
204 CRIMSON-NECKED BULLFINCH. 
may be mistaken for the crimson-necked bullfinch ; two of 
these, belonging to the genus Pyrrhula, present so much 
analogy with the present species, judging from their descrip- 
tions, that we doubted the correctness of giving the latter a 
separate place, considering it identical with Pyrrhula ery- 
thrina of ’emminck, whose description agrees better with it 
than that of any other. Yet, in addition to some differences 
discoverable by comparing the crimson-necked bullfinch with 
his description, we cannot admit that an arctic bird of the 
old continent, known to visit even the more northern portion 
of the temperate climates only during very cold winters, and 
then not very regularly, should be found in the month of 
July on the sultry plains of the Arkansaw, and of course 
breeding there. We therefore conclude that our bird is not 
the erythrina, although we regret our inability to give differ- 
ential characters, having never seen that species, as our en- 
deavours to obtain a specimen have not been attended with 
success. ‘I’he southern residence of our bird might lead us to 
suppose it the Lowia (Pyrrhula) violacea, which we have not 
seen, neither do we think the species well established. But if 
we are to rely on the short description given of it, and on 
Catesby’s figure, we cannot perceive much resemblance between 
them ; their identity, however, would not much surprise us, 
when we consider that Catesby’s figure of the Pyrrhula 
violacea is as much like our bird as his figure of the purple 
finch is like what it is intended to represent. Having the 
may be readily removed by considering what bird those authors alluded 
to when they stated the erythrina to be a native of North America. 
When Latham expressed a doubt in his “ Synopsis” whether the birds in 
the neighbourhood of New York so much resembling the erythrina were 
not specifically the same, he alluded to the Fringilla purpurea: Gmelin, 
as usual, in his miserable compilation, inserted this doubt of Latham as 
a certainty. As to the crimson-headed finch of Pennant, it is evidently 
the purpurea, thus excusing, in part, the strange assertion of Wilson. 
Latham also committed an error in his index, by placing the Lozxia ery- 
thrina of Pallas and Gmelin, his own crimson-head finch, as a variety 
of Fringilla rosea. 
