4G8 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



often took possession of, and was a lively and most agreeable feature in the 

 dirty towns which it hunured with its presence ; and its songs were at once 

 sweet, clear, and ex^piisitely melodious. 



Dr. Cooper met with these birds among the barren and rocky hills near 

 the Colorado. 



Mr. liidgway, who found these birds breeding in large numbers at Pyra- 

 mid Lake, intorms me that their nests were usually i»laced in clefts in rocks, 

 or in a cave. Xear Salt Lake City they were also very common, building 

 their nests among the slirubs known as the wild mahogany, on the hills, but 

 never fre(pienting the higlier regions ol" the mountains. 



The e«i:us of this bird, which are not distinguishable from those of the 

 Pacific coast form, liavc a delicate pale-blue ground-color, which is very 

 fugitive, and fades even in the drawers of a cabin(?t. They are sparingly 

 marked, chieHy around the more obtuse end, with spots and lines of black 

 and a dark l)rown. They are of oval sliape, elongate and pointed at one end, 

 and measure .80 of an inch in length by .00 in breadth. 



Carpodacus frontalis, ^ar. rhodocolpus, Caban. 



CAUFOBNIA HOUSE-FIKCH ; BED-HEADED LINNET ; BTJBION. 



i PyrrhuJti cruentata, Lkssox, Rev. Zoiil. 1839, 101. Carpodacus rhndncolpus, Cabaxis, 

 Mus, llein. lSr»l, ItXJ. — S( later, P. Z. S. 1856, 3<U. Cnpod'uus frontalis, lit»x. 

 & S(ni.E(;. Mon. clcs Lox. 1S5<», tab. xvi, f. 1. — Ib. (Vmsp. 18.^0, 533. — Baoio, Birds 

 N. All). 1858, 415 (ill jiartK — ('«mU'f.1!, Orn. Cal. I, 15fi. Home Fbuh, (Ikav.soX, 

 Ht'siK-mu, II, 1859, 7, plate. Carpoducus Jam ilia ris, Heekmaxx, X, 50 (nest). 



Sp. Char. {^ 12.1)73, Cape St. Lucas.) Head, nock, jutrulum, breast, upper part of 

 abdoint'ii and sides, and rump, briirht cannine-searlet, dullest on the centre of the crown 

 and aurifMilars ; rest of the upper parts brownish-irray, glossed with red except on the 

 winu's, which have the featliers with distinctlv litrliter edfres. Anal resrion, flanks, and 

 crissum white, the feathers with sliaft-streaks of brown. Wing, 3.00; tail, 2.00; culiuen, 

 .45; tarsus, .G2 ; middle toe, .."iO. 



Female and Jur. similar to var. froutaUs. but colors darker. 



IIab. Coast region of Pacitic Province, and iieninsula of Lower California. 



The male described above re])resent.s alx)ut the average plumage of this 

 form ; an extreme example is No. 20,040, Cai)e St. Lucas, which is almost 

 entirely of a wine-red color, this covering the whole lower parts, except the 

 anal region, and obliterating the streaks ; tlie wings even are tinged with 

 red. Still, on tlie head the red (a wine-j)urple tint) is brightest within those 

 limits to which it is confined in tlie normal plumage. 



Habits. This varietv of the House Finch is a very common bird through- 

 out the Pacific coast, from Oregon to Mexico. Mr. Kidgway states that he 

 found this s])ecies the most common and familiar of all the birds of the Sac- 

 ramento Valley. It is a very common cage-bird, being highly prized for its 

 song, which in power is hardly inferior to that of the Canary, while it far 



