186 ARKANSAS SISKIN. 



plumage ; the female, and state of imperfect plumage, are unknown ; 

 but, without risking any great deviation from the truth, we may state, 

 from analogy, that the young resemble the female, which must be desti- 

 tute of the black cap, and have the colors less vivid and less pure. 



The Arkansas Siskin certainly resembles the American Goldfinch in 

 its winter dress ; but a still more striking similarity exists in some other 

 birds, such as the European Siskin [Fringilla spinus), and the Olivarez 

 {Fringilla magellanica, Vieill.) of South America ; and it is so similar 

 to the European, that it might with a much greater degree of propriety 

 be considered as a variety, than those regarded as such by authors. 

 They can, however, be easily distinguished by the following comparative 

 characters : all the under parts of the Arkansas Siskin are bright 

 yelloAV, whilst the corresponding parts of the European Siskin are tinged 

 with greenish, the throat being black, and the belly, vent, and flanks 

 whitish, spotted longitudinally with black ; the margins and spots of the 

 wing and tail feathers are white in our bird, and yellow in the European 

 Siskin ; the white spots on the tail of the Arkansas Siskin are confined 

 to the three outer feathers, whilst in the foreign bird all the feathors, 

 excepting the two middle ones, are marked with yellow ; the bill of our 

 species is also a little shorter, less compressed, and less acuminated ; 

 finally, we may notice another trifling diff"erence, which consists in the 

 proportional length of the primaries, the four first being nearly equal 

 in the American bird, and the three first only in the European, the 

 fourth being almost a quarter of an inch shorter. The other approxi- 

 mate species, Fringilla magellanica, Vieill., considered by Gmelin and 

 Latham as a variety of the European Siskin, is readily distinguishable 

 by having the head entirely black. 



Though the Mexican Siskin {Friiigilla mexicana, Gmel.) may prove 

 to be the female of our bird, or the male in an imperfect state of plum- 

 age (and, from the locality, Ave should possibly have referred it to that 

 name, had the classification of it fallen to our lot), yet, as nothing posi- 

 tive can be drawn from so unessential an indication as that of the 

 Mexican Siskin, we have no hesitation in following the same course with 

 Say, who considers it as entirely new, and have retained his elegant 

 name of Fringilla psaltria. It is very possible that not only the Frin- 

 gilla mexieana, but also the Black Mexican Siskin {Fringilla catotol, 

 Gmel.) may be the same bird as our Fringilla psaltria ; but how can we 

 determine, from the vague descriptions that have been given of those 

 species ? they are equally applicable to the American Goldfinch in its 

 dull state of plumage ; and Wilson expresses a doubt whether or not 

 the Black Mexican Siskin is the same as his new species, Fringilla 

 pinus. 



All these pretty little birds belong to the sub-genus Oarduelis, having 

 a more slender, acute, and elongated bill, than other Fringillce. 



