AMERICAN GOLDFINCH 273 



Aug. 28, 1856. A goldfinch twitters away from every 

 thistle now, and soon returns to it when I am past. I 

 see the ground strewn with the thistle-down they have 

 scattered on every side. 



April 19, 1858. I hear the pine warbler there, and 

 also what I thought a variation of its note, quite differ- 

 ent, yet I thought not unfamiliar to me. Afterwards, 

 along the wall under the Middle Conantum Cliff, I saw 

 many goldfinches, male and female, the males singing 

 in a very sprightly and varied manner, sitting still on 

 bare trees. Also uttered their watery twitter and their 

 peculiar mewing. In the meanwhile I heard a faint 

 thrasher's note, as if faintly but perfectly imitated by 

 some bird twenty or thirty rods off. This surprised me 

 very much. It was equally rich and varied, and yet I 

 did not believe it to be a thrasher. Determined to find 

 out the singer, I sat still with my glass in hand, and at 

 length detected the singer, a goldfinch sitting within 

 gunshot all the while. This was the most varied and 

 sprightly performer of any bird I have heard this year, 

 and it is strange that I never heard the strain before. 

 It may be this note which is taken for the thrasher's 

 before the latter comes. 



Aug. 9, 1858. Edward Bartlett shows me this morn- 

 ing a nest which he found yesterday. It is saddled on 

 the lowest horizontal branch of an apple tree in Abel 

 Heywood's orchard, against a small twig, and answers 

 to Nuttall's description of the goldfinch's nest, which 

 it probably is. The eggs were five, pure white or with 

 a faint bluish green tinge, just begun to be developed. 

 I did not see the bird. 



