CHAFFINCH. 301 



each feather being edged with yellowish gray, 

 giving the latter colour to those parts where the 

 feathers he close. From above the eyes, along 

 the back of the neck, the gray prevails, and two 

 dark streaks appear which break the uniformity. 

 The lower back and rump are pure white, and 

 in flight this mark is conspicuously seen, and 

 serves at once to point out the Mountain Finches 

 from any other birds with which they may be 

 associated. The wings are brownish black, the 

 quills narrowly edged with yellow, and having a 

 white spot at the base. The secondaries are edged, 

 and the greater coverts are tipped with reddish 

 orange. Scapulars and lesser coverts also reddish 

 orange, the latter inclining to golden orange. 

 Tail black, edged with gray, and in form con- 

 siderably forked. Chin, throat, breast, and under 

 tail coverts, pale reddish orange, still paler on 

 the flanks, where the tips of the feathers are 

 streaked with grayish black. Belly and vent 

 pure white. The axillary feathers rich golden 

 yellow. The female, in size, is slightly less, and 

 is less vivid in the tints and separation of the 

 markings. 



THE CHAFFINCH, FRINGILLA CALEBS. 

 Fnngilla ccelebs, Auct. Chaffinch of British 

 authors. This Finch, also a bird of great beauty 

 in its full summer garb, is one of our most com- 

 mon and equally distributed species, frequenting 

 almost every locality which can boast of a mode- 



