SISKIN. INSESSORES. CARDUELIS. 309 



soon rendered tame, and even familiar. A near affinity ex- 

 hibited in the form of the bill, appears between the Siskins 

 and Lin aria minor (belonging to the genus Linaria), now 

 placed by Mr SWAINSON in the subfamily Coccothraustina. 



SISKIN. 



CARDUELIS SPIN us, Steph. 

 PLATE LV. FIGS. 6, 7. 



Fringilla spinus, Linn. Syst. 1. p. 322. 25 Faun. Suec. No. 237 Gmel. 



Syst. 1. p. 914. sp. 25 Lath. Ind. Ornith. 1. p. 452. sp. 65. 

 Ligurinus, Rail Svn. p. 9. A. 5 Will. p. 192. t. 46. Briss. 3. p. 65. 

 Le Tarin, Buff. Ois. v. 4. p. 221 Id. VI. 485. f. 3. male. 

 Gros Bee Tarin, Temm. Man. d'Ornith. v. 1. p. 371. 

 Siskin or Aberdevine, Br. Zool. No. 129. Arct. Zool. 2. p. 243 Will. 



(Ang.) p. 261 Albin. 3. t 76 Lewin's Br. Birds, 2. t. 82 Lath. Syn. 



3. p. 289. 58 Mont. Supp. to Ornith. Diet Bewick's Br. Birds, p. t. 



167 Shaw's Zool. v. 9. p. 467- t. 69. copy from Bewick. 



THE Siskin is only known in this country as a winter vi- occasional 

 sitant, and, as such, but at irregular and sometimes distant visitant, 

 periods. In the winters of 1820 and 1821, Northumberland 

 was visited by considerable flocks of these birds, which, du- 

 ring their stay, frequented the margins of rivers, and other 

 small streams, where the alder generally grows spontaneously 

 and in abundance, upon the seeds of which tree, and that of 

 the birch, they appeared principally to subsist. Their par- 

 tiality for this food brought them into contact with the Lesser 

 Red pole (L'maria minor), and with which they often associat- 

 ed during their visit. Since that time, I am not aware of any 

 having migrated into this part of the country, though I 

 have not remitted my search and inquiries after them in their 

 usual haunts *. The same uncertainty attends their appear- 



* Since the publication of the first edition, I can add, that for the last 

 four or five years Siskins have visited my plantations in considerable num- 

 bers both in spring and autumn. This I attribute to the abundant supply 

 of food furnished by the alder, birch, and also larch trees, as they are fre- 

 quently observed to be very busily employed about the stems of the latter. 



