181. 1. Carduelis tristis, _Linn._ American Goldfinch.
Bill rather slender, second and third quills longest. Male rich lemon-yellow, fading behind into yellowish-white; upper part of head, wings, and tail black; smaller coverts yellow, quills margined, and secondary coverts tipped with yellowish-white; inner webs of tail-feathers in their terminal half white. Female brownish-olive above, without black on the head; fore neck and breast greyish-yellow, the rest of the lower parts greyish-white. Young like the female, as is the male in winter.
Abundant in the Middle and Western Districts, during summer. Accidental in the Southern States during winter. Columbia River and Fur Countries. Abundant. Migratory.
American Goldfinch, Fringilla tristis, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. i. p. 20.
Carduelis Americana (Edwards), American Goldfinch, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer. v. ii. p. 268.
Yellow Bird or American Goldfinch, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 507.
American Goldfinch, Fringilla tristis, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. i. p. 172; v. v. p. 510.
182. 2. Carduelis magellanicus, Vieill. Black-headed Goldfinch.
Bill moderately stout; first and second quills equal and longest. Male with the head and throat black, back yellowish-green, rump and lower parts greenish-yellow; wings black, with two bands of yellowish-green, terminating the first row of small coverts, and the secondary coverts; a conspicuous band of yellow on the basal portion of all the quills, most of which are margined with the same toward the end; tail yellow, with the terminal half black.
Five seen in winter at Henderson in Kentucky, of which I procured two.
Black-headed Siskin, Fringilla magellanica, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. v. p. 46.
183. 3. Carduelis psaltria, Say. Arkansaw Goldfinch.
Bill moderately stout; second quill longest, third scarcely shorter. Male with the upper part of the head black; hind neck, back, and scapulars yellowish-green, spotted with greenish-brown; rump greenish-yellow; upper tail-coverts dusky, margined with yellow, as on the smaller wing-coverts; the other coverts and quills black; secondary coverts broadly tipped with pale yellow, forming a conspicuous band; quills margined with yellowish-white, all except the outer three and the inner secondaries, white toward the base; tail-feathers brownish-black, narrowly edged with whitish, and all, except the middle and lateral with a whitish space at the base, running out along the outer margin so as to form a conspicuous patch. Female similar, but without the black on the head.