LAZULI FINCH. 216 
This bird, which we have no hesitation in pronouncing one 
of the most beautiful of its tribe, would be placed by Vieillot in 
his genus Passerina ; but, according to my classification, it be- 
longs to the genus Fringilla, and to that American subgenus 
lately established in my “ Observations on the Nomenclature of 
Wilson’s Ornithology,” under the name of Spiza. Asa species, 
- it is more intimately allied to Pringilla ciris and Fringilla 
cyanea,* which I stated in that paper to differ so much from 
their congeners, particularly in the greater curvature of the 
upper mandible, as to deserve, perhaps, a separation into a 
small subgenus by themselves. This would unite Pringilla to 
Tanagra, as Spiza, on the other hand, shows its transition to 
Embervza. 
The lazuli finch is five inches and three-quarters long ; the 
bill is formed like that of the indigo-bird (Fringilla cyanea 
Wilson), but is emarginated near the tip, being horn colour, 
as wellasthe feet ; the irides are dark brown ; the whole head 
and neck are brilliant verdigris-blue; the back is brownish 
black, intermixed with blue, and a little ferruginous brown ; 
the rump is pure verdigris-blue ; the superior portion of the 
breast is pale ferruginous; the lower part of the breast, the 
belly, and inferior tail-coverts are white; the smaller wing- 
coverts are blue; the middling coverts are blackish at base, 
and broadly tipped with white, forming a wide band across the 
wing; the greater wing-coverts are blackish, obscurely mar- 
gined with blue, and slightly .tipt with white on the exte- 
rior web, constituting a second band across the wings parallel 
to the first, but much narrower ; the primaries and secondaries 
are blackish, obscurely margined with blue on the outer web; 
the under wing-coverts are whitish, a little intermixed with 
blue; the tail is slightly emarginated, the feathers being black- 
ish, edged with blue on the outer web, and with white on the 
inner web at tip. 
The above description of this handsome bird is taken from 
* Its relation to Fringilla cyanea, considered as Emberiza, probably 
induced Say to place it under that genus, 
