THE WORLD'S BIRDS. 



119 



white ; they are found in hilly regions in both Old and 

 New Worlds, but not in Africa excepting in the Atlas 

 range, nor in the Australian region. 



The Mocking-birds are a purely American section of 

 this group, notable for their long tails. The typical 

 Mocking-bird {Mifmis polyglottus) of North America is 

 grey, with the wings and tail marked with white. It is 

 chiefly a bird of the Southern States, and there are 

 several very similar species in South America. The Brown 

 Thrasher {Harporhynchus rufus) is very like our Song- 

 thrush, except for the long tail, pale eyes, and more 

 decided tints. The Cat-bird {Galeoscoptes caroUnensis), so- 

 called from its mewing note, is a much smaller species. 



Tits (Parince) are small species, with short wings, 

 strong small feet and bills, and fluffy plumage, showing 

 usually but little difference between the sexes or 

 between adults and young ; they are tree-haunting birds, 

 found almost everywhere except in South America, and 

 chiefly insectivorous, though many eat much vegetable 

 food also. The nest is usually in a hole or domed. 



Although less migratory than almost any other 

 Passerine group, the Tits inhabit a great range of 

 climates, species of the same typical genus (Parus) 

 as our common Blue and Great Tits (P. major and 

 P. cceruleus) being found in Africa and New Guinea. 

 They are often very gaily-coloured birds, but the 

 American species are all dull in tint. The above-men- 

 tioned Blue and Great Tits do not go further east than 

 Persia ; the former, however, has a close ally in the 

 Indian Grey Tit (P. cinereus), which resembles our 

 Great Tit, except in lacking the yellow tints in the 

 plumage, and ranges from Turkestan through India to 

 China, while a similar species with a green back (P. 

 minor) extends to Japan. A well-known Japanese 

 species is the Red-sided Tit (P. varius), of the size of 

 our Great Tit, and conspicuous for its chestnut flanks 

 and cream-and-black head, a common cage-bird in 



