FEMALE ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK. 
439 
whence it was first received in Europe, recent observations, 
and the opinion of Wilson, had rendered this doubtful, and it 
was believed to be altogether an Arctic bird, averse to the 
warm climates of the Southern States, and hardly ever appear- 
ing even in the more temperate. Its recent discovery in Mexico 
is, therefore, a very interesting and no less remarkable fact, 
and we may safely conclude that this bird migrates extensively 
according to season, spending the summer in the north, or 
in the mountains, and breeding there, and in winter retiring 
southward, or descending into the plains ; being, however, by 
no means numerous in any known district, or at any season, 
though perhaps more frequent on the borders of Lake Onta- 
rio. Its favourite abode is large forests, where it affects the 
densest and most gloomy retreats. The nest is placed among 
the thick foliage of trees, and is constructed of twigs outside, 
and lined with fine grasses within ; the female lays four or 
five white eggs, spotted with brown. This may also be call- 
ed an evening grosbeak,” for it also sings during the so- 
lemn stillness of night, uttering a clear, mellow, and harmoni- 
ous note. 
We have placed this species in our subgenus Coccothraustes. 
It is probably because he laboured under the mistake that all 
the grosbeaks removed from Loxia had been placed in Tyr~ 
rhula by Temminck, that Mr Sabine has made it a bullfinch; 
and in truth the bill very much resembles those of that genus, 
so that the species is intermediate between the two. Mr 
Swainson places it, together with the blue grosbeak, Fringilla 
[Coccothraustes) ccerulea^ in a new genus which he calls Gui- 
raca, but without as yet characterising it. These species have, 
it is true, a bill somewhat different from that of the typical 
Coccothraustes^ (as may be seen by comparing this with the 
evening grosbeak,) being much less thick and turgid, and 
higher than broad ; the upper mandible being larger than the 
lower, and covering its margins entirely, compressed on the 
sides, making the ridge very distinct, (not rounded above,) 
and curved from the base, but at tip especially ; the margins 
