180 WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH. 



The Tufted Titmouse is a more southern bird than 



the Chickadee and is rarely found north of northern New 



Jersey, where, however, it remains 



Tufted Titmouse, throu^liout the year. It is six inclies 



Parus blcolor. .ni i i-»iii 



m length, gray above, whitish below 

 with a black forehead, reddish brown sides, and a con- 

 spicuous crest. Its usual call is a whistled jpeto^ jpeto^ 

 'peto, which it will utter for hours at a time. It has also 

 a de-de-de-ds call, suggesting the Chickadee's well-known 

 notes, but louder and more nasal. 



With no especial structure other than slightly enlarged 



toe nails, the Nuthatches still differ markedly from other 



_y, . , . , birds in the ease with which they run 



Nuthatch up or down tree trunks. The tail is 



Sitta caroiiiiennis. slioi't and squarc and is not used in 



PhrteLXXi. climbing. The bill is rather slender, 

 but proves an effective instrument in removing insects' 

 eggs and larvae from crevices in the bark and even in 

 excavating a nesting hole in some decayed limb. Several 

 species also use it to crack or " hatch " nuts after they 

 have wedged them in a convenient crevice. 



Of the three species of Nuthatches found in eastern 

 North America the White-breasted is the most common 

 and generally distributed, being a permanent resident from 

 Florida to northern New England. Like many resident 

 birds, it nests early, the five to eight eggs being depos- 

 ited about April 20. They are white, thickly and 

 evenly spotted and speckled with reddish brown and 

 lavender. 



This Nuthatch's usual call-note is a loud yank, 

 yanJc, while its song is a singular, tenor hah-hah-hah- 

 hah-hah. 



The Ked -breasted Nuthatch is a more northern bird 

 than its larger, white-breasted cousin. At sea level it 

 nests from Maine northward, but in the higher parts of 



