348 LAND BIRDS 
733. PLAIN TITMOUSE. — Parus inornatus. 
Famity: The Nuthatches and Tits. 
Length: 5.00-5.60. 
Adults: Upper parts olive-gray, becoming lighter and grayer on under 
parts ; belly nearly white. 
Young: Upper parts tinged with rusty brown ; under parts whitish. 
Geographical Distribution: Pacific coast west of the Sierra Nevada, 
through California and Oregon. 
California Breeding Range: Oak regions of upper Sonoran zone west 
of the Sierra Nevada. 
Breeding Season: March and April. 
Nest: In natural cavities of dead trees, or sometimes in old woodpeckers’ 
holes ; lined with rabbit fur or feathers. 
Eggs: 6 or 8; plain white. Size 0.64 x 0.49. 
THE tufted titmouse of the Eastern United States finds 
its California counterpart in the Plain Titmouse, an inde- 
pendent, aggressive little bird found among the live oaks 
of the foot-hills. He seldom enters the pine forests, 
but loves the sunny open slopes, where he wanders 
with small flocks of others of his species, searching for 
insect life in a very businesslike way through the tall 
bushes and oak trees. His common note of “ tsee-day- 
day” is not unlike that of the mountain chickadee, and 
occasionally he indulges in a whistled “ peto, peto” that 
reminds one of his pretty Eastern cousin. But these are 
only two of a variety of notes the bird utters under vari- 
ous conditions. 
The nest of this species is usually in a cavity of an 
oak tree limb, the entrance being through a knot hole 
well sheltered from the rain. To watch the develop- 
ment of the brood it is usually necessary to mutilate the 
tree, and so I have contented myself with observations 
