THE GOLDFINCH. 225 



THE GOLDFINCH 



BY H. A. JIACPHERSOX. 



The European Goldfinch, Carduelis elegans, has heen chosen for the 

 subject of rny paper ; not because I have any hope of producing many 

 new facts on a theme so well worn as the history of this popular bird, 

 but simply because a general account of the economy of one of our 

 English species must comprise many of the general characteristics of 

 the family to which it belongs. 



The true finches, Fringillidoe, have only nine primary quills, and 

 are divided by Bowdler Sharpe into the wide-palate finches. Ampli- 

 palatales, and those with narrow palates, Arctipalatales. To the second 

 section, Sharpe refers the sub-families of Dresser, Loxiiius and Embcr- 

 i:inuc, comprising the crossbills and the buntings. The first section, 

 composed of the sub-family FringillincB, with the bullfinches from the 

 LoxiincB, is headed in Dresser's classification by the goldfinch, followed 

 by the citril, finch, siskin, seriufinch, greenfinch, hawfinch, sparrows, 

 cl affinches, and linnets, all approximating to the goldfinch and to one 

 another in various degrees of homologous structure. The sub-family 

 Fringillince has an extensive range throughout the Palasarctic or 

 northern geographical region of the Old World ; in the Nearctic region 

 it is represented by the redpoles and other forms. 



But wide as is the distribution of the siskin and of some other 

 finches, the range of a few of the family is very limited. Thus the 

 seriufinch, Serinus hortulanus does not appear to be really a common 

 bird in any part of Europe except the Spanish Peninsula, though it 

 does exist locally in France, Italy, and Germany. Since the first cap- 

 ture of this bird on the South Coast of England was effected, some 

 twenty odd years back, several examples would appear to have been 

 netted near Brighton. The male specimen now existing in the Bad- 

 cliffe Museum was professedly netted near Great Yarmouth in 1877, 

 together with a female, which won her liberty by her extreme timidity 

 and restlessness. I need not trouble you with further details on this 

 point to-day. I will only say that if any members should hear of 

 " Spanish " singing finches, they will do w 7 ell to enquire whether or 

 not the serinfinch is passing under that name, as it did in Shoreditch 

 last summer. The hawfinch is another member of the family that lias 

 increased its northern and western range of late years, though sup- 

 posed, from its shy habits and woodland haunts, to be considerably 

 more rare than is in reality the case. But the head of the Fringillina , 

 which I want you to consider chiefly to-day, is the goldfinch, Fringilla 

 carduelis of the eighteenth, Carduelis elegans of the nineteenth 

 centuries. 



It may be as well to notice that the bird for which Linnaeus 

 accepted the former title, is actually identical with the species he 

 had in view; in the case of the bullfinch and nuthatch, the birds 



*Kead before the Oxfordshire Natural History Society on the 12th January, 1881. 



