This bird is so well and generally known that no detailed description is necessary. The female may be distinguished by her more slender bill and brownish shoulders, (lesser wing coverts). In the adult male the shoulders are jet black, but young males sometimes show traces of brown.
The young, known as “grey pates,” are greyish brown on the upper parts and lack the characteristic markings on the head. The true Russian Goldfinches are rather larger in size and have a nearly white rump. The true “Siberian Goldfinch,” which is seldom or never imported, lacks the black on the head. Length 5 in.; wing 3 in. Many of the Goldfinches sold by dealers as Russian and Siberian are merely large fine birds of our native species, probably imported from abroad.
GOLDFINCH
Carduelis elegans
Male (left). Female (centre). Young (right)
There are various varieties known to dealers as cheverels, bastard cheverels, pea-throat, etc., which differ from the usual form in having the throat white or partially so. They sometimes command a higher price, as they are said to have a finer song, but this is by no means necessarily the case.
THE SISKIN
Carduelis spinus (Linnæus)
Though nearly allied to the Goldfinch, this bird is very different in appearance, being much smaller and of a yellowish green with black markings. Scotland is its chief home, where it lives among the fir-trees, making excursions daily into the open country to seek its food. In winter it wanders through our islands, but is never very abundant and always irregular in its visits. It has occasionally nested in fir plantations in the South of England, but it is only in the north-east corner of Scotland that it may be considered a common breeding species. The nest is placed near the top of a fir-tree or at the end of a lateral branch at some distance from the ground. The materials are similar to those used by the Goldfinch, and the eggs also bear a close resemblance to those of that species, but are slightly smaller. It has a pretty little song, rather more melodious and varied than that of the Goldfinch, and when courting will frequently rise in the air and slowly descend with fluttering wings and outspread tail. Aphides, when in season, form a large portion of their diet, and from this point of view they prove themselves of great service to man; for the rest, any seed or berry is eaten, but from their habit of seeking their food in the open the seeds of weeds and grasses are chiefly consumed.
The general colour above is greenish yellow streaked with black, except for the rump, which is brighter and unstreaked. The head is darker and there is a yellow superciliary stripe. The quills and wing coverts are black with yellowish margins. Tail feathers yellow with broad black tips. Chin black, upper breast bright greenish yellow; rest of under parts yellowish streaked with black, especially on the flanks. The female is much duller, the prevailing tint being greyish green streaked with dull brown. The black chin of the male is a variable feature. Length 4·6 in.; wing 2·8 in.
THE CITRIL FINCH
Chrysomitris citrinella (Linnæus)
The Citril Finch inhabits the mountainous regions of Central and Southern Europe, migrating southwards in winter. A specimen was taken alive in January 1904 near Yarmouth.