MOUNTAIN FINCH. 67 



retains until the next autumnal moult. Chin, throat, and 

 breast on its upper part, rich orange fawn-colour; the latter 

 is white, or yellowish white on its lower part, and on the 

 sides it is varied with blackish spots and light brown. Back 

 on the upper part, as the head and nape, but the grey 

 edges of the feathers exchanged for rust-colour; on the lower 

 part white. 



The wings extend to the width of about ten inches and 

 a half; greater wing coverts, jet black, tipped with orange 

 fawn-colour; lesser wing coverts, rich orange fawn-colour, the 

 feathers tipped with white; primaries, black, some of them 

 with narrow light-coloured outside edges, forming an oblique 

 bar when the wing is closed, and with a white spot at the 

 base; the first three wing feathers are nearly equal in length 

 and the longest in the wing, the third being rather longer 

 than the others, and the fourth feather is about an eighth 

 shorter than the third; secondaries, edged with orange fawn- 

 colour or reddish orange; tertiaries, black, broadly edged 

 with orange fawn-colour, or reddish orange. The larger 

 under wing coverts have a small tuft of elongated feathers, 

 and the lesser under wing coverts are bright yellow. Tail, 

 black, the feathers edged with buff white, the outer feather 

 on each side with a patch of dull white on the inner web; 

 the middle pair of feathers are shorter by about, but not 

 quite, half an inch than the rest, making the tail forked; 

 upper tail coverts black, the feathers having grey borders; 

 under tail coverts, white, or yellowish white; legs, toes, and 

 claws, rather light brown. 



The female is said by some to be considerably, and by 

 others only slightly, less in size than the male. Length, 

 about six inches; in the winter plumage there is over the 

 eye a streak of brownish black; it has less of the black 

 colour on the crown of the head, which is therefore more 

 brown coloured, the centres of the feathers being brownish 

 black; and on the sides it is dull brownish grey, with two 

 dark lines dividing the sides of the neck from the nape. 

 Neck on the back and sides, and nape, dull brownish grey, 

 with two longitudinal black bands behind; throat and breast, 

 dull reddish buif orange, the sides paler and unspotted; 

 back, on the upper part, blackish brown, and on the lower 

 part patched with greyish white, the feathers margined with 

 yellowish brown or grey, giving it an elegant mottled 

 appearance. 



