390 THE BIRDS OF HELIGOLAND 



191. Linnet [BLUTHANFLING]. 

 FRLNGILLA CANNABINA, Linn. 1 



Heligolaudish : Irdisk. Name having no meaning attached to it. 



Fringilla cannabina. Naumann, v. 80. 



Linnet. Dresser, iv. 31. 



Gros-bec linotte. Teinminck, Manuel, i. 364, iii. 262. 



The capture of a ' Blood-blood-road Irdisk ' is always a source 

 of great delight to our young Heligolanders ; for, next to the Gold- 

 finch, it is everybody's favourite cage-bird. To be sure the old 

 males are at first somewhat wild and peevish, but, having once got 

 used to their new surroundings, they soon come to be highly- 

 esteemed members of the family. Though the Siskin, too, is much 

 in favour as a cage-bird, this is rather by reason of its simple 

 confiding manner and invincible good humour than on account of 

 its musical accomplishments, its song, with the almost momen- 

 tarily repeated concluding strophe, ' Friederi i Friederi i ah 

 h h,' is indeed a very modest performance ; but has at any rate this 

 merit, that by its inexhaustible vivacity it impels even the idlest 

 songsters to chime in. The Linnet not only visits Heligoland in 

 very large numbers, but does so also during a very large portion 

 of the year. It arrives with the earliest Chaffinches as soon as the 

 middle or end of August, and one is really unable to say when its 

 autumn migration actually ends ; for not only does it still continue 

 to be very numerous during October and November, but smaller 

 or larger companies are met with even in December. Nor is 

 there a pause in its occurrence at the close of the year, for it 

 may be seen again in January, being indeed specially numerous 

 during the sudden and heavy snowfalls which have been already 

 frequently mentioned as apt to occur at this season. During 

 February and March it occurs daily, in greater or smaller companies, 

 in the regular course of its spring migration. These companies 

 gradually decrease in numbers from the middle to the end of April, 

 when the spring migration terminates. 



The Linnet breeds numerously throughout the whole of Europe, 

 advancing in the north to beyond 60 N. latitude. Eastwards, its 

 breeding range extends at least to Central Asia; according to 

 Sewertzoff, it occurs both as a common breeding bird and migrant 

 as far east as Turkestan. 



1 Linota cannabina (Linn.). 



