Char. Bill short, stout, vaulted; the culmen decurved towards the end; the commissure nearly straight to the slightly decurved end. A slight development of bristly feathers along the sides of the bill, concealing the nostrils. Tarsus shorter than the middle toe; lateral claws reaching to the base of the middle one. Claw of hind toe much curved, smaller than the middle one, and rather less than the digital portion. Wings long and pointed, reaching to the middle of the tail, which is considerably shorter than the wing, and moderately forked. Colors red, or red and brown. Female with the red replaced by brown.
The genus Carpodacus, including the American Purple Finches, is composed of species the males of which are more or less red in full plumage, while the females are brown-streaked. They are spread over North America, and species also occur in considerable numbers in Northern Europe and Asia.
Species and Varieties.
A. Culmen only slightly curved. Tail and wing feathers edged with reddish in the male.
a. ♂. Crown much brighter purple than the rump or throat. ♀. Without lighter superoral and maxillary stripes, the whole head being pretty uniformly streaked.
1. C. cassini. ♂. Crown bright crimson; rest of head, breast, rump, etc., much lighter purple-pink; lower tail-coverts with a shaft line of dusky. Hab. Mountain regions of the Middle Province, south, through the table-lands and alpine regions of Mexico, to Mirador.
b. ♂. Crown scarcely brighter purple than the rump or throat. ♀. With conspicuous superoral and maxillary stripes.
2. C. purpureus. Crown purple; rest of head, breast, rump, etc., nearly similar in tint; lower tail-coverts without dusky shaft-lines.
Purple tints of a rosy carmine cast; first quill longer than the fourth. Hab. Eastern Province of North America … var. purpureus.
Purple tints of a darker purplish-rose cast; first quill shorter than the fourth. Hab. Pacific Province of North America … var. californicus.