THE COMMON CROSSBILL. J §9 



vania, New York, and the north-eastern States to Nova Scotia. Common. 

 Migratory. 



American Crossbill, Curvirostra americana, Wils. Amer. Orn., vol. iv. p. 44. 



Loxia curvirostra, Bonap. Syn., p. 117. 



Common Crossbill, Nutt. Man., vol. i. p. 583. 



Common Crossbill, Loxia curvirostra, Aud. Orn. Biog., vol. ii. p. 559; vol. v. p. 511. 



Adult Male. 



Bill of ordinary length, strong, convex above and beneath; mandibles 

 crossing each other and compressed towards the tips, which are incurvate 

 and acute. Nostrils small, basal, rounded, covered by the small incumbent 

 feathers of the forehead. The general form is compact and robust, the head 

 and neck large. Feet rather short, strong; tarsus short, compressed, ante- 

 riorly scutellate, sharp behind; toes separated, the two lateral nearly equal, 

 and considerably shorter than the middle one; claws compressed, very acute, 

 curved, the hind one largest. 



The plumage is blended, but rather firm. Wings of ordinary length, 

 curved, acute, the first and second primaries longest. Tail short, small, 

 emarginate. 



Bill brown, horn-colour on the edges, and darker at the tip. Iris hazel. 

 Feet dusky. The general colour of the plumage is a dull light red, inclining 

 to vermilion, darker on the wings. Quills and tail-feathers brownish-black; 

 the red colour is paler on the lower parts, and on the belly passes into 

 whitish. 



Length 7 inches, extent of wings 10; bill along the ridge yV, tarsus ^. 



Young Male after the first moult. 



At this age the colours of the male are paler and duller, but are similarly 

 distributed. There is an admixture of yellow tints on the back, and more 

 especially on the rump. 



Young Male fully fledged. 



In its second plumage the young male is of a dull green colour, mixed 

 with brown above, greyish-yellow, tinged with green beneath, the sides of 

 the head over the eyes greenish-yellow, and the rump and upper tail-coverts 

 of the same colour. 



Adult Female. 



The upper parts are greyish-brown, tinged with green, the rump dull 

 greyish-yellow; the sides of the head and neck of the same colour as the 

 back; the under parts pale greyish-yellow, brighter on the fore part of the 

 breast. 



Young Female fully fledged. 



Vol. III. 32 



