Evening star., 1948-01-24
This and That
By Charles E. Trace,peH

A correspondent on Kalmia road reports
purple finch.
This is one of the most perfect of all birds,
its bright, rosy feathers shining like fire at a
feeding station.
The name purple" was given it in it's
scientific name. To most modern watchers it
will seem more rose or wine colored,
The old use of purple" in "the purple
dawn" signifying rather the rosy dawn or
morn, seems out of place nowadays.
We have investigated colors more, and
are more precise in our namings and def1ni-
tions.
Elaborate color charts and books are in exist
ence for such flowers as the gladioluses, for
instance.
These charts enable the creator of new varie-
ties in species to put the exact finger on the
color he achieves.
In turn, other growers and purchasers, too
can turn to the chart of the color he names
talking about.
Provided, of course, that he had good eye
for color, in the first place.
Some people do not; and others are truly
color blind.
We recall an enthusiastic person telling us
one day that he had "an orange-colored bird
at his feeding station.
At first we could not tell what he meant, but
when he went on to describe the bird, we
thought he must mean the cardinal.
"Is this the bird?" we asked him, showing
him colored plate of the redbird.
That's it, that's it," he said enthusiastically
The cardinal, to him, was orange.
The professional description of the purple
finch is crown, deep wine purple, more crimson
in summer; rump, paler, more pinkish wine
purple; back and shoulders, reddish-brown or
Wine-purpliSh, streaked with darker, under
parts. pinkish wine purple; abdomen, white,
etc.
The female Of the species, as the immature
male. is a plain olive or olive-grayish bird,
more olivaceous in winter, streaked with dusky.
They have none of the glorious coloring OF the
adult male
The purple finch is slightly over inches
in length, somewhat resembling the pine gros-
beak, but much brighter
The purple finch gives the impression, as
some one has well said, that it has been dipped
in pokeberry juice.
The yellow and black evening grosbeaks,
which visited the District of Columbia and
suburbs in numbers two years ago, owing to
some shortage OF natural food IN the West,
are relatives of both the pine grosbeak and the
purple finch.
The purple finch, however Is standard in
this vicinity coming in from early January
until early February, and remaining for several
weeks, to delight all who see him.
He is a visitor at feeding stations, where he
somewhat dominates the situation, but is never
vicious in any sense to other and smaller BIRDS.
They simply get out of the station when he
sails in but this is common in birdland, smaller
birds giving way to larger, and glad they are
not attacked.
In the forests of the North the purple finch
sings fine warble, or MARBLES fine song,
just as you prefer, singing as he launches him
self into the air for two or three hundred feet,
then dropping to the very branch from which
he started. He also dances around his mate
raising his wings and Tapping them gently as
he circles around, while at the same time he
sings softly.
Few bird visitors here attract more attention
than these beautiful finches. and every owner
of bird feeding station In the suburbs should
be en- the watch for them.