CHRTS0MITRI8. 431 



6. Chrysomitris mexicana. 



Carduelis mexicanus, Sw. Phil. Mag. new ser. i. p. 435 ' ; Wagl. Isis, 1831, p. 525 ^ 

 'Chrysomitris mexicana, Bp. Consp. Av. i. p. 516'; Baird, U. S. Bound. Siirv. ii.. Birds, p. 14*; 



Scl. P. Z. S. 1856, p. 303 ^ 1858, p. 303 ^ 1859, pp. 365', 380'; Scl. & Salv. Ibis, 1859, 



p. 19"; 1860, p. 34"; P. Z. S. 1864, p. 353 ''; Lawr. Ann. Lye. N. Y. vii. p. 332"; ix. 



p. 103"; Duges, La Nat. i. p. 140"; Sumiehrast, Mem. Bost. Soc. N. H. i. p. 550"; Salv. 



Ibis, 1869, p. 314 " ; P. Z. S. 1870, p. 190 " ; Cat. Strickl. CoU. p. 214 " ; Grayson, Pr. Bost. 



Soc. N. H. xiv. p. 282 " ; Boucard, P. Z. S. 1883, p. 445 ". 

 Astragalinus mexicanus, Cab. Mus. Hein. i. p. 159 '^ ; J. f. Orn. 1861, p. 7 ^^ 

 Astragalinus columUanus, Cab. J. f. Orn. 1861, p. 94''^ 



Chrysomitris columbianus, Lawr. Ann. Lye. N. Y. ix. p. 103 ^ ; Frantz. J. f. Orn. 1869, p. 302 ". 

 Fringilla melanoooantha, Licht. Preis-Verz. Mex. Vog. p. 2 (cf. J. f. Orn. 1863, p. 56^°), 

 Chrysomitris psaltria, Bp. Consp. Av. i. p. 516 ". 

 Chrysomitris psaltria, var. mexicana, Baird, Brew., & Ridgw. N. Am. B. i. p. 478 "' ; Lawr. Mem. 



Bost. Soc. N. H. ii. p. 278 '\ 



Supra ohalybeo-nigra, speculo alari et secundariis intends in pogonio extemo ad apicem albis, cauda nigra, 

 reotricibus tribus utrinque extemis in pogonio intemo medialiter albis; subtus omniao flava; rostro 

 flavido, culmine ad apicem fusco, pedibus oorylinis. Long, fcota 4-2, alae 2*5, caudsB reot. med. 1-6, lat. 1'8, 

 rostri a rictu 0*4, tarsi 0*5. (Descr. maris ex Quezaltenango, Guatemala. Mus. nostr.) 



$ supra olivacea, alis et cauda fusois olivaceo limbatis ; subtus a gula ad pectus paUide olivaceis, ventre flavo. 

 (Descr. feminse ex Coban, Guatemala. Mus. nostr.) 



Hah. Mexico, Rio Grande valley, Santa Catarina in Nuevo Leon, Agua Nueva in 

 Coahuila, Parras (Couch ^), Tres Marias Islands {Orayson^^, Forrer), Guanajuato 

 {Dug^s ^% Temiscaltepec, Eeal del Monte (Bullock ^), Jalapa (de Oca ^), Oaxaca ^, 

 Totontepec (Boucard^), Orizaba (Sumichrast'^% Cordova (8alle% Yucatan 

 (Gaumer ^o) ; Guatemala (Comtanda ^ ^^), Duenas ^^, San Geronimo, Coban (0. S. & 

 F. D. G.); Costa Eica (Hoffmann, v. Frantzius^% San Jose (v. Frantzius ^^), 

 Barranca (Carmiol ^^) ; Panama, Veraguas (Arc6 "), Lion Hill (M'Leannan ^ ^^). 



Throughout Mexico and Central America C. mexicana is very constant in its colours ; 

 in the male the whole upper surface is black, and the lateral tail-feathers have a large 

 white spot on their inner webs. In the north-western portion of South America birds 

 with these characteristics are also found, but with them in some parts of Colombia 

 birds occur in which the white spots of the tail show a tendency to disappear, whilst in 

 others the tail is wholly black. These latter birds have been called C. colomhiana, but 

 they are not specifically distinguishable from C. mexicana. In North America a Siskin 

 called C. psaltria by Say occurs in the Southern Eocky Mountains to the Pacific ; in this 

 bird the whole of the upper surface of the body is olive colour instead of black, the 

 vertex and upper tail-coverts alone being black. On comparing typical specimens of 

 C. mexicana and C. psaltria the difi'erence between the two is very obvious indeed; but 

 in Arizona birds in every intermediate form of plumage have been found, and this has 

 led American ornithologists, after giving this Arizona bird the name of C. arizonce, to 

 treat both it and C. mexicana as races of C. psaltria. From the fact of the great 



