272 U.S. NATIONAL IVIUSEUM BULLETIN 23 7 pabt i 



they often seem quite hostile toward any new arrival, raising the 

 feathers of the crown and rushing at him with wide-open bill. 

 Occasional pecldng may result, which seems to produce no great 

 damage. The attacked one usually retreats somewhat and proceeds 

 to feed only a few inches from his pursuer. 



Hervey Brackbill says in his notes: "On one occasion a migrant in 

 the female or immature plumage flew against the window at which 

 my feeding tray is placed, in what appeared to be shadow-boxing. 

 There were three such finches on the tray, the floor of which is above 

 the window frame and runs within 6 inches of the pane. After all the 

 birds had eaten for a while, the one nearest the window apparently 

 noticed its reflection there. It stopped feeding and began moving 

 back and forth along the very inside edge of the tray, with now one 

 eye and now the other cocked toward the pane; sometimes it stood still 

 for appreciable periods and stared. Once it rubbed one side of its 

 head, and then after a bit the other, against the edge of the shelf; 

 the impression it gave was that of rubbing its eyes, as if to see whether 

 the bird in the glass would then still be there. Then it resumed its 

 movement back and forth along the edge of the tray, always looking 

 at the window. Finally, perhaps 1 to 2 minutes after it had first 

 caught sight of its reflection, it flew up and struck the window pane 

 once and then flew away. The other birds went on eating." 



Sun-bathing, common with robins and some other birds, is some- 

 times indulged in by purple finches. Mrs. Herman F. Straw (1919) 

 describes it as follows: 



One day I noticed one of the birds squatting on the shelf, tail and one wing 

 spread out to the fullest extent, one leg stretched as far as possible to one side, 

 its neck turned so far around that the head seemed upside down, mouth open, 

 and feathers fluffed out all over the body. Such a strange position 1 I felt sure 

 this Finch was dying, and feared I had given it something that had poisoned 

 it * * *. Consequently I was much relieved when another Finch, flying to the 

 shelf just at this time, pecked the first bird, instantly restoring him to life and 

 flight. Since then I have often seen seven or eight birds at the same time, in as 

 many ungainly and ludicrous positions, "sunning" themselves in the bright, 

 hot sunshine. 



Voice. — Aretas A. Saunders contributes the following thorough 

 study of the beautiful song of this finch: "The song of the purple finch 

 is loud, clear, highly musical, and pleasing. There are three distinct 

 ways of singing, more or less separated by the seasons of the year. 

 The warbling song of early spring is probably the best known of these. 

 This song is used while the birds are in flocks, and there are often sev- 

 eral birds in the flock singing at once, in a chorus. The territory or 

 nesting song comes a little later, after the birds are separated into 

 pairs. The least common song is the 'vireo song,' which comes very 

 early in the spring, or rarely in late fall or other seasons. 



