CRESTED TITMOUSE. , (305 



LOPHOPHANES BICOLOR. 

 Crested Titmouse. 



Lophophaues bicolor Bon., List Birds Europe, ISii'. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Sp. Cu. Form, robust. Bill, short. Tail, slightly rounded. Sternum, stoutly built. Crest, of va- 

 rying lengths. CowH. Adult. Above, ashy ; darkest on the head and with an olivaceous wash over the 

 back, which is more percei)tible on the rump. Forehead, black, with a narrow line ne.xt the crown tipped 

 with rufous. The feathers of the crest show darker centers. Upper portions of wings and tail, dark brown 

 with the ftathers edged with the same as the back. Beneath, dirty white with the flanks chestnut. Wings 

 and tail below, glaucous. Under tail coverts, pale Imff. A.xillaries and lower wing coverts, white, tinge<l 

 with pale buff. Young, similar but with a rufous wash over the rump and back. There is also less chest- 

 nut on the sides, and the reddish edging of the forehead is better defined. Sexes, alike. Irides, brown ; 

 bill, black ; feet, lead color in all stages of plumage. 



OBSERVATIONS. 



The birds from which I have made the above description, were all taken in Florida. They have a dis- 

 tribution throughout the Middle and Southern States, but I have never met with them on the coast of 

 Florida, among the keys, or in the southern sections of the state, they being rare about Salt Lake and scarcely 

 to be found below that point. 



DIMENSIONS. 



Average measurements of eleven specimens from Florida. Length, G. Hi; stretch, 9.77 ; wing, 2.(56- 

 tail, 2.72 ; bill, .53 ; tarsus, .77. Longest specimen, G.oO : greatest extent of wings, 10.(.)0; longest wing, 

 S.2r) ; tail, 3.00; bill, .70; tarsus, .95. Shortest specimen, 5.75 ; smallest extent of wings, 9.25; shortest 

 wing, 3.00 ; tail, 2.50 ; bill, .45 ; tarsus, .65. 



DESCRIPTION OF NESTS AND EGGS. 



Nests, placed in holes, composed of leaves and moss, lined with hemp-like fibers from plants and hair. 

 Eggs, usually six in number, oval in f^rm, white in color, spotted and blotched with light reddish brown and 

 lilac. The spots are accumulated more thickly on the larger end. 



HABITS. 



The pleasantest part (jf the city of Jacksonville, Florida, is Ijuilt in a tine live-oak 

 grove ; as sluxde is quite essential in this climate, all of the trees which did not grow in the 

 streets in such a manner as to impede the progress of vehicles were allowed to stand. The 

 sidewalks, therefore, are overhung with thick evergreen foliage, which form a resort for 

 numerous birds, especially when they are migrating ; and I have counted seven or eight 

 species in a single tree. One day I was passing beneath these branches, in company with 

 my friend, Mr. Fred A. Ober, when we heard a note which sounded something like that of 

 the common Chickadee, only it was much harsher. I knew at once that it could be pro- 

 duced by no other than the Crested Titmouse, and by advancing a few paces we perceived 

 that I was correct, for there was a large flock of them among the trees. They were busily 

 engaged in searching for insects; turning upside doAvn, clinging to the under sides of the 

 limbs, in fact behaving almost exactly like overgrown Black-caps, but were not quite as 

 agile as that species, and when they raised their crests, which they did frequently, resem- 

 bled miniature Blue Jays. They were not as inquisitive as our common bird, but very 



