178 DWIGHT 



4. First Nuptial Plumage acquired by wear, through which 

 much of the buff is lost, the birds becoming darker and whiter 

 with the crown spot a trifle brighter to the eye, due to loss of 

 the grayish barbules of the red barbs. 



5. Adult Winter Plumage acquired by a complete post- 

 nuptial moult. The geranium-pink or rosy feathers of the 

 breast and rump are assumed. Otherwise similar to first 

 winter dress. 



6. Adult Nuptial Plumage acquired by wear through which 

 the rosy feathers appear brighter like the crown partly by loss 

 of barbules and partly by loss of the whitish edgings. 



Female. — The plumages and moults correspond to those of 

 the male, but the crown spot is duller and smaller, often bronzed, 

 and rosy breast feathers are seldom acquired. 



Acanthis linaria rostrata (Coues). Greater Redpoll 



The plumages and moults of this race correspond to those of 

 A. linaria, the subspecific characters prevailing even in the Juve- 

 nal plumage, the colors darker and the streaking somewhat 

 heavier. The adults are large, with large bills and very white 

 rumps, sometimes with rosy tints everywhere. 



Carduelis carduelis (Linn.). European Goldfinch 



The limited number of specimens examined of this introduced 

 species, now well established in Central Park, New York City, 

 forbids positive conclusions. I have not seen the juvenal 

 plumage, nor do I know the extent of the postju venal moult, 

 which undoubtedly takes place. Adults evidently have but 

 one moult annually, the postnuptial, and I believe the brighten- 

 ing of the red frontlet in spring is due to the loss of the fuzzy 

 barbules from brighter colored barbs. Descriptions from text- 

 books are unsatisfactory in solving the problems of moult, but 

 they seem to indicate the usual sequence of plumages and 

 moults in this species. 



