320 
FINCHES, SPARROWS, ETC. 
KEY TO ADULT MALES. 
1. Throat with black patch. lawrencei, p. 323. 
1 '. Throat without black patch. 
2. Back yellow. 
3. Body pale yellow. Rocky Mountain plateau . pallidus, p. 321. 
3'. Body bright yellow. 
4. In winter, browner, with broader wing markings. Pacific coast. 
salicamans, p. 321. 
4'. In winter less brown, with narrower wing markings. East of 
Rocky Mountains to Atlantic coast .... tristis, p. 320. 
2'. Back olive green or black. 
3. Back without black. Rocky Mountains to California. 
psaltria, p. 322. 
3'. Back wholly or partly black. 
4. Back and ear coverts solid black. Mexico and Central Texas. 
mexicanus, p. 322. 
4'. Back or ear coverts mixed with olive green. Colorado and New 
Mexico to Pacific.arizonae, p. 322. 
529. Astragalinus tristis (Linn.). Goldfinch. 
Adult male in summer. — Whole body canary yellow, in sharp contrast to 
black crown, wings, and tail; wings with white bars and tail feathers with 
white patches. Adult female in summer: upper parts olive brown, some¬ 
times tinged with green or gray; wings and tail dull blackish brown; 
white markings duller; under parts grayish white, more or less tinged 
with yellow. Adult male in winter: similar to female in summer, but 
wings and tail deep black, broadly and clearly marked with white. Adult 
female in winter: similar to summer plumage, but more tinged with 
brownish, white markings broader and more tinged with buffy. Young: 
similar to winter adults, but browner, wing markings and general suffusion 
cinnamon ; shoulder patch mixed with black instead of unicolored as in the 
male. Male: length (skins) 4.26-4.79, wing 2.78-2.96, tail 1.71-2.02, bill 
.38-.41. Female: length (skins) 4.27-4.76, wing 2.59-2.79, tail 1.56-1.84, 
bill .37-41. 
Distribution. — Breeds in Transition and Upper Sonoran zones from the 
southern British Provinces south to Kentucky and Kansas, east of the 
Rocky Mountains ; winters south to the Gulf of Mexico. 
Nest. —A neat cup-shaped structure of compactly woven plant fibers, 
lined with down and other soft materials; placed in tall bushes or low 
trees. Eggs: 3 to 5, plain pale bluish or bluish white. 
Food. — Largely weed seed. 
The goldfinches, or wild canaries, as they are popularly called in 
their many forms, if not as cultivated songsters as their caged rela¬ 
tives, have much sweeter call-notes and a happy round of their own. 
Their indolent lisping notes have a tinge of sadness, but as they 
raise their heads from a thistle or sunflower to give them, and then 
flit lightly off and go sauntering in undulating flight through the 
air the gentle-spirited birds seem as light-hearted as butterflies. 
In their home life they are among the most charming of birds, 
being tender, devoted mates and watchful parents. 
