FEMALE INDIGO FINCH. 
449 
indies and three quarters in length, and nearly seven in ex- 
tent. The bill is small, compressed, and less than half an inch 
long, is blackish above, and pale horn colour beneath ; the 
irides are dark brown ; above she is uniformly of a somewhat 
glossy drab ,* between the bill and eyes, and on the cheeks, 
throat, and all the inferior parts, of a reddish clay colour, much 
paler on the belly, dingy on the breast, and strongly inclining 
to drab on the flanks, blending into the colour of the back, the 
shafts of the feathers being darker, giving somewhat of a streak- 
ed appearance ; the whole base of the plumage is lead colour ; 
the wings and tail are of a darker and less glossy brown, each 
feather being edged with lighter, more extended on the se- 
condaries, and especially the wing-coverts ; the wings are two 
inches and a half long, not reaching, when folded, beyond the 
tail-coverts ; the first primary is subequal to the fourth, the 
second and third being longest ; the three outer, besides the 
first, are greatly attenuated on the outer web, half an inch from 
the point, where it is extremely narrow ; the tail is two inches 
in length, and but slightly emarginated ; the feet are dusky, 
the tarsus measuring three-quarters of an inch. 
The male, after his autumnal moult, exhibits pretty much 
the same dress, except being more or less tinged with bluish. 
We shall here observe, that we do not believe that the indi- 
vidual kept by Wilson in a cage through the winter, in which the 
gay plumage did not return for more than two months, formed 
an exception to the general law, as he supposed. We have 
no doubt that this circumstance is characteristic of the species 
in its wild state. 
The young strongly resemble the female ; the drab colour 
is, however, much less pure and glossy, being somewhat in- 
termixed with dusky olive, owing to the centre of the feathers 
being of the latter hue. Consequently, during the progress 
from youth to adolescence, and even during the two periodical 
changes, the plumage of this bird is more or less intermixed 
with drab, blue, and white, according to the stage of the moult- 
ing process, some being beautifully and regularly spotted with 
VOL, III, 2 F 
