See also:

• CROSSBILL (Fr. Bec-croise, Ger. Kreuzschnabel)

CROSSBILL (Fr. Bec-croise, Ger. Kreuzschnabel)  , the name given to a genus of birds, belonging to the See also:

• FAMILY

family Fringillidae, or finches, from the unique peculiarity they possess among the whole class of having the horny sheaths of the See also:

• BILL

bill See also:

• CROSSING

crossing one another obliquely,' whence the appellation Loxia (XoE6s, obliquus), conferred by See also:

• GESNER
• GESNER, ABRAHAM (1797-1864)
• GESNER, JOHANN MATTHIAS (1691—1761)

Gesner on the See also:

• GROUP

group and continued by See also:

• LINNAEUS

Linnaeus . At first sight this singular structure appears so like a deformity that writers have not been wanting to See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

account it such,' ignorant of its being a piece of mechanism most beautifully adapted to the habits of the See also:

• BIRD

bird, enabling it to See also:

• EXTRACT (from Lat. extrahere, to draw out)

extract with the greatest ease, from See also:

• FIR

fir-cones or fleshy fruits, the seeds which See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form its usual and almost invariable See also:

• FOOD
• FOOD (like the verb " to feed," from a Teutonic root, whence O. Eng. foda; cf. " fodder "; connected with Gr. lrareicOae, to feed)

food . Its mode of using this unique See also:

• INSTRUMENT (Lat. instrumentum, from insincere, to build up, furnish, arrange, prepare)

instrument seems to have been first described by Townson (Tracts on Nat . Hist., p . 116, See also:

• LONDON

London, .1799), but only partially, and it was See also:

• YARRELL, WILLIAM (1784–1856)

Yarrell who, in 1829 (Zoo' . Journ., iv. pp . 457-465, pl. xiv. See also:

• FIGS

figs . 1-7), explained fully the means whereby the jaws and the muscles which See also:

• DIRECT

direct their movements become so effective in riving asunder cones or apples, while at the proper moment the See also:

• SCOOP (from M. L. Ger. or M. Du. schope, cf. Du. schoep, a bailing vessel, Ger. schopfen, and, from M. Du. schoppe, Ger. Schuppe, shovel)

scoop-like See also:

• TONGUE (O. Eng. lunge)

tongue is instantaneously thrust out and withdrawn, conveying the hitherto protected See also:

• SEED (from the root seen in Lat. serere, to sow)

seed to the bird's mouth . The See also:

• ARTICULATION (from Lat. articulare, to divide into joints)

articulation of the mandible to the quadrate-See also:

• BONE (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages, in many of which it is confined to the shank of the leg, as in the German Bein)
• BONE, HENRY (1755-1834)

bone is such as to•allow of a very considerable amount of lateral See also:

• PLAY

play, and, by a particular arrangement of the muscles which move the former, it comes to pass that so soon as the bird opens its mouth the point of the mandible is brought immediately opposite to that of the maxilla (which itself is movable vertically), instead of crossing or overlapping it—the usual position when the mouth is closed . The two points thus See also:

• MEETING (from " to meet," to come together, assemble, 0. Eng. metals ; cf. Du. moeten, Swed. mota, Goth. gamotjan, &c., derivatives of the Teut. word for a meeting, seen in O. Eng. Wit, moot, an assembly of the people; cf. witanagemot)

meeting, the bill is ' This peculiarity is found as an accidental malformation in the crows (Corvidae) and other See also:

• GROUPS
• GROUPS, THEORY

groups; it is comparable to the monstrosities seen in rabbits and other members of the See also:

• ORDER
• ORDER (through Fr. ordre, for earlier ordene, from Lat. ordo, ordinis, rank, service, arrangement; the ultimate source is generally taken to be the root seen in Lat. oriri, rise, arise, begin; cf. " origin ")
• ORDER, HOLY

order Glires, in which the incisor See also:

• TEETH (O.E. Eel); plural of tooth, O.E. top)

teeth grow to an inordinate length . ' A See also:

• MEDIEVAL

medieval See also:

• LEGEND (through the French from the med. Lat. legenda, things to be read, from legere, to read)

legend ascribes the conformation of bill and coloration of plumage to a divine recognition of the bird's pity, bestowed on See also:

• CHRIST (Gr. X pLQTOS, Anointed)
• CHRIST, WILHELM VON (1831-1906)

Christ at the crucifixion.inserted between the scales or into the pome, but on opening the mouth still more widely, the lateral See also:

• MOTION (Lat. motio, from movere, to move)
• MOTION, LAWS OF

motion of the mandible is once more brought to See also:

• BEAR
• BEAR, BLACK
• BEAR, BROWN
• BEAR, GRIZZLY
• BEAR, ISABELLINE
• BEAR, WHITE

bear with See also:

• GREAT

great force to wrench aside the portion of the See also:

• FRUIT (through the French from the Lat. fructus; frui, to enjoy)

fruit attacked, and then the See also:

• ACTION

action of the tongue completes the operation, which is so rapidly performed as to defy See also:

• SCRUTINY (Fr. scrutin, Late Lat. scrulinium, from scrutari, to search or examine thoroughly)

scrutiny, except on very See also:

• CLOSE
• CLOSE (from Lat. clausum, shut)
• CLOSE, MAXWELL HENRY (1822-1903)

close inspection . Fortunately the birds soon become tame in confinement, and a little See also:

• PATIENCE

patience will enable an attentive observer to satisfy himself as to the See also:

• PROCESS

process, the result of which at first seems almost as unaccountable as that of a See also:

• CLEVER

clever See also:

• CONJURING

conjuring See also:

• TRICK

trick .

The See also:

• COMMON

common See also:

• CROSSBILL (Fr. Bec-croise, Ger. Kreuzschnabel)

crossbill of the Palaearctic region (Loxia curvirostra) is about the See also:

• SIZE

size of a skylark, but more stoutly built . The See also:

• YOUNG
• YOUNG, A
• YOUNG, ARTHUR (1741-1820)
• YOUNG, BRIGHAM (1801-1877)
• YOUNG, CHARLES MAYNE (1777–1856)
• YOUNG, EDWARD (1683–1765)
• YOUNG, JAMES (1811-1883)
• YOUNG, THOMAS (1773-1829)

young (which on leaving the See also:

• NEST

nest have not the tips of the bill crossed) are of a dull See also:

• OLIVE (Olea europaea)

olive See also:

• COLOUR (Lat. color, connected with celare, to hide, the root meaning, therefore, being that of a covering)

colour with indistinct dark stripes on the See also:

• LOWER

lower parts, and the quills of the wings and tail dusky . After the first See also:

• MOULT

moult the difference between the sexes is shown by the hens inclining to yellowish-See also:

• GREEN, A
• GREEN, ALEXANDER HENRY (1832—1896)
• GREEN, DUFF (1791—1875)
• GREEN, JOHN RICHARD (1837—1883)
• GREEN, MATTHEW (1696-1737)
• GREEN, THOMAS HILL (1836-1882)
• GREEN, VALENTINE (1739–1813)
• GREEN, WILLIAM HENRY (.1825–1900)

green, while the cocks become diversified by See also:

• ORANGE
• ORANGE (Citrus Aurantium)
• ORANGE, HOUSE OF

orange-yellow and red, their plumage finally deepening into a See also:

• RICH, BARNABE (c. 1540-1617)
• RICH, CLAUDIUS JAMES (1787-1821)
• RICH, JOHN (1692-1761)
• RICH, PENELOPE, LADY (c. 1562–1607)
• RICH, RICHARD, 1ST BARON RICH (1490?-1567)

rich See also:

• CRIMSON

crimson-red, varied in places by a See also:

• FLAME (Lat. flamma; the root flag- appears in flagrare, to burn, blaze, and Gr. d, XEryew)

flame-colour . Their glowing hues, are, however, speedily lost by examples which may be kept in confinement, and are replaced by a dull orange, or in some cases by a See also:

• BRIGHT, JOHN (1811-188g)
• BRIGHT, SIR CHARLES TILSTON

bright See also:

• GOLDEN

golden-yellow, and specimens have, though rarely, occurred in a See also:

• WILD, JONATHAN (c. 1682-1725)

wild See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state exhibiting the same tints . The cause of these changes is at See also:

• PRESENT

present obscure, if not unknown, and it must be admitted that their sequence has been disputed by some excellent authorities, but the See also:

• BALANCE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. bilantia, an apparatus for weighing, from bi, two, and lanx, a dish or scale)

balance of See also:

• EVIDENCE (Lat. evidentia, evideri, to appear clearly)

evidence is certainly in favour of the above statement . De-pending mainly for food on the seeds of conifers, the movements of crossbills are irregular beyond those of most birds, and they would seem to rove in any direction and at any See also:

• SEASON (0. Fr. seson, seison, mod. saison, Lat. satio, sowing time, the spring, from serere, to sow; in Late Lat. the word is found with its present meaning, the spring being considered as particularly the season of the year)

season in quest of their See also:

• STAPLE

staple sustenance . But the pips of apples are also a favourite dainty, and it is recorded by the old chronicler See also:

• MATTHEW, GOSPEL OF ST
• MATTHEW, ST (MaOOaior or MarOaIos, probably a shortened form of the Hebrew equivalent to Theodorus)
• MATTHEW, TOBIAS

Matthew See also:

• PARIS
• PARIS (also called ALEXANDROS)
• PARIS, ALEXIS PAULIN (1800-x881)
• PARIS, BRUNO PAULIN GASTON (1839-1903)
• PARIS, FRANCOIS DE (169o-1727)
• PARIS, LOUIS PHILIPPE ALBERT
• PARIS, TREATIES OF (1814-1815)

Paris (Hist . Angl . MS. fol . 252), that in 1251 the orchards of See also:

• ENGLAND
• ENGLAND, THE CHURCH OF

England were ravaged by birds, " pomorum grana, & non aliud de eisdem pomis comedentes," which, from his description, " Habebant autem partes rostri cancellatas, per quas poma quasi forcipi vel cultello dividebant," could be none other but crossbills . See also:

• NOTICE

Notice of a like visitation in 1593 is recorded, but of See also:

• LATE

late it has become evident that not a See also:

• YEAR

year passes without crossbills being observed in some See also:

• PART

part or other of England, while in certain localities in See also:

• SCOTLAND
• SCOTLAND, CHURCH OF
• SCOTLAND, EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF

Scotland they seem to breed annually . The nest is rather rudely constructed, and the eggs, generally four in number, resemble those of the See also:

• GREENFINCH (Ger. Griinfink), or GREEN LINNET

greenfinch, but are larger in size .

This See also:

• SPECIES

species ranges throughout the See also:

• CONTINENT (from Lat. continere, "to hold together "; hence " connected," " continuous ")

continent of See also:

• EUROPE

Europe,' and occurs in the islands of the Mediterranean and in the fir-See also:

• WOODS, LEONARD (1774-1854)
• WOODS, SIR ALBERT (1816-1904)

woods of the See also:

• ATLAS

Atlas . In See also:

• ASIA

Asia it would seem to extend to Kamtschatka and See also:

• JAPAN

Japan, keeping mainly to the See also:

• FOREST

forest-tracts . Three other forms of the genus also inhabit the Old See also:

• WORLD

World—two of them so closely resembling the common bird that their specific validity has been often questioned . The first of these, of large stature, the See also:

• PARROT (according to Skeat, from Fr. Perrot or Pies-rot, the diminutive of the proper name Pierrel)

parrot-crossbill (L. pityopsittacus), comes occasionally to Great See also:

• BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain, presumably from Scandinavia, where it is known to breed . The second (L. himalayana), which is a See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good See also:

• DEAL

deal smaller, is only known from the See also:

• HIMALAYA

Himalaya Mountains . The third, the two-barred crossbill (L. taenioptera), is very distinct, and its proper See also:

• HOME
• HOME, DANIEL DUNGLAS (1833-1886)
• HOME, EARLS OF

home seems to be the most See also:

• NORTHERN

northern forests of the See also:

• RUSSIAN

Russian See also:

• EMPIRE

empire, but it has occasionally occurred in western Europe and even in England . The New World has two birds of the genus . The first (L. americana), representing the common See also:

• BRITISH

British species, but with a smaller bill, and the See also:

• MALES

males easily recognizable by their more See also:

• SCARLET

scarlet plumage, ranges from the northern limit of coniferous trees to the See also:

• HIGHLANDS, THE

highlands of See also:

• MEXICO
• MEXICO (Span. Mejico, or Mexico,)
• MEXICO, FEDERAL DISTRICT OF
• MEXICO, GULF OF

Mexico, or even farther . The other (L. leucoptera) is the See also:

• EQUIVALENT

equivalent of the two-barred crossbill, but smaller . It has twice occurred in England . (A .