FRINGILLID^ — THE FINCHES. 89 



this beautiful Finch in the vicinity of San Antonio, Texas, where he found 

 it very abundant among the thick mesquite-bushes, in the month of July. 

 It was deservedly a great favorite there, both on account of the beauty of its 

 plumage and its notes. 



Wilson found this bird one of the most numerous summer birds of Lower 

 Louisiana, where it was universally known among the French inhabitants as 

 Le Pape. Its gay dress and its docility of manners procured it many ad- 

 mirers. Wilson also states that he met with these birds in tlie low coun- 

 tries of all the Southern States, in the vicinity of the sea and along the 

 borders of the large rivers, particularly among the rice plantations. He 

 states that a few were seen near the coast in North Carolina, but they were 

 more numerous in South Carolina, and still more so in Georgia, especially 

 the lower parts. At Natchez, on the Mississippi, they were comparatively 

 scarce, but below Baton Rouge, on the levee, they appeared in great num- 

 bers. Around New Orleans they were warbling from almost every fence. 

 Their notes very much resemble those of the Indigo Bird, but lack their 

 energy, and are more feeble and concise. 



Wilson met with these birds very generally in the houses of the French 

 inhabitants of New Orleans. In the aviary of a wealthy French planter 

 near Bayou Fourche, he found two pairs of these birds so far reconciled 

 to their confinement as to liave nests and hatch out their eggs. Wilson 

 was of the opinion that with the pains given to the Canary these birds 

 would breed with equal facility. Six of them, caught only a few days before 

 his departure, were taken with him by sea. They soon became reconciled 

 to their cage, and sang with great sprightliness. They were very fond of 

 flies, and watched with great eagerness as the passengers caught them for 

 their benefit, assembling in the front of the cage and stretching their heads 

 through the wires to receive them. 



These birds, he states, arrive in Louisiana from the South about the mid- 

 dle of April, and build early in May. They reach Savannah about the 20th 

 of April. Their nests are usually fixed in orange hedges or in the lower 

 branches of the trees. He often found them in common bramble and black- 

 berry bushes. They are formed exteriorly of dry grass intermingled with the 

 silk of caterpillars, with hair and fine rootlets. Some nests had eggs as late 

 as the 25th of June, which were probably a second brood. The food of this 

 bird consists of rice, insects, and various kinds of seeds. They also feed on 

 the seeds of ripe figs. 



A single specimen of this species was detected by Mr. Eidgway in South- 

 ern Illinois between Olney and Mount Carmel, on the 10th of June. It is 

 therefore presumed to be a rare summer resident in that locality. 



The Nonpareil is possessed of a very pugnacious disposition, and, accord- 

 ing to Mr. Audubon, the bird-dealers of New Orleans take advantage of this 

 peculiarity in a very ingenious manner to trap them. A male bird is stuffed 

 and set up in an attitude of defence on the platform of a trap-cage. The 



VOL. II. 12 



