Mr. W. C. Tait on the Birds of Portugal. 193 



78. LiGURiNus CHLORis (Linii.). " Verdilhao/^ Portugal 

 generally; " Verderol/' Gralicia. 



Very abundant and resident, but some pass southwards in 

 the autumn and north in the spring. Greenfinches are very 

 fond of the seeds of Datura stramonium, the thorn-apple 

 datura. Their song begins in the first week in March, and 

 continues till the middle of July, when it ceases. 



79. CoccoTHRAUsTES VULGARIS. " Pardal do nortc,^^ ^' Cliiu- 

 calhao do norte,'^ Penafiel; " Bico gordo,'^ Caldas d'Aregos ; 

 " Bico grossudo,^^ Coimbra. 



The Hawfinch is resident. In spring and summer it is 

 found in the Alto-Douro and Beira, chiefly in the higher 

 ground ; but in winter it descends to the lower districts and 

 the sea-side, at which season it is sometimes seen near Oporto. 

 The farmers complain bitterly that this bird does great 

 damage to the seed-beds, especially those of turnips, to which 

 it is very partial. I was disappointed at not finding this 

 species in the Serra do Gerez. 



80. Passer domesticus. " Pardal," general name; " Par- 

 dal " and " Gorrion," Galicia. 



The House Sparrow is very abundant and generally dis- 

 tributed, the only locality in which I have not met with it being 

 the Caldas do Gercz, a favourite watering-place in the Gerez 

 mountains, famous for its hot mineral springs. The country 

 round this beautifully situated little village is very interesting 

 to the botanist, and is rich in reptiles. Eagles are plentiful on 

 the crags, but there is a wonderful scarcity of other birds. 



It has been much discussed whether the Sparrow is bene- 

 ficial or prejudicial ; but Portuguese farmers lean towards the 

 latter, and if powder and shot were cheaper, the Sparrows 

 would lead a precarious existence ; and observations lead me 

 to take the farmers^ view. No doubt they eat many insects, 

 for I have seen them pick caterpillers out of cabbages, catch 

 flies, and eat berries ; but, for all that, their general and 

 favourite food is seed of all kinds. It is sufficient to examine 

 the shape of the bill to see that this species is essentially 

 graminivorous, and only exceptionally insectivorous. Dr. 



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