FRINGILLIU.K — THE KI NCI IKS, 455 



anfl liecame of a jivi'ciiisli-vellnw. Tii ^Liy and Juno, its sont;, tlioujili 

 not so loud as that of sonii; liirds, was i-xircniely <'k'ar, nu'Uow, and sweet. 

 Tliis sonj;' it warbled out lor the wliole niornin<f, and also imitated the notes 

 of a Cardinal, that hun.u' near it. II liecaiiiu exeeedin^dy tame and laniitiar, 

 and when in want of loud or water, uttered a eontinual melanelioly and 

 anxious note. 



In the winter of IR'M], and for several i'ollowino; seasons, tliese lards were 

 exceedingly abundant in tlie vieinity of lioston. Tliey a[)]ieared early in 

 Decendier, and remained until (piite late in ^lareh, I'eeding ehieily cai the 

 berries of the red cedar. They were .so un.su.specting and iamiliar that it was 

 often possilile to capture them alive in butterfly-nets, and to knoek them down 

 with poles. Large numbers were destroyed and brought to market, and many 

 were taken alive anil caged. They were tame, but uidiap]iy in confinement, 

 uttering mournful cries as the warm weather ajtproaclied. In the winter 

 of 1S(V,l-70 they again made tlieir appearance in extraowlinary nundicrs, 

 in a few localities on the sea-coast of Massachusetts, where they ilid con- 

 siilerable damage to the fruit-buds of the ajtple and ]iear. 



Sir John Jtichardson states tjait this bird was not observed by his ex])cdi- 

 tion higher than the (JOtli parallel. Itlives, for the most part, a very retired 

 life, in the deepest recesses of the pine forests, where it passes the entire 

 year, having been found by Mr. Drage, near York Fort, on the '2Mh of Janu- 

 ary, 1.747. INchardson adds that it Iniilds its nest on tin; hjwer branches of 

 trees, and feeds chielly on the seeds o( tlie white spruce. 



J)r. Cones speaks of it as not at all rare along the coast of T-abrador, where 

 he obtained several specimens. It was confined entirely to the thick woods 

 and patches of scrubby Juin])er. A female ri'mained unconcernedly on a 

 twig after he hail shot her mate, uttering continually a low soft s/h/i, like 

 that of the Fox-colored S])arrow. Another note Mas a jn-olonged whirring 

 chirrup, uttered in a rather low tone, apjiarently a note of recognition. 



A lady resident in Xewfcamdland informed Mr. Aiidulion thai she had 

 kept several of these (Irosbeaks in confinement, that they soon became very 

 familiar, would sing during the night, feeding, during the summer, on all 

 kinds of fruit and berries, and in the winter on different seeds. Mr. Audu- 

 bon also often observed that, when tiring at one of their number, the others, 

 instead of Hying away, would umve towards him, often to within a few feet, 

 and remain on the U)wer liranciies of tiie trees, ga/ing at him in curiosity, 

 entirely unmingled with any sense of their own dangiir. Mr. Audulmn ip\'ites 

 from Mr. ^leCuIloch, of I'ictou, an iutere.sting account of the habits of one 

 of these birds, kept in confinement. The winter had been very severe, the 

 storms violent, and, in con.seiiucnce of the depth of snow, many birds had 

 l)erished frcmi hunger and cold. The (irosbeaks, driven from the woods, 

 sought food around the barns and outhouses, and crowded the streets of 

 I'ictou. One of these, taken in a starving ciaidition, soon became .so lame as 

 to feed from his hand, lived at large in his chamber, and would awaken him 



