452 



The Goldfinch. 



breeding season commences. Some, however, migrate ; 

 Seebohm states that some Goldfinches go southwards in the 

 autumn, joining the companies of migrants from Northern 

 Europe that pass these islands, but a considerable number 

 remain throughout the winter. The Goldfinch is found in 

 Scotland and Ireland, though it is there more local and not 

 so generally distributed as in England. It breeds in all 

 European countries ; in Norway, according to Seebohm, as 

 far north as lat. 65 deg., but in the Ural mountains only as 

 far as lat. 60 deg. It is also found in the Canary Islands, 

 Madeira, and North-West Africa, and visits Egypt in the 

 winter. . This bird is protected in Germany, and highly 

 considered ; Ritzema Bos says it is a most valuable bird to 

 ag-riculturists. I'he French call it Chardomicret because of 

 its fondness for thistles, and it is held by French cultivators 

 to be most useful and in no way injurious to crops of any 

 kind. 



The male bird is slightly larger than the female, being 

 about five inches in length. The head is black on the crown, 

 with a band of black reaching half way on each side of the 

 neck, while the nape of the neck is white, and the forehead and 

 throat a lustrous crimson. The upper parts of the body are 

 brown of various hues ; the upper tail coverts are greyish- 

 white, and the lower tail coverts bluish-black, w^ith white 

 markings on some of the outer feathers. The wings are 

 blue-black, having broad bars and borders of brilliant 

 golden-yellow. The under part of the body is mostly dull 

 white with brownish and fawn coloured shades, and the legs 

 are of a light red with brown claws. The female has not 

 so much crimson colour on the head a.nd throat, and its 

 colours generally are not so brilliant as those of the male. 



The eggs of the Goldfinch, which are usually laid by the 

 2oth of May, are, as a rule, five in number, though sometimes 

 there are only four. They are greenish-white in colour, with 

 purple-brown spots, especially at the upper end. A favourite 

 place for the nest is an apple tree, but several other kinds 

 of trees and bushes are sometimes selected, such as the 

 beech, chestnut, poplar, yew, laurels and other evergreens, 

 shrubs of several kinds, low bushes, and whitethorn hedges. 



