GOLDFINCH, Fringilla carduelis, or eardueNs elegans, a pretty little bird of the family' a favorite cage-bird, on account of its soft and pleasing song, its intelligence, its liveliness, and the attachment which it forms for those who feed and caress it. The genus carduelis is distinguished by a thick conical bill, without any bulging, attenuated and very sharp at the tip.. There are two groups, and one British species of each— a group with gay plumage and more prolonged bill, of which the goldfinch is the Brit ish representative, and another with darker plumage and shorter bill, represented by the aberdevine (q.v.) or siskin. The goldfinch is about 5 in. in entire length; black, blood-red, yellow, and white are beautifully mingled in its plumage. The colors of the female are duller than those of the male. It is widely diffused throughout Europe, and is found in some parts of Asia. It is a common bird in Britain, more abundant in England than in Scotland, but somewhat local. It is to be seen in small flocks qn open grounds, feeding on the seeds of thistles and other plants, and in the earlier parts of the season frequents gardens and orchards. Its nest is made in a tree, bush, or hedge; is
remarkable for its extreme neatness, and is always lined with the finest downy material that can be procured. The eggs are four or five in number, bluish white, with a few spots and lines of pale purple and brown. The goldfinch is much employed by bird catchers as a call-bird. It can be trained to the performance of many little tricks; that which, most of all, the trainers seem to prefer being the raising of water for itself as from a well, in a bucket the size of a thimble.—The AMERICAN GOLDFINCH (F. or a tristio is very similar to the European species, has very similar habits and song, and dis plays the same interesting liveliness and affectionateness in domestication. The nest is also of the same elegant structure. It is a common bird in most parts of North America.