THE PASSERINE BIRDS 127 



remarkable for the beauty of their plumage. They may be generally 

 described as birds having a short, pointed, conical beak, and nine 

 primary quill-feathers. All are seed-eaters, save during the breeding- 

 season, when they destroy great quantities of insects, these being 

 captured to feed their young. 



We shall describe here, in the first place, some of the more in- 

 teresting of those which are to be met with in Great Britain. 



The Greenfinch (Plate XXVII. fig. 6) is one of the commonest 

 of our Finches, and, it is to be noted, differs from most of the Finches 

 in that there is but little difference between the plumage of the male 

 and female. In confinement this bird does well, and shows a capacity 

 for learning the songs of other birds, though it is by no means a 

 brilliant performer. 



The Hawfinch (Plate XXVI. fig. 4) is but a locally distributed 

 species, and even where common, contrives to escape observation in 

 a remarkable way. It is a handsome bird, though the colours of its 

 plumage are by no means striking. One of its most conspicuous 

 characters is the great size of its beak, which is furthermore remark- 

 able in that when this is opened there will be found a curious arrange- 

 ment of crushing-pads for opening the hard-shelled stones of the 

 hawthorn and other fruits, of which it is very fond. 



Quite the most beautiful of the British Finches is the Goldfinch 

 (Plate XXVIII. fig. 4). As with the Greenfinch, the male and females 

 are hardly to be distinguished. The young, however, wear a different 

 livery, inasmuch as they lack, among other things, the beautiful 

 markings on the head, and hence are known as *' Grey-pates " and 

 ** Bald-pates." The Goldfinch is, unhappily, a favourite cage-bird. 

 On this account it has for years suffered a merciless persecution at 

 the hands of bird-catchers and fanciers, and as the Goldfinch is by 

 no means easy to keep in confinement, an enormous mortality is 

 the result. So great have been the raids on their ranks, that in many 

 parts of the country they have been practically exterminated. 



The Siskin (Plate XXVIII. fig. 8), or Aberdevine, is a winter visitor 

 to England, and here it occasionally remains to nest. In Scotland 

 and in parts of Ireland it is far more common, and breeds freely. 

 The female is rather duller than the male, and the young birds are 

 duller than the female. 



