PASSERES. ( 146 ) CERTHIID^. 



THE TEEE-CEEEPER. 



CREEPER, TREE-SPEELER, BROWN WOODPECKER. 



Certhia familiaris. 



The greemvood for him is the place of his rest. 



And the broad-branching tree is the home he loves best. 



There tip the tree-trunk, like a fly on the wall. 



To pick the grey moss, runs the Tree-Creeper small. 



Mary Howitt. 



Although the Tree-Creeper, which is one of our smallest 

 birds, is to be found in all our woods and plantations 

 where the trees are large, at every season of the year, it is 

 not much noticed ; for its sombre plumage and retiring 

 habits do not attract attention, and when seen creeping up 

 the trunk of a tree at a little distance it is more like a 

 mouse than a bird. It generally alights at the bottom of 

 the trunk near the ground, and creeps upwards by short 

 jerks, in a somewhat winding manner, diligently searching 

 every crevice of the bark of the trunk and larger branches 

 for insects, and frequently uttering a low chirp. Having 

 finished its work on one tree, it quickly flies down, curving 

 as it nears the ground, to the root of another, and immedi- 

 ately begins its spiral ascent. Its claws are curved and 

 sharp, and the tail feathers are stiff and pointed. In 

 climbing, the bird crouches close to the tree, keeping its 

 tail pressed against the bark. Its song, which is but 



