THE PURPLE FINCH. 173 



it feeds on the berries of the Virginian juniper, commonly called the red 

 cedar; and when the berries fall to the ground, it alights to secure them. Dr. 

 Bachman has kept it in aviaries, where it became very fat, silent, and only 

 uttered its usual simple feeble note. After moulting, the males assumed the 

 plumage of the females. The next spring a very slight appearance of red 

 was seen, but they never recovered their original brilliancy, and it was 

 difficult to distinguish the sexes. It breeds sparingly in the northern parts 

 of the State of New York. In June 1S37, I met with three pairs, within a 

 few miles of Waterford, that evidently had nests in the neighbourhood. 



Palate gently ascending; upper mandible considerably concave, with three 

 prominent lines, of which the two lateral are much larger; mandibles nearly 

 equal in breadth, the lower deeply concave. Width of mouth 5 twelfths. 

 Tongue 5 twelfths long, sagittate and papillate at the base, much compressed, 

 being higher than broad, channelled above, the channel becoming somewhat 

 dilated toward the end, and approaching to that of the Pine Grosbeak and 

 the Crossbills. (Esophagus 2 inches 2 twelfths in length, its greatest width 

 4 twelfths. Stomach 5| twelfths long, \\ twelfths broad; its lateral muscles 

 of moderate size, the epithelium tough and longitudinally rugous. Contents 

 of stomach, seeds of various sorts. Intestine S| inches long, its width from 

 1^ twelfths to | twelfth; cceca \ twelfth long, \ twelfth broad, 9 twelfths 

 distant from the extremity. 



Trachea 1 inch 1\ twelfths long, flattened, nearly 1 twelfth in breadth; 

 the rings 66 and 2 additional; bronchial rings 12; muscles as usual in this 

 family; as are the salivary glands. 



Male, 6, 9. 



During winter, from Texas to the Carolinas, and northward to Kentucky. 

 In summer, from St. Louis to the Columbia, and in the Fur Countries. 

 Abundant. 



Purple Finch, Fringilla purpurea, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. i. p. 119. 



Purple Finch, Bonap. Syn., p. 114. 



Fringilla purpurea Wilson, Crested Purple Finch, Swains, and Rich. F. Bor. Amer., 



vol. ii. p. 264. 

 Purple Finch, Fringilla purpurea, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. i. p. 24; vol. v. p. 500. 



Adult Male. 



Bill shortish, robust, bulging, conical, acute; upper mandible with its 

 dorsal outline a little convex, under mandible with its outline also slightly 

 convex, both broadly convex transversely, the edges straight to near the 

 base, where they are a little deflected. Nostrils basal, roundish, open, 

 partially concealed by the feathers. Head rather large. Neck short and 

 thick. Body full. Legs of moderate size; tarsus of the same length as the 



Vol. III. 30 



