WESTERN GOLDFINCH. 



530. Astragalinus psaltria. 4^4 inches. 



Cap, wings and tail black; sides of head and back 

 greenish. Female much duller and with no black in the 

 crown. These little Goldfinches are very abundant 

 throughout the West. Their flight is undulatory like 

 that of the preceding, and all their habits are very sim- 

 ilar. They spend the winter in bands, roving about the 

 country, feeding on weed seeds; in summer they repair, 

 either in small bands or by single pairs, to the edges 

 of swamps or woodland near water, where they construct 

 their compact homes in the forks of bushes. Their eggs 

 are pale blue like those of the American Goldfinch, but 

 of course are much smaller (.62 x .45). They are laid in 

 May or June, or even earlier in the western portions of 

 their range. 



Song. — Sweet and musical, almost like that of the 

 last species. 



Range. — Western United States from the Plains to 

 the Pacific, being abundant west of the Eocky Moun- 

 tains. 



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