6^ A PRACTICAI, HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



23. Carduelis linaria cabaret (P.L.S. Miill.)*— THE LESSER 

 REDPOLL. 



Fringilla Cabaret P.L.S. Miiller, Natursystem, Suppl., p. 165 (1776 — 



Ex Daubenton and Buffon. Europe. Restricted typical locality : 



France). 



Acanthis linaria britannica Schmiedeknecht, Wirbelt. Eur., p. 128 (1906 — 



British Isles.) 



Linota rufescens (Vieillot), Yarrell, 11, p. 146 ; Saunders, p. 191. 



Description (Plate 3). — Adult male. Winter. — Crown dark 

 glossy crimson ; nape, hind-neck, mantle, and scapulars tawny- 

 brown, streaked brown-black ; back more greyish-white streaked 

 same ; rump rosy-pink more or less concealed by buff tips and 

 less streaked than back ; upper tail-coverts dark brown, edged 

 and tipped buff ; narrow line on fore-head, lores and chin black ; 

 line over and behind eye pale buff ; ear-coverts buffish-brown ; 

 sides of neck paler greyish-buff, streaked dark brown ; cheeks 

 rosy-pink much obscured by buff tips ; throat, upper-breast, 

 and sides of lower-breast rosy-pink tipped buffish-white ; centre 

 of breast, belly, and under tail-coverts white, latter more or less 

 streaked brown and often tinged rosy-pink ; flanks buff, strongly 

 streaked dark brown and marked rosy-pink on upper pc rtion ; 

 axillaries buffish-white ; tail black-brown narrowly fringed whitish 

 on inner, and buff on outer, webs ; wings same, inner secondaries 

 with broader buff fringes on outer webs ; greater and median 

 coverts black-brown, broadly tipped buff ; lesser coverts same 

 but narrowly tipped buffish-brown. This plumage is acquired 

 by complete moult in Sept.-Oct. N.B. — ^Amount of rosy-pink 

 on rump and under-parts varies individually. Pink is re- 

 placed by golden-yellow very rarely in wild birds, but usually in 

 captive ones after moulting. Summer. — -No moult. By abrasion 

 of fringes and tips of feathers, upper -parts gradually become less 

 tawny more dark brown, fringed greyish-white especially on nape, 

 hind-neck, centre of mantle, and back ; sides of neck greyish- 

 white, streaked dark brown ; flanks same with more pink showing ; 

 all pink very much brighter and more extensive ; tips to wing- 

 coverts smaller and paler. 



Adult female. Winter. — Like adult male but generally no 

 pink (very rarely a slight tinge) on under-parts or rump, tliroat 

 and upper-breast being buff streaked dark brown on sides ; black 

 of cliin sometimes rather more extensive than in male ; tips to 

 wing-coverts generally rather paler. Summer. — No moult. 

 Abrasion has same effect as in male. 



Nestling. — ^Down, greyish ; distribution, inner supra-orbital, 

 occipital, humeral, spinal, ulnar, femoral, ventral, and crural. 

 Mouth, inside carmine, no tongue-spots, gape wliite (C. B. 

 Ticehurst, Brit. B., n, p. 193). 



* The name cabaret is forty years older than rufescens. — E.H. 



