THE MAESH TITMOUSE 



(Parus ■palustris) 



The names of some birds are remarkably inappropriate and 

 apt to lead the young naturalist astray. That of the Marsh 

 Titmouse is a good example. We should infer from its name 

 that the bird is an inhabitant of the marshes, the reeds, and 

 the swamps ; but in reality it frequents much the same 

 localities as the other Titmice — the woods and hedges and 

 trees in almost every kind of country. It is perhaps more a 

 bird of the wild than its congeners, and does not frequent 

 the neighbourhood of houses so much. Its habits are 

 very similar to those of the other Titmice. Like them it is 

 constantly in motion, exploring every little twig and branch 

 and bud, throwing itself into all manner of grotesque attitudes 

 in its busy search for food. To my observation the Marsh 

 Titmouse explores hedges and low bushes and brushwood 

 much more than the other members of this family do. It may 

 instantly be recognised by its peculiar cry of tay-tay-tay, a note 

 unlike that of any other British species. In the early spring 

 this note is variously modulated into two syllables, and then 

 almost resembles a song. The bird seldom stays long in one 

 locality, except during the breeding season, and sometimes 

 numbers make their appearance in a district, stay a day or 

 so, and then just as suddenly depart. 



Insects form the principal food of the Marsh Titmouse, 

 and it is most diligent in its search for them, picking out 

 the larvse from the chinks of the bark and the branches, and 



