird represented by Mr. Selby in 

 his Illustrations^ PI. 53,** Fig. 2, which he considers as a large 

 variety of the Redpoll. 



Mr. Weir's specimen is of the size of the Twite, Linaria 

 flavirostris, and may be described as follows : 



The bill is much larger than that of the Kedpoll, but of the 

 same form. The plumage is soft and blended ; the wings 

 rather long, the three first primaries almost equal, but the 

 second longest ; the tail long and deeply emarginate. The 

 bill is dull yellow, the upper mandible towards the end grey- 

 ish-bro^vn, the feet dusky, the claws brownish-black. The 

 reversed bristly feathers at the base of the bill are yellowish- 

 grey ; the loral space and throat brow^nish-black. The feathers 

 on the head are dusky, tipped with yellowish-grey, a few of 

 them deep red towards the end. The general colour of the 

 upper parts is light yellowish-brown, streaked with dusky 

 brown, the rump greyish-white, streaked with dusky. The 

 quills, larger coverts, and tail, are dark brow^n, margined Avitli 

 whitish-brown, of which are two bands across the w^ing, formed 

 by the tips of the secondary, and first row of small coverts. 

 The cheeks are greyish-white, as are the fore part of the neck, 



