PURPLE FINCH. 



517. Carpodacus purpureus. 6J4 inches. 



Male dull rosy red; female streaked brownish gray. 



These beautiful songsters are common in the north- 

 ern tier of states and in Canada. In Spring the males 

 are usually seen on, or heard from, tree tops in 

 orchards or parks, giving forth their glad carols. They 

 are especially musical in Spring when the snow is just 

 leaving the ground and the air is bracing. After fam- 

 ily cares come upon them, they are quite silent, the 

 male only occasionally indulging in a burst of song. 



Song. A loud, long-continued and very sweet 

 warble; call, a querulous whistle. 



Nest. Of strips of bark, twigs, rootlets and grasses, 

 placed at any height in evergreens or orchard trees. 

 The eggs resemble, somewhat, large specimens of those 

 of the Chipping Sparrow. They are three or four in 

 number and are greenish blue with strong blackish 

 specks (.85x.65). 



Range. N. A. east of the Rockies, breeding from 

 Pennsylvania and Illinois northward; winters through- 

 out the United States. 



