468 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 



Grosbeaks among the balsam firs on August 14, a rather early date for 

 migrants (An. Rep. Mich. Geol. Surv., 1908. Isle Royale, 364). Probably 

 this island, the northernmost bit of Michigan territory, is as favorable 

 a breeding place for this species as any in the state and it is by no means 

 improbable that the grosbeaks may nest there occasionally, or even 

 regularly. It is said to nest in the tops of evergreens, building a structure 

 which is shallow and thin and consists mainly of rootlets. The eggs are 

 three or four, bluish-green, spotted somewhat thinly with brown and 

 black. They average 1.01 by .74 inches. According to Kumlien and 

 Hollister (Birds of Wisconsin, p. 91) this species is said to nest within 

 the boundaries of the Badger State, but they have been unable to sub- 

 stantiate the claim and think it very doubtful. 



Aside from the possible distribution of the seeds of valuable trees we know 

 of no benefit which this species confers on the agriculturist. It is, however, 

 almost if not entirely harmless, since the few buds cut from evergreens 

 and shade trees are of little consequence, and the bird is so beautiful and 

 interesting that it deserves protection on this account if for no other. 



TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 



Adult male: Upper parts rose-pink, brightest on head and rump, dullest on inter- 

 scapular region, where all the feathers have dusky centers; under parts mainly pink, but 

 duller than above, and shading into ashy gray on the flanks and belly; wings and tail slate- 

 color to slaty-black, the tail unmarked, the wings with two white bars and the tertiaries 

 broadly edged with white; bill and feet brownish black; iris brown. 



Adult female: General color gray or brownish gray, the head, neck, rump and upper 

 tail-coverts pale greenish yellow to rusty yellow, and the breast and sides often washed 

 with the same; wings and tail as in the male. Young: Similar at first to adult female, 

 but with less yellow, and the wing-bars buffy instead of white. Probably males take more 

 than one year to attain full plumage, and nearly all degrees of coloring occur, from pale 

 yellow through brownish yellow and madder-brown to rose. 



Length 8.25 to 9 inches; wing 4.50 to 5; tail 3.70 to 4.45; culmen .53 to .59. 



208. Purple Finch. Carpodacus purpureus purpureus (GmcL). (517) 



Synonyms: Purple Linnet, Red Linnet, Gray Linnet (immature and female). — Fringilla 

 purpurea, Gmelin, 1789. — Carpodacus purpureus of all recent authors. 



Size of the English Sparrow. Adult male mostly rosy red, l^righter in 

 summer, duller in winter, the back more or less streaked with dusky. 

 Adult female streaked above with brown and gray, below Avith dusky 

 and white; likely to be mistaken for a sparrow. 



Distribution. — ^Eastern North America from the Atlantic coast to the 

 Plains. Breeds from middle states northward. 



In suitable places throughout the Lower Peninsula north of the Saginaw 

 Grand Valley, as well as in the entire Upper Peninsula, the Purple Finch 

 is a not uncommon summer resident. It haunts the margins of evergreen 

 forests, pours forth its beautiful song from the tops of balsams and junipers 

 along the margins of the Great Lakes and the smaller ponds, and soon after 

 its first arrival in spring may be found frequentl}^ in the orchards nip- 

 ping the buds from pear, apple and cherry trees. 



South of the Saginaw-Grand Valley the bird is mainly a migrant or a 

 rare winter resident, but for that matter a few individuals probably winter 

 in all parts of the state. The writer found it common and in full song on 

 Big Beaver Island, Lake Michigan, in July 1904, and also found it fairly 



