CHAFFINCH. 511 
Madeira, as it has been seen by Mr. Charles Darwin, 
and another observer, as far west as Terceira, one of the 
Azores. 
The adult male in summer has the beak bluish lead 
colour, with a tinge of purplish red on the under surface of 
the under mandible ; the feathers over the base of the upper 
mandible black; the irides hazel; top of the head and 
nape of the neck dark bluish grey; back chestnut ; wings 
almost black; smaller wing-coverts white; the greater 
wing-coverts black at the base, tipped with white, the two 
sets of wing-coverts forming two conspicuous white bars ; 
all the quill-feathers dusky black, with narrow lighter- 
coloured edges, the tertials with broader margins of buffy 
white ; rump and upper tail-coverts yellowish green; the 
two middle tail-feathers greyish black, the next three on 
each side nearly black ; the outer tail-feather on each 
side white, with a narrow stripe of dusky black at the 
base and at the tip; the next feather on each side dusky 
black, with a triangular patch of white on the inner web; 
the tail is very slightly forked; the cheeks, ear-coverts, 
chin, throat, breast, and flanks, a rich reddish brown, 
becoming paler on the belly and under tail-coverts ; legs, 
toes, and claws, brown. 
The whole length of the bird six imches. From the 
carpal joint to the end of the wing, three inches and three- 
eighths ; the first quill-feather a little longer than the fifth ; 
the second, third, and fourth feathers equal in length, and 
the longest in the wing. 
The female has the upper surface of the body more 
mixed with dull brown, producing considerable uniformity 
of colour; the under surface is also of a dull fawn colour ; 
the two white bars on the wings are rather less con- 
spicuous. 
