( * 3 ° ) 
The Painted Finch. 
T HESE Birds are both the fame ; the one not arrived at its perfedt Colour, 
and the other perfedt ; they are figur’d of the Size of Nature 5 their firfl Ap- 
pearance of Colours when they are young is very plain, being of a dark-brownifh 
Colour on their upper Sides, and lighter on their under Sides, with a Tindiure of 
green ifh Yellow. 
The upper Bird in the Plate is in its perfedt State of Colour. The Bill is Black, 
except a little Flefh-Colour at the Bafe of the lower Mandible : The Eyes are of a 
dark Hazel-Colour, the Eye-lids all round of a fine Scarlet-Colour ; the Head and 
upper Part of the Neck is of a very fine deep-blue Colour. The Back is of a fine 
yellowifh Green on the upper Part ; the lower Part of the Back and Rump is Red : 
The Wings have their leffer Covert-Feathers in the upper Parts Blue ; beneath them a 
few Orange-colour’d ; the Row of Coverts immediately above the Quill-Feathers, and 
moft of the Quills that fall next the Back are Green to outward Appearance, thofe 
Parts of the Feathers that are cover’d being Dufky 5 fome of the longer Quills that fall 
next the Belly are wholly Dufky. The Tail-Feathers are of a dufky Colour edged 
with Green. The whole under Side from the Bill to the Covert-Feathers under the 
Tail is of a very fine red Colour 3 the Legs, Feet and Claws (like thofe of other 
fmall Birds) are of a brown Colour in all their States and Changes. 
The lower Bird in the Plate is of the felf-fame Species as the Upper, but not arrived 
at its perfedt Colours : The Bill and Eyes are as in the above, but without red Eye- 
lids: The Bird appears to be wholly Blue, but on a near View the Head is of a finer 
Blue than the Body and Coverts of the Wings, which are not fo deep, and a little 
tindtured with Green. The greater Feathers of the Wings, and the Tail-Feathers 
are dufky edged with Blue without Side, and Afh-colour’d within : So that this Bird 
in its firfl State refembles a Hen Sparrow, its fecond is Blue, and its laft as the above 
defcribed, with many intermixed Stages between each of thefe. 
The Right Honourable Lady Anfon obliged me with the Sight of a Cage of thefe 
Birds, having a great Variety of Changes of Colour, which in Shape, Adtion, and 
Note, appear’d all to be the fame. They were brought from la Vera Cruz y in New 
Spai?? y by the Honourable Admiral, Knowles . Dr. Monro has confirmed to me the 
• Truth of thefe Birds changing from Blue to their perfedt Colour. Mr. Catefby has figu- 
red thefe two Birds as different Species difiindt from each other, not having tl*en dis- 
cover’d their Identity: See his Painted Finch , and his Blue Linnet , Vol. I. P. 44 and 
45 of his Natural Hijlory ^/Carolina, &c. Albinhas alfo figured this Bird in his Hijlory 
of Birds , Vol. I. P.64, but is widely miftaken in its native Place: He calls it the 
China Bull-Finch. Mr. Catejby fays, they breed in Carolina^ and generally build in 
Orange-Trees, but they leave that Country in Winter. The Spaniards call this Bird 
(in its perfedt State) Maripofa-Pintada y or Painted Butterfly . 
The 
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