EMBERNAGRA BLANDINGIANA.—(Gambel.) Blanding’s Finch. PLATE XII.—Adult Male. Blanding’s Finch was discovered in the Rocky mountains by Dr. Gambel, and named by him in honor of one of the most universally respected of American naturalists and friends of science, William Blanding, M. D., formerly a resident of Philadelphia, but now of Providence, Rhode Island. During many years of previous residence in South Carolina, Dr. Blanding omitted no opportunity of facilitating by observation and active exertion in contributing to collections, the advancement of the interests of Natural Science in all its departments, and he has been deservedly complimented by naturalists whose studies he has been the means of promoting, and with whom personally he has for many years maintained relations of the most friendly character. Many of the cultivators of Natural History in America owe much to the advice and encouragement of Dr. Blanding, and among such we gratefully include ourselves. This bird belongs to a group of which several species are known to inhabit Mexico and South America, and of which one other species is a summer visitor to Texas. All of them are birds of handsome and even elegant general appearance and color of plumage, and partake much of the inoffensive habits of other birds of the family to which they belong, and which includes the Finches and Sparrows. Subsisting for the greater part on seeds, much of their time is passed on the ground, or in undergrowths of shrubbery in the immediate vicinity of fields and meadows, or other grass-bearing localities. [Illustration: Plate 12 Blanding’s Finch Embernagra Blandingiana (_Gambel_)] We regard the present species as the handsomest Bird of the family of Sparrows yet discovered in the United States, and regret that it is not in our power to lay before our readers an account of it at all full or satisfactory, little having been placed on record, or having otherwise come to our knowledge, beyond the fact that it inhabits sparingly the Rocky mountains, California and northern Texas. It is probably one of the many species which migrate in summer to those countries from Mexico, and even further southward, as is the case with the greater part of the numerous species of birds which are summer-residents in the eastern portion of this continent. Not more than three specimens of this bird have been brought home in the many extensive collections made by the various naturalists who have visited the countries where it is found, from which we must necessarily infer at present that it is one of the rarest of the birds of California and the Rocky mountains, though more abundant in Texas.