OF NEW ENGLAND. 181 
and about Lake Umbagog. They are sometimes common in 
Massachusetts during the winter, and at other times are alto- 
gether absent then, presumably in the latter case, not passing 
to the southward of their summer-range. And yet they are 
said by Wilson to have been common in Pennsylvania for a 
number of successive winters, and are known to occur occasion- 
ally on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. The most interest- 
ing fact in their Natural History is their frequent appearance 
near Boston in April and May, or even June and July, even 
when not observed in the preceding winter. Mr. Maynard 
supposes that their journeys are chiefly governed by the snow, 
* but my own observations do not altogether confirm this theory, 
which I do not think supported by the facts relative to the 
feeding of these birds, or to their appearance here, for the Pine 
Finches occasionally reach Boston in autumn, before the snow, 
and even as soon as the young are able to travel, though indeed 
these latter are rarely hatched before August. 
The Siskins may be observed in winter to wander in flocks 
from place to place, being, like their various near relations, en- 
tirely nomadic at that season. They fly in undulations like 
those of the Goldfinches, to whom they bear a very strong re- 
semblance in other ways.54 They live upon the seeds of weeds, 
and those of the several evergreens, feeding both upon the 
ground and in trees. They may often be seen clustered at the 
top of some tall pine, busied in extracting the seeds, or cling- 
ing to the cones of a spruce, with an ease which clearly indi- 
cates their habits. They are also fond of birch-seeds, which 
are highly esteemed by many of our winter-birds, particularly 
the Ruffed Grouse. They are graceful in their movements, and 
their attitudes, when feeding, are always pretty, but they are 
not such climbers as the “‘ Red-polls.” 
(d). The Pine Finches are closely allied to the Yellow Birds 
and ‘‘Red-polls” by their notes, and their sweet call is almost 
54Mr, Allen, in his ‘Winter Notes of an Ornithologist,” published in the 
* American Naturalist,” considers the Siskins swifter in flight, their notes “wilder 
and more wiry.” 
