THE HABITS OF THE AMERICAN GOLDFINCH. 



(Spinus iristis.) 



The names Goldfinch and Wild 

 Canary are applied indiscriminately by 

 the casual observer to- a score of differ- 

 ent birds. Some time ago I overheard 

 the follovv^ing conversation : 



*'Oh, what a pretty bird. Did you 

 see it?" 



"No, what was it?" 



''Why, I don't know. It had some 

 yellow on it, and was rather small," con- 

 tinued the observer. 



"Must be a Wild Canary," responded 

 the second party. 



Similar conclusions are not infre- 

 quently arrived at, when some warbler, 

 sparrow, or flycatcher chances in the 

 path of an inexperienced but enthusiastic 

 bird admirer. 



In the United States our true Gold- 

 finch, or Wild Canary, remains with us 

 the whole year, and is known in various 

 phases of plumage according to the sea- 

 sons of the year. The charming ways 

 of a devoted pair of these hardy crea- 

 tures should render them easy of identi- 

 fication at all times. 



Few farm orchards or thistle patches 

 are without a pair of these little birds. 

 The male, with a voice equal in tone and 

 quality to his beautiful plumage of black 

 and yellow, finds a warm place in the 

 heart of every bird-lover, naturalist, and 

 agriculturist. These are not the only 

 virtues possessed by the Goldfinch. He 

 is of great economic value, and the num- 

 ber of seeds of the thistle, the dandehon 

 and other noxious plants which these 

 birds destroy, is astounding. 



The female is less vivacious than her 

 mate, but she has that same sweet call 

 note, so full of expression. Their voices 

 have always impressed me as having 

 something human about them. Gold- 

 finches are fond of each other's society, 

 and on many a summer day have I 



whiled away the hours witnessing the 

 m.ovements of these birds. Their flight 

 is conducted in a peculiar, undulatory 

 manner, as both sexes dart back and 

 forth above the tree tops, whose dense 

 foliage shelters many a nest of treasures. 

 Twittering incessantly while on the 

 wing, their life appears one perpetual 

 volume of happiness. 



Spring passes and occasionally the 

 summer months elapse before the Gold- 

 finch enters into domestic duties. The 

 female is a skilled architect and her nest, 

 after one year's exposure in this climate, 

 appears more substantial than some other 

 bird structures just completed. 



During July and August, when thistle 

 down is floating in the air, the female se- 

 lects for a nesting site the crotch of a 

 fruit or shade tree, often in close prox- 

 imity to dwellings. Indian hemp, veg- 

 etable down and plant fibers are securely 

 woven and matted together, forming a 

 broad brimmed, deeply hollowed nest in- 

 to which a bountiful supply of thistle 

 down is placed. The nest is usually 

 situated within twenty feet of the ground. 

 Three to six faint bluish white eggs 

 are laid, with an average length of sixty- 

 five hundredths of an inch by forty- 

 eight hundredths of an inch in breadth. 

 The period of incubation is two weeks. 

 This species has been found nestling on 

 the tops of thistle plants, from which 

 thev often take the name Thistle Bird. 



The nest illustrating this article was 

 built in an oak shrub, five feet from the 

 ground, and was taken September i. 

 1901. At this late date incubation had 

 only commenced, and although the tim- 

 ber about the nesting site swarmed with 

 migrants passing southward. Mother 

 Goldfinch ex,pressed no anxiety over the 

 late condition of her household affairs. 

 Gerard Alan Abbott. 



