FRINGILLA. SPODIOGENTS. 103 



Straits, as Capt. S. Reid in 1884-85 found many in the Tzelatza 

 Valley ; whilst Mr. Meade- Waldo informs me that in the spring 

 of 1892 he saw immense numbers, far more than of the next 

 species. Throughout Andalucia where there are trees this 

 bird is as common as in England, being most abundant in winter, 

 when the residents are outnumbered by the migrants. They 

 appear on the Rock as early as the 12th of August, but I did 

 not detect them remaining to nest, although quantities breed 

 in the Cork-wood and all the wooded valleys of the neighbour- 

 hood, usually laying about the end of April ; but in 1894 I 

 found a nest touching the ground on the Sierra Retin, which 

 contained young about a week old, on the 25th of March. 



Adult male. Forehead black ; head slate-grey ; back rufous ; ear- 

 coverts and underparts vinous red ; rump olive-green. Two white bars on 

 wing. 



Male in winter. Duller, the slate-grey feathers having brown tips, and 

 the white on wings is tinged with yellow. 



Female. Head and back ashy brown ; below pale brown ; rump yellowish 

 green. In winter is browner, and the white on the wings has yellow tinge. 

 Length 6 inche.. 



109. Fringllla spodiog-enys, Bonaparte. The North- African 

 Chaffinch. 



Moorish. Birdon, Bird61. 



This Chaffinch is common and resident in Morocco. The 

 nest and eggs resemble those of our Common Chaffinch, but the 

 harsher note is very distinct. 



Mr. Meade-Waldo found them fairly common in evergreen 

 scrub, and says that they frequented more wooded ground 

 than the last species, in the spring of 1892. There is no record 

 of their occurrence on the Spanish side of the Straits. 



The adult male is to be distinguished from F. coelebs by the back being 

 yellowish green, and by the throat and breast being light yellowish buff. 

 Length G inches. 



The females are similar to those of the Common Chaffinch. 



