Audubon, John James “Rose-breasted Long-Grosbeak.” Pl. 205

John James Audubon. Pl. 205 “Rose-breasted Long-Grosbeak.”  From The Birds of America.  New York: 1856-75.  Second or later edition. Octavo.  (sheet: ca. 6 1/2 x 10 1/4").  Lithograph.  Original hand color.  With litho-tint background.  Very good condition.  A/A Even as Audubon was seeing the last plates of the first edition of The Birds of America being finished, he was making plans for the publication of a smaller version. This royal octavo edition, first published in New York and Philadelphia in 1840-44, was such a success that seven editions followed it, beginning in 1856 with the Second Edition, of which these prints are examples. These prints are not simply small replicas of the elephant folio edition. Only one species appears on each plate, and often the backgrounds are simplified. New species of birds and new plants appeared in this edition, and the birds are grouped in a more orderly scientific manner. For his pioneering travel around the United States in search of new subject