THE BIRD-LIFE OF LONDON 
feathers, more or less felted together, the first-named 
type, of course, being the most compactly made. ‘The 
six or eight eggs are white or yellowish white in ground 
colour, spotted and freckled with light red. ‘Throughout 
the nesting season the old birds. are shy and wary and 
silent. 
The adult Great ‘Titmouse has the general colour of the 
upper back yellowish green, yellowest towards the nape, 
which is white, and shading into slate-grey on the lower 
back and upper tail-coverts ; the forehead, crown, sides of 
the neck and throat are glossy black, the cheeks and the 
ear-coverts are white; the wings are brown, with pale 
margins, the coverts pale blue, tipped with yellowish 
white, forming a bar; the tail is dull black suffused with 
blue, the two outer feathers white along the outer web and 
at the tip, the next pair tipped with white. The under 
parts below the throat are bright greenish yellow, with a 
broad black band extending from the black on the throat 
to the vent, which, with the under tail-coverts, is mottled 
with white. Bill black; tarsiand toes lead-colour ; irides 
dark brown. Length 54 inches. ‘The nestlings closely 
resemble their parents in general colour, but are duller, 
and the white parts are suffused with yellow. 
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