Crossbills ; American Goldfinches 835 



of evergreen trees. Between five and seven inches in length, they are distinctly 

 arboreal birds, possessing many of the actions and characteristics of small 

 Parrots, as they climb about and hang in all sorts of positions, making almost 

 equal use of bill, feet, and wings. In color the adult males are dull red, with 

 the wings and tail black or dusky, the former with or without white bands. 

 The females and immature males have the red replaced by olive-greenish and 

 yellow. These birds frequent mostly the dense coniferous forests, feeding 

 largely on the seeds of the pine, spruce, etc., but also to some extent on insects 

 and their larvae. The typical or Common Crossbill (L. curvirostra) is a native 

 of northern Europe, and is represented by a number of subspecies or closely 

 allied forms south to western Africa, and thence east to Japan and south to the 

 Himalayas and China, being represented in the New World by three fairly 

 well marked geographic races, which combined carry it over the entire Nearctic 

 region except in the warmer parts, and southward to the high mountains of 

 Guatemala. The American Crossbill (L. c. minor] so called differs from the 

 typical form merely in its smaller size and darker coloration, and is at home 

 throughout practically the whole of northern and eastern North America. Nor- 

 mally, they prefer the northern evergreen forests, but usually they are very 

 erratic wanderers with the loosest of home ties, and under the apparent impetus 

 of a scant food supply may invade far districts, and, oblivious of such unusual 

 surroundings, may linger indefinitely in the "foreign land," and may even rear 

 their young there. They go about in flocks and ordinarily show but little fear 

 of man. "When feeding they have a short, whistled call note; they take wing 

 in a body, and their undulating flight is accompanied by a sharp clicking or 

 whistling note. The song is described as ' varied and pleasing, but not powerful 

 or in any respect remarkable.'" They nest in coniferous trees, usually at no 

 great height from the ground, constructing a nest of twigs, rootlets, moss, feathers, 

 etc. ; they lay three or four eggs which are greenish white spotted with brown. 

 The White-winged Crossbill (L. leucoptera), distinguished at once by its pinkish 

 coloration and two conspicuous white wing-bars, is a native of northern North 

 America and western Europe, but in general habits does not differ essentially 

 from the other species. 



American Goldfinches. Remembering the vast number of forms compris- 

 ing this family, we must perforce pass with the briefest mention such as the 

 Leucostictes, large, essentially terrestrial Finches of the colder parts of eastern 

 and central Asia and western North America; the Redpolls, or Linnets (Acan- 

 this}, small, streaked, red-capped, and often rosy-breasted Finches of the northern 

 part of both hemispheres; the Goldfinches (Carduelis) of the Palsearctic region; 

 the Siskins (Spinus}, small, arboreal, mainly black and yellow Finches of the 

 Palsearctic and Nearctic and Neotropical regions, and the American Goldfinches 

 (Astragalinus\ the best-known of which is the familiar Thistle-bird, Yellow- 

 bird, or Wild Canary (A. tristis] of eastern North America. The latter is a per- 

 manent resident and abundant throughout practically all of its range, going 

 about in small flocks with a peculiar undulating flight. "Few birds," says 

 Chapman, "seem to enjoy life more than these noisy rovers Every month 



