FRINGILLIN^. 393. 



mandibles produced, so that the tips cross each other; wings 

 moderately long, the 1st and 2nd quills sub-equal and longest ; tail 

 short, forked ; feet fitted for perching, the lateral toes unequal, the 

 hind toe long, and all the claws well curved. The peculiar structure 

 of the bill of these Finches enables them to extract the seeds from 

 the hard woody cones of Pines, and the ease and rapidity with 

 which they do this, is said to be very wonderful. They are stated 

 also to cat apples and other fruit. They nidificate high up on Pine 

 trees, making a nest of twigs and grass, lined with hair. They 

 somewhat approach the Parrots in the form of their bill, and also 

 in the way in which they climb by the aid of that organ. Pallas, 

 who remarked this, states that were it not for the form of their 

 feet, they could not be distinguished from Parrots. 



734. Loxia Himalayana, Hodgson. 



J. A. S. XIII. 952— Blyth, Cat. 671— Horsf., Cat. 680— 

 Bonap. and Schlegel, Mon. Lox. pi. 7. — Gould, Birds of Asia, 

 pt. XII. pi. 13. 



The Himalayan Cross-bill. 



Descr. — The greater part of the head and neck, and the whole 

 body beneath, red, of a hue between roseate and blood-red, and 

 more or less tinged with dusky broAvn ; the rest of the head, neck, 

 back, wings^ and tail, ashy brown, smeared and edged with red. 



The female is brown above, the rump tinged with yellow ; pale 

 brownish beneath, tinged on the breast and abdomen with olive 

 yellow. 



Length of inches ; wing 3^ ; tail 2^ ; bill at front ^. 



The Himalayan Cross-bill is only found in the higher regions 

 of the Himalayas, not far from the snows ; and even there, says 

 Hodgson, it is rare. It is much smaller than the European species, 

 with the colors somewhat deeper. We have no record of its 

 habitat elsewhere, but it will probably be found in Tibet, and 

 other regions of Central Asia. It does not appear to have been 

 observed in the N. W. Himalayas. 



The European species of Cross-bill are L. curvirostra, the 

 common Cross-bill ; L. leucoptera, the white winged Cross-bill ; 

 and L. pityopsittacus, or the Parrot C, all of which have been 



3 D 



