364 



Passeises.- 



-BIRDS.- 



- Fringillid.'E. 



inclies in length ; it is of a grayish-brown colour above, 

 and black beneath. It has a rather short, stout, and 

 conical bill, and the hind claw is shorter than in the 

 tj'|rical Larks. 



SMITH'S FINCH-LARK [Pijrrladauda mistralis) is 

 an abundant .species in the [ilains of Southern Africa, 

 especially about the Orange River, where it flies in 

 large bands. It has the head and all the lower surface 

 black ; the back reddish-brown, streaked v\'ith dark- 

 brown ; the wing-feathers bordered with red ; the tail 

 black, except the two middle feathers, wbich are brown ; 

 and the bill wliite. It is six inches in lengtli. 



THE CAPE SAND-LAEK [Ccrthilauda africana) is 

 an abinidant bird upon the sandy districts bordering 

 some of the bays of the Cape of Good Hope, where it 

 perches upon the summit of a sand-hill, and emits a cry 

 resembling the syllables sirli — the first much prolonged, 

 which may be beard at a great distance. In its general 

 habits this bird resembles our common lark, passing 

 most of its time upon the ground, running about and 

 picking up small seeds and insects. The female de- 

 posits lier eggs upon the ground in a small hollow 

 which she scratches at the foot of a shrub, and lines 

 with a little dried herbage and a few feathers. This 

 species is about eight inches in length, and is of a 

 brown colour above, variegated with rusty-rod and 

 white ; the lower surface is white, spotted with brown. 



THE BULLFINCH [Pijrrhiila vulgaris).— Oax Com- 

 mon BnlUinch is the type of a group of Finches charac- 

 terized by the short, stout, and somewhat compressed 

 form of their bills, of which the ridge of the ujiper 

 mandible is convex. It is an abundant species in 

 most parts of this country, frequenting wooded and culti- 

 vated districts, and often exhibiting a great partiality 

 for gardens and orchards. The Bullfinch is also a 

 well-known bird all over Europe, and is included 

 in the list of the birds of Japan. The male has the 

 bill, the head and chin, and the quill-feathers black ; 

 the greater wing-coverts black, with their tips white, 

 forming a band across the wing ; the whole of the 

 back bluish-gi'aj', and the rump white. The lower part 

 of the body is of a fine rich red colour. In the female 

 the gray of the back is tinged with brown, and the red 

 of the lower surface has a brownish-purple tint. The 

 length of the bird is about six inches. 



The food of the Bullfinch consists principally of 

 vegetable substances, and during the early spring it 

 is especially destructive to the buds of fruit-trees, 

 exhibiting a decided and very provoking preference for 

 the flower-buds. Hence, whenever it occurs in any 

 abundaiice, it is regarded as an enemy by the gardener, 

 and if left unmolested would often destroy all chance 

 of fruit for the year. In the winter it feeds on the 

 fruits ot the wild rose and hawthorn, and on other 

 fruits and seeds. The nest is not built until the begin- 

 ning of May ; it is usually placed in a thick bush or on 

 the branch of a fir-tree in a secluded situation, and is 

 composed of small twigs, lined with fine root-fibres. 

 The female lays four or five eggs of a pale-blue colour, 

 spotted and streaked with gray and purple. The 

 ordinary notes of the Bullfinch are not musical, but the 

 birds possess a remarkable talent for imitation, and 

 when tiiken young may be taught to whistle many 



tunes with considerable accuracy. Their musical 

 instruction is generally communicated by moans of a 

 bird-organ, and requires considerable time and care, as 

 the birds must be in tlie habit of hearing the tunes 

 that they are to learn constantly repeated for many 

 months, in order that they may acquire them perfectly ; 

 and at the same time, when they begin to exert 

 their own musical powers, they must be kept from 

 hearing other birds, and assisted in their recollection, 

 lest they should mix two airs together, or transpose the 

 passages in any way. Hence a good piping Bullfinch 

 necessarily fetches a high price. Great numbers of them 

 are ti'ained in Gei'many and imported into London 

 every year. 



THE PURPLE BULLFINCH [Carpodacus pnrpureus) 

 is of a dee]) crimson colour, with the wings and tail 

 black, and the belly wdiite. The female is of a browrj- 

 ish-olive, streaked with black above, and with white on 

 the head, and whitish below. The length of the bird 

 is about six inches. Tliis Finch is a native of the 

 most northern parts of America, whence it migrates 

 southwards into the more genial climate of the United 

 States in the autumn. It feeds upon the buds of trees 

 and berries. 



THE FINE GROSBEAK {PiiiicoUt €nucleatov)—V\A\e 

 14, fig. 47 — another northern .species, is found in bolh 

 hemispheres dwelling amongst the pine forests, and 

 feeding, like the preceding species, upon fruits, seeds, 

 and the buds of trees. It is a very rare occasional 

 visitor to BriUdn. The length of this bird is about 

 eight inches, and the plumage of its upper surface 

 exhibits a mixture of grayish-black and red — the dark 

 colour occupying the middle of each feather, and the red 

 the border. Tlie wing-coverts are edged and tipped 

 with white ; the throat and bi'east are bright-red, and 

 the abdomen gray. The Pine Grosbeak builds its nest 

 on a low branch of a tree, composing it of small sticks 

 and twigs, and lining it with feathers. The male lias 

 a pleasant song, and, when kept in confinement, has 

 been known to recommence singing in the evening on 

 the room being lighted up. 



THE GREENISH GROSBEAK [Spcrmophila falci- 

 roslra) is an example of a genus, including a great 

 number of South American species nearly allied to the 

 bullfinch, and characterized by the gi'eat height of the 

 bill, which has its upper ridge much curved. The 

 present species has the plumage gTeenish, darkest on 

 the back ; the wings are brown, and the lower tail- 

 coverts yellow. It is an inhabitant of Brazil, and 

 dwells usually in the vicinity of human habitations, 

 building a somewhat rude nest in the thickets, and 

 feeding principally upon fruits. 



THE CROSSBILL {Loxia curvirosira) — Plate 14, fig. 

 48. — This curious bird, which is an inhabitant of the 

 pine forests of the northern parts of both hemispheres, 

 and visits this country at irregidar intervals in the 

 autumn and winter, is remarkable for the structure of 

 its biU, which, instead of being a simple cone like that 

 of the finches in general, has both its mandibles curved 

 in such a manner that they actually cross each other 

 near the apex, and the whole bill has a peculiarly 

 twisted appearance. This somewhat anomalous form 

 of the bill, so difierent from anything we ordinarily 



