On the Yellowish Finch.



97



nests, but none containing eggs or young till we were just about

to leave, when my friend shouted to me that he had found a

Redshank’s nest with three young and a chipped egg. I got the

camera fixed up, and took a photo in a gale of wind and rain.

The chicks kept moving all the time, and I was quite surprised to

find that it came out fairly well. Our next find was a Lapwing’s

nest with four eggs, and just as we returned to the boat one of

the men found a Mallard’s nest, carefully lined with grass and

down, (the latter by the way is dark brown with white centres and

greyish tips), containing eight olive-green eggs. The other birds

I noted were Corncrakes, Sedge Warblers, and Reed Buntings.


Another half-hour’s row to windward brought us to our

starting place, where our car met us to take us homewards after

a most enjoyable day with the birds, our only regret being that the

weather was so unfavourable for using the camera ; but we hope

for better luck next time.



THE YELLOWISH FINCH,


Sycalis arvensis.


By Arthur G. Butter, Ph.D., etc.


This elegant little finch has received the name of “ Misto

Seed-Finch” in Sclater and Hudson’s “Argentine Ornithology.”

It is imported from time to time from Buenos Ayres, though not

in very great numbers : hitherto, as far as I have been able to

ascertain, it has not been bred in captivity. Dr. Russ, in his

‘ Handbuch ’ says very little about this bird, which he calls the

“Yellow-bellied Finch”; and, judging from his remarks, it

would appear that he never possessed healthy examples: he

describes it as “ rare in the Bird-market,” and observes that “ Dr.

Franken does not praise the song, and Sclrleehtendal character¬

izes it as particularly shrill, resembling both that of the Grass¬

hopper Warbler and that of the home-bred Serin. Gentle,

peaceable, but without character.”


From his larger work, it appears that Dr. Franken only

had one example, arrd Dr. Russ only secured a pair from Jamrach



