72 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



fringes; fore-head darker; nape more greenish, much streaked black- 

 brown ; mantle and scapulars yellowish -brown, broadly streaked 

 black-brown ; back yellow, streaked greenish- 

 black ; rump bright greenish-yellow ; upper 

 tail-coverts dark brown fringed green and 

 tipped grey ; lores whitish ; ear - coverts 

 greenish-brown, tinged grey ; chin, throat, Y\^'^^=^s^-<^^ 



and centre of breast bright greenish-yellow ; \',.'^^^'^ -f 



sides of breast and flanks pale buff, boldly 



streaked black - brown ; under tail - coverts ^"'" <*^"'^"* " *^'^'*"*'- 

 same but with few streaks ; centre of belly uniform whitish-buff ; 

 axUlaries white, fringed pale yellow^ ; tail black-brown, tipped and 

 fringed on inner webs whitish, on outer webs yellowish-green ; 

 wing-feathers same but inner secondaries with browner fringes and 

 larger white tips ; greater coverts with yellowish-buff tips ; median 

 same but tips more yellowish ; lesser coverts with yellowish -green 

 tips. This plumage is acquired by complete moult in autumn. 

 Summer. — No moult. Abrasion makes all yellow parts much 

 brighter, fore-part of crown becoming uniform yellow ; mantle 

 and flanks more markedly striated ; green fringes wear off tail 

 and wings and tips to wing-coverts become paler. 



Adult female. Winter and summer. — Resembling male but 

 much less yellow and more striated, crown and nape only tinged 

 yellow, thickly streaked dark greenish-brown ; mantle browner, 

 less yellowish ; rump paler ; eye-stripe yellowish-white ; throat 

 and breast much paler yellow (sometimes greyish- white, only 

 tinged yellow) and streaked dark brown. 



NesUing. — (Not examined.) 



Juvenile. — Upper-parts including upper tail-coverts brownish- 

 buff, streaked dark brown ; rump paler, streaked same ; under- 

 parts pale yellowish-buff closely streaked brown, chin and centre 

 of belly uniform pale yellowish-buff ; inner secondaries and all 

 wing-coverts black-brown, fringed and tipped buff. 



First unnter and summer. — Apparently like adults. The 

 juvenile body-feathers, wing-coverts, and inner secondaries are 

 moulted in autumn but not other remiges or rectrices. 



Measurements and structure. — (^ wing 66-74 mm., tail 42-49, 

 tarsus 11-13, bill from skull 7-9 (14 measured). $ wing 64-71. 

 Primaries : 1st minute and hidden, 3rd and 4th equal and 

 longest, 2nd and 5th 1-3 mm. shorter, 6th 6-9 shorter ; 3rd to 

 5th emarginated outer webs. Secondaries equal 10th primary, 

 square tipped very slightly notched. Tail forked. Bill wide, 

 thick and short. Short feathers directed forwards over nostrils 

 and at gape. 



Soft parts. — Bill dark horn, under mandible pale horn ; legs 

 and feet dark brown ; iris black -brown. 



Characters and allied forms. — Serinus c. germnnicus (Germany) 



