PASSERINE. 1 99 



\\'c suljdiviile them first into 



The Weavers {Ploceu^, Cuv.), — 

 The hcak of ^vbic^l is so large that some of them have been classed witli the Cassicans ; hut the 

 slraightness of its commissure distinguishes that of the latter, and the upper mandiljle is moreover slightly- 

 bulging. These birds are found in both continents, and the greater number of those of the eastern 

 hemisphere are rcniarl<ably skilful ncst-huilders, wiiich interweave blades of grass, a circumslaiice 

 from which they derive their name. 



Such is the rhilippiue AVeaver-hird (Loxia Phll'ipp'ma, Lui.).— Yellow, spotted with brown ; throat black. Its 

 sphericnl pensile neit is entered by a vertical canal, -ivliich communicates with a lateral opeiiing- of the ca\lty 

 wherein the ei^ifs are deposited. 



Some of them build a vast number of coutig;uous nests, which form a sint^lc mass divided into numerous com- 

 partments ; as 



The Social Weaver-bird {Loxia aoc'ia, Lath.) 



Among those of America, ["which liavc been very properly separated, first into 

 The BoBALiNKS {Dohjchoi-i}j.r, Swainson) — 

 AVhich have stiff pointed tail-feathers], we may distinguish 



The Rice-bird of the United States (Orhhts vigcr and orizivonix, and Corriix suriuamciixi-v, Gr^.), innmnorahle 

 flocks of which devastate the cultivated fields of several of the warmer jmrts of tliat continent. 



Nomeuclators have not yet succeeded in reducinp: to order the various black birds of America, more or less allied 

 to the Cassicans, [near which the Bobalinks should be also placed]. 



THii Sparrows {Pijrgifa, Cuv. [Pff^vcr, Eay] ) 

 Have tlie beak rather shorter than in the preceding, conical, and merely a little bulged towards the 

 point. 



[There are five species in Europe, of which two inhabit Britain ; the House Sparrow (Frinq. dmiiesfica, Lm.), 

 and the Tree Sparrow (F. mon!a»a, Lin.), — which latter has a maronne-coloured head, witli the chin, anri a spot 

 on each side of the neck, bhick, its pluniag:e heiws; precisely alike in both sexes, and even the nestling young-, and 

 corresponding in its general character with that of the adult male only of the others Tiiere are several more, all 

 peculiar to the eastern hemisphere. The beak is always black in summer, horn-colour in winter. 



AVe have observed that the common House Sparrow, like most other birds that nestle upon buildings, (as the 

 Starling, Jackdaw, Rook, Pi(?eon, Swallow, &:c.), breeds in considerable numbers in the clifl's along the sea-coast, 

 which is doubtless its aboriginal nesting-place.] 



The CiiAFFiN'OHES {FringiUa, Cuv.) — 

 Have the beak less arcuated than in the Sparrows, stouter and more elongated than in the Linnets. 



There are tin-ee in Europe. Tlie Comnmn Or White-winged Chaffinch {Fring. ccclehs, Lin.) ; the Mountain 

 Chaffinch, or Bra?nljHng (F. nwnfi/rinpil/a, Lin.), [which visits Britain in winter] ; and the Snow-finch (F. niva/is, 

 Lin.), which nestles in the high Alps, and descends only in the depth of winter to the secondaiy ranges. [This 

 bird, now generally rankin;f as the Moniifringilla yi'walis of Brchm, absolutely resembles the Common Snowfleck 

 in all but the shape of its beak, which latter even becomes quite black in summer, as in that species : it atl'ords, 

 accordingly, one of the ver>' numerous proofs that the value of the form of the bill, as a zoological character indi- 

 cative of affinity, has been much over-estimated by systematists. In the true Chaffinches, the bUl turns dark 

 bluish in summer]. 



The Goldfinci-ies {Carduclis, Cuv.) — 

 Have an exactly conical beak, without any bulging ; the tip prolonged to a sharp point. 



[There are two groups of them, characterized by plumage, and a slight dltTerence of habit ; in the first, the 

 colouring is gay, the beak pale flesh-coloured in summer, and its point further attenuated. These are more parti- 

 cularly designated Goldfinches. 



But two are known, the common European species (C elegans), and another in the Himmalaya mountains of 

 Asia (C. caniceps, Gould). The first is well known as a pleasing songster. 



Tlie rest have a shorter bill, and less elongated form ; the plumage variegated black and yellow, with always a 

 black crown. They are commonly termed Siskins. Of numerous species, two only inhabit Europe, and one the 

 British islands {F. sj'i/ius, Lin.).] 



The Linnets (Linario, Bechst. [Lino/a, Bonap.] ) 

 Have also an exactly conical bill, but which is less elongated. 



In some, however, its tip is comparatively dra^Mi out. [These are generally known as Jledpoles ; of which there 

 are several species, not easy to discriminate : two occur in Britain — the Common or Small Redpole {F, minor, Lin.), 

 and the Mealy or Stone Redpole {L. canescens, Gould), which latter is larger and stouter, with a whitish rump, 

 that is scarcely tinged with the pink so conspicuous in the other. 



