BIRDS OF MINNESOTA. 429 



doned us for a more genial climate. In the summer time the 

 Chick-a-dee's labors are more easily noticed; and as he raises a 

 large brood of young, the female laying six or eight eggs as 

 a litter, he is very busy through the whole day in capturing 

 vast quantities of caterpillars, flies and grubs. It has been 

 calculated that a single pair of these birds destroy, on the 

 average, not less than five hundred of these pests daily, a labor 

 which could hardly be surpassed by a man, even if he gave his 

 whole time to the task." The author just quoted — E. A. Sam- 

 uels in his Birds of New England, p. 185— says: "In some ob- 

 servations of this and other birds of Paris, it was found that 

 the Titmouse destroys at the lowest computation, over two 

 hundred thousand eggs of noxious insects annually. Does not 

 this appeal to the good sense of the farmer to protect the 

 lohole class that should not be forgotten?" 



SPECIFIC CHARACTERS. 



Second quill as long as the secondaries; tail very slightly 

 rounded, lateral feathers about ten one hundredths of an inch 

 shorter than the middle ones; back brownish ashy; top of head 

 and throat, black, sides of head between them white; beneath 

 whitish; brownish- white on the sides; outer tail feathers, 

 some of the primaries and secondaries conspicuously margined 

 with white. 



Length, 5; wing, 2.50; tail, 2.50. 



Habitat, eastern North America. 



PARUS ATRICAPILLIS SEPTENTRIONALIS (Harris). 



(735a.) 



LONG TAILED CHICKADEE. 



For several years after my local observation of the birds 

 began, I found considerable variation in the length of the 

 specimens of this species which came under my observation, 

 without believing that I had * 'septentrionalis" occasionally, 

 but it proved to be that beyond a question, and I reported it in 

 a list published in lb74 as "rare" but it has been seen since that 

 time a good many times. 



Its habits do not differ from the Black-capped except in 

 breeding time, when the "soft, long-drawn note" of Coues is 

 decidedly characteristic. However, the measurements grade 

 into those of the other variety so often as to leave a doubt 

 which we have, except in the case of those of completest 

 characteristics. 



