They are birds with handsome, glossy plumage and exhibit to a certain 

 degree some of the intelligence and cunning possessed by our crows and jays. 

 They are fond of mimicking other birds, and this trait can be cultivated to a 

 remarkable degree by birds in captivity, for like some other members of the 

 intelligent family they may be taught to speak. 



In the Old World the starling, like the English sparrow, constructs a nest 

 in the trees, under the eaves, in church steeples and in boxes erected for their 

 accommodation. Outwardly the nests are constructed of twigs, straws and 

 grasses, lined with finer material. The eggs are about the size of a meadowlark's 

 and are pale blue unspotted. 



Purple Finch {Carpodacus purpureas) 



Length : About 6 to 6}4 inches. Unlike any other eastern finch, the 

 crimson head of the male sufficiently distinguishes it. 



Range : Breeds in southern Canada and southward to North Dakota, 

 Minnesota, Illinois, Pennsylvania mountains, and northern New Jersey; winters 

 from somewhat north of the southern boundary of its breeding range to the 

 Gulf States. 



Considering that it is common and widely distributed, the purple finch is not 

 so well known as it should be. For one thing it has a marked liking for the 

 tops of trees, particularly elms, and when in a tree top and more or less screened 

 by foliage it requires the aid of a good glass to make its identity sure. Its 

 warbling song is sweet and melodious but is all too brief for perfect enjoy- 

 ment, though in spring the bird is prodigal enough of its carols, and not infre- 

 iquently a dozen males may be heard singing at once in the same or in contiguous 

 trees. It frequently nests around houses and for a site is very partial to the 

 Virginia juniper. 



The purple finch lives almost entirely on the seeds of various plants, 

 including those of false buckwheat and ragweed, with some wild berries. It 

 is accused, not without reason, of being a confirmed budder of fruit and other 

 trees, but the damage it inflicts on eastern orchards appears to very slight, 

 if indeed the modest budding it does is an injury at all. 



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