[Illustration]
Loxia pyrrhula, LINNÆUS; Le Bouvreuil, BUFFON; Der Gimpel,
BECHSTEIN.
This is one of the indigenous tame birds which is a favourite with the
rich and noble. Its body is thick and short. Its whole length is six
inches and three quarters, of which the tail measures two and three
quarters; the beak is only six lines in length, short, thick, and black;
the iris is chestnut-coloured; the shanks eight lines high, and black;
the top of the head, the circle of the beak, the chin, and beginning of
the throat, are of a beautiful velvet black; the upper part of the neck,
the back, and shoulders, deep grey; the rump white; the under part of
the neck, the wide breast, and to the centre of the belly, are of a fine
vermilion, less bright, however, in the young than old; the blackish
pen-feathers become darker towards the body; the secondaries have the
outer edge of an iron blue, which in the hinder ones is reddish. The
tail is rather forked, and of a brilliant black, tinged with iron blue.
The female is easily distinguished from the male, for what is red on him
is reddish grey on her, while her back is of a brownish grey, and her
feet are not so black; she is also smaller.