Some British 
Finches. 
(hi) 
THE BIRD WORLD. 
wonderful. In confinement he can be 
taught to pipe a tune deliciously, and, no 
doubt, from this comes the term 
“Piping Bullfinches.” He is altogether a 
splendid cage bird, and much sought 
after by keepers of British birds. He 
will also breed in the cage with the 
Canary, the young of the pair being 
known as mules. (See Canary-Bullfinch 
Hybrids in Bird World Magazine of 
January.) I would here point out there 
is a Bullfinch known in the trade as the 
“ Siberian Bullfinch,” which is a much 
bigger bird than our native Bullfinch. 
Bullies Deadliest Knemy. 
The deadliest enemy the pretty Bull¬ 
finch has is the gardener, and I would 
here beg reference to the old animosity 
that exists between the fruit grower and 
the Bullfinch. Now, the gardener main¬ 
tains that the Bullfinch destroys his 
berries, which, of course, cannot be 
denied, but I am of opinion that it is 
more owing to the grubs which are to be 
found in these berries, that the Bullfinch 
destroys the fruit, and, again, I would 
ask, does the gardener never prune his 
bushes? Many feasible arguments have 
been put against this sad question by 
many of our present-day writers, but I 
fear to very little effect, as the Bullfinch 
is still harassed by the gardener and his 
shot gun, wherever he may appear, and 
whenever the gardener may get an oppor¬ 
tunity, and, further, I consider it only 
fair to argue that the Bullfinch be 
examined at other times of the year, and 
not solely at the time of the ripening 
fruit, and would point out, as already 
explained, that the Bullfinch is a 
destroyer of injurious insects, and surely 
this should make a counterbalance, and 
if there is any doubt in the matter, I feel 
inclined to give the bird the benefit of 
this. 
Harassed by Bird-Catchers. 
The Bullfinch is also harassed by bird- 
catchers, being, as already noted, a very 
suitable cage bird, and bird-catching is 
a practice which cannot be stamped out, 
especially so as there is an evergrowing 
demand for Bullfinches, so one can 
easily understand that between the 
gardener and his shot gun, and the bird- 
catcher, the multiplication of the bird is 
seriously interfered with, and it is with 
great regret that I learn of the evergrow¬ 
ing scarcity of the Bullfinch about our 
shires, for I am sure that the Bullfinch 
is indeed a valuable bird to the agricul¬ 
turist as an insect destroyer, and worthy 
of every protection afforded it. 
A Queer Sparrow. 
I would also mention I, on one occa¬ 
sion, happened to see a couple of Bull¬ 
finches (male and female), as part of the 
bag of a Sparrow Club, and how the 
members of these Sparrow Clubs come to 
class the Bullfinch with the much- 
harassed Sparrow I am at a loss to 
understand. Surely the question is one 
worth studying, and I trust that what I 
have said on the matter will be sufficient 
to induce my readers to study the bird 
in the true naturalist’s spirit, and not in 
that of bloodshed. In conclusion, I 
would draw my readers’ attention to the 
supplement of the Bird World of 
December last of the Bullfinch, which 
will give them a better description 
of the bird than merely a dry descrip¬ 
tion on paper. There we see him 
perched beside his sitting mate, on a 
branch covered with blossoms, and his 
being coloured, is very life-like. Next 
on my notebook comes the:— 
Goldfinch (Carduelis elegans). 
Known also as Goldie, Thistle Finch, 
Goldspink, King Harry Redcap, Proud 
Tailor, Red-fronted Thistle Finch, etc.) 
the young being known in some localities 
as Grey Pates or Grey Heads. Like 
the bird previously dealt with (Bullfinch) 
the Goldfinch is most conspicuous about 
the head, the front of which being deep 
or blood red, hence the term “ Red- 
fronted Thistle Finch,” and he has also 
been called the “ Seven-coloured Linnet.” 
He is the most handsome of his family, 
and has been termed the most beautiful 
of British birds, and there can be no 
doubt he rightly deserves his title. In 
