166 
ARCTIC GROUND-FINCH. 
riorly with .seven scutella, ; toes rather large, scutellate above, the first 
stronger, the lateral nearly equal, the third and fourth connected at the base. 
Claws rather long, moderately arched, slender, compressed, laterally grooved, 
acute. 
Plumage full, soft, and blended. Wings of ordinary length, the fourth 
quill the longest, the third and fifth next and nearly equal, the second shorter 
than the sixth, the first seven and a half twelfths of an inch shorter than 
the fourth. Tail long, rounded, of twelve strong feathers. 
Bill brownish-black. Iris red. Feet and claws reddish-brown. The 
general colour of the plumage is black, that colour extending over part of 
the breast, the sides and lower tail-coverts orange-red, the central part of the 
breast and abdomen white, the feathers of the tibiae dusky, margined with 
whitish. An elongated patch on the outer web of all the scapulars ; a small 
terminal spot of the same on the first row of small coverts and on the 
secondary coverts, and a large patch at the end of the inner web of the 
outer three tail-feathers on each side, white. 
Length to end of tail 8-J inches, bill along the ridge x \, along the edge 
of lower mandible T 8 ^; wing from flexure 31 ; tail 4 t 2 j ; tarsus 1 T \ ; hind 
toe r S 2 , its claw T 4 ^ ; middle toe fl> its claw r \. 
Adult Female. 
The female is smaller. The parts which are black in the male, are black- 
ish-grev, which on the fore part and sides of the neck is tinged with reddish- 
brown. In other respects there is not much difference in the plumage. 
Length to end of tail 8 inches ; bill along the ridge r \ ; wing from flexure 
; tail 4 ; tarsus 1 ; hind toe f-i, its claw ^ ; middle toe T 8 |-, its clawf^. 
The male above described was shot by Mr. Townsend on the Columbia 
river, on the 14th of May, 1835 ; the female on the 11th of October, 1834. 
In form, size, and colour, this bird is most closely allied to the Towhe 
Finch, Fringilla erythrophthalma of Linnaeus, from which, however, it is 
at once distinguishable by the spots of white on the scapulars and wing- 
coverts which are wanting in that species. The latter on the other hand has 
a patch of white on the basal part of the outer webs of the primaries, that 
part being black in the present species. 
