88 THE CONDOR Vol. XXIV . 
a single red male among them; this rarely, if ever, occurs with Lovia, or Car- 
podacus. Of five breeding pairs seen in the season of 1920, only one was a red 
male. In the others the sexes were indistinguishable. 
Okanagan Landing, British Columbia, March 3, 1922. 
THE ALEUTIAN ROSY FINCH 
By G. DALLAS HANNA# 
With ONE PHOLSe 
HE RANGE of the Aleutian Rosy Finch (Leucosticle griseonucha) is 
di. rather extensive, since it has been found from Kodiak Island west through 
the Aleutian Islands as far as the Commander group, 1000 miles away. 
It is also found on the Pribilof and the Mathew groups, 200 and 400 miles, re- 
spectively, farther north. The species has always been extremely rare wher- 
ever I have met with it, except on the Pribilof, or Fur Seal, Islands. When 1] 
landed there in 1913 it was nesting in the village and on the eliffs in consid- 
erable numbers. ; 
The beautiful song of the male was new to me then, and it seemed the 
most attractive feature of the desolate place. It is excelled by the sone of no 
other species on these islands, and is rivalled there only by that of the Alaska 
Longspur and of the Pribilof Snow Bunting. 
The annual eycle of the Aleutian Rosy Finch possesses considerable inter- 
est because of several unique features. A convenient starting point in an ac- 
eount of it would be Aueust 31, when the last birds have hatched out and 
practically all have flown. The autumnal molt then begins, and with this the 
beautiful song is replaced by a rather commonplace chirp of ordinary finch 
character. 
These birds gather in loese flocks, even in the height of the breeding sea- 
son; in the fall the flocks become larger and more compact. It is no uncommon 
sight in fall or winter to find fifty birds feeding on a single patch of ‘‘pooch- 
kie’’ (Heraculum) heads, and during veriods of especial abundance I have seen 
as many as a hundred ata time. Although the seeds of many plants are eaten, 
those of the ‘‘wild parsnip’’ comvose by far the greater part their diet. These 
seeds are well filled with oil, being similar in that resvect to sunflower seeds. 
and must provide much fuel, to enable the birds to withstand the vigorous Are- 
tic gales so common in that latitude. 
There is very little change in the coloration of the adults with the assumnp- 
tion of the winter plumage. and the voune of the year are indistinguishable 
from the older birds by late fall. One of the most striking results of the 
change of season from summer to winter is in the color of the mandibles. Jn 
summer these are dead black. but winter turns them to a brilliant lemon vyel- 
*Contribution from the California Academy of Sciences. 
