CHAFFINCH (Fringilla coelebs)

This article appears in Volume V05, Page 800 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

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CHAFFINCH (Fringilla coelebs) , the common English name of a bird belonging to the family Fringillidae (see FINCH), and distinguished, in the male sex, by the deep greyish blue of its crown feathers, the yellowish green of its rump, the white of the wing coverts, so disposed as to form two conspicuous bars, and the reddish brown passing into vinous red of the throat and breast. The female is drab, but shows the same white markings as the male, and the

young

males resemble the females until after the first autumn moult, when they gradually assume the plumage of their sex. The chaffinch breeds early in the season, and its song may often be heard in February. Its nest, which is a model of neatness and symmetry, it builds on trees and bushes, preferring such as are overgrown with

moss

MOSS

and lichens. It is chiefly composed of

moss

MOSS

and wool, lined internally with grass, wool, feathers, and whatever soft material the locality affords. The outside consists of moss and lichens, and according to Selby, " is always accordant with the particular colour of its situation." When built in the neighbourhood of towns the nest is somewhat slovenly and untidy, being often composed of bits of dirty straw, pieces of

paper

PAPER
PAPER (Fr. papier, from Lat. papyrus)

and blackened moss; in one instance, near Glasgow, the author of the Birds of the West of

Scotland

found several postage-stamps thus employed. It lays four or five eggs of a

pale

PALE (through Fr. pal, from Lat. palms, a stake, for paglus, from the stem pag- of pangere, to fix; " pole " is from the same original source)

purplish buff, streaked and spotted with purplish red. In

spring

SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

the chaffinch is destructive to early

flowers

FLOWERS, ARTIFICIAL

, and to

young

radishes and turnips just as they appear above the surface; in summer,, however, it feeds principally on insects and their larvae, while in autumn and winter its food consists of grain and other seeds. On the continent of Europe the chaffinch is a favourite song-bird, especially in Germany, where

great

GREAT

attention is paid to its training.
CHAFING-DISH (from the O. Fr. chaufer, to make warm}, a kind of portable grate heated with charcoal, and used for cooking or keeping food warm. In a light form, and heated over a spirit. lamp, it is also used for cooking various dainty dishes at table. The employment of the chafing-dish for the latter purpose has been largely restored in modern cookery.

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