LINARIA MINOR. 



417 



entangled in the bud, but on closer inspection I found that the resinous bud 

 was acting as bird-lime. To prove this I ascended the tree, and with rny 

 Ftick broke off the part of the branch on which the bird was, and found it 

 firmly fixed by Nature's bird-lime. I released it, but so exhausted it could 

 not fly. On opening one of its wings I found the feathers so smeared 

 that flight was impossible. I rubbed the wing with earth until cleared ot 

 the adhesive matter, then released the bird, which flew away. Had I not 

 done so it would have died from starvation." 



Besides seeds it feeds on the buds of trees, and sometimes injures 

 young plantations. Its nest is small and finely made (like the 

 chaffinch's), on a low thorn or hazel bush, on the outskirts of 

 mountain woods, sometimes on alders by the side of a stream, 

 or amongst young spruce or larch firs ; but it has been got on a 

 branch 60 feet up. It is composed of fine roots, moss, and dry 

 grass, with hair inside, profusely lined with willow catkin 

 down— finer than the finest cotton; but sometimes lined with 

 hair and feathers. Eggs five, pale green, spotted with orange. 

 It is later than the others. Selby says — " From the catkin down 

 being a constant material of the nest the young are seldom able 

 to fly before the end of June." In summer the forehead, cheeks, 

 and throat of the male are black ; crown, crimson (hence its 

 name) ; back of the head, neck, fore part of the back and 

 scapulars, dark brown ; feathers edged with yellow-brown ; lower 

 part of the back, part of the neck, breast, and sides, carmine j 

 middle of the breast, belly, and under the tail coverts white, 

 tinged with rose-red ; iris, brown. Its cry is sharper than the 

 brown linnet's or twite's ; can be distinguished when flying 

 together. Flight very buoyant, with the undulating feature of 

 the genera. It is kept in cages — not so much for its song, but 

 for its gentle nature. When feeding, like the tits, it clings to 

 the thistles and twigs in all positions. In the winter of 1887- 

 1888 twenty were caught under riddles and in gins about 

 stackyards near the city, two and three at a time, and were so 

 tame as to continue pecking up the seeds under the wire 

 riddles. "When put in the cage fed at once, and hopped about 

 as if to the manner born. I saw them and admired their 

 sprightly habits. At the end of June they were as lively as 

 ever, running up and down the wires, hanging back down on 

 the top wires as if on willow twigs, never at rest, seeming to 

 prefer the wires to the spars, as if their long hooked claws were 

 made for doing so. In confinement it breeds with the canary, 

 siskin, and goldfinch. After moulting, the head, breast, and 

 rump of these caged birds became yellowish instead of red ; 

 sometimes when the sun shone on them the head assumed a 



