THK VIRGINIAN CARDINAL. 79 



THE VIRGINIAN CARDINAL. 



Cardinalis cardinalis, LINN. 



THIS very handsome Grosbeak inhabits the Bastern United States, 

 northwards to New Jersey and the Ohio Valley, westwards to the 

 plains. The colouring of the upper surface, including the wing-coverts, 

 is brownish lake red, with ashy edges to the feathers ; the remaining 

 wing-feathers somewhat dusky, with brick-red outer webs which 

 become paler towards the tips ; front of head, crest, cheeks, and under 

 surface bright rosy scarlet ; a black patch commencing in a narrow 

 frontal band enclosing the upper mandible, expanding at the base of 

 the beak laterally, so as partly to encircle the eye and terminating 

 in a broad patch on the chin and throat ; tail feathers below rosy 

 brown, sometimes inclining to greyish ; beak orange-vermilion ; iris 

 of eye hazel ; legs dark greyish brown. Length SA inches. 



The hen is quite unlike the cock ; above pale olive-brown, paler 

 on the forehead ; the crest, outer web of primaries, greater wing-coverts, 

 centre portion of secondaries, tail feathers and thighs, brick-red ; the 

 secondaries and tail feathers broadly edged with pale olive brown ; 

 under surface of wing rosy red ; tips of primaries and tail very pale 

 brown ; quills dark brown ; cheeks, breast and sides, pale ochre brown, 

 becoming paler towards the abdomen ; a narrow frontal band, the 

 chin and throat slate-grey : legs paler than in the male. Length 8J 

 inches. 



Three races of this species have been distinguished by separate 

 names. Dr. Sharpe thus speaks of them, Catalogue of Birds, vol. 

 xii, p. 161 : "The Red Cardinals offer an instance, not very common 

 among birds, of a genus wherein the males are all nearly alike, and 

 the specific characters depend upon the female sex. The ordinary 

 species of America, C. cardinalis, is the typical form, and the others 

 can hardly be considered worthy of more than subspecific rank, as 

 in the males the difference consists in intensity of colour and a 

 slight variation in size. Those from more tropical localities appear 

 to want the grey margins to the feathers, which are always observable 

 in C. cardinalis, according to American writers, though I suspect they 



