184 BEARDED TITMOUSE. 



inch, and form a dark stripe or " moustache" on 

 the sides of the neck, and which are apparently 

 capable of being raised or puffed out at the will 

 of the bird on excitement. Head, neck and 

 auriculars are bluish gray, extending across the 

 breast in a paler shade, and slightly tinted with 

 pink. The back, rump, lower parts of the flanks, 

 and the tail, as it appears when closed, are yel- 

 lowish brown ; the two outer feathers gray, dark 

 at the base. Quills blackish gray, edged with 

 white ; the secondaries blackish brown, with the 

 outer edges orange brown ; the inner webs yel- 

 lowish white, shewing a longitudinal stripe. The 

 throat is nearly white, tinted with a blush of 

 purplish gray ; centre of the belly pale, under tail 

 coverts deep black. In the female, the upper 

 parts are of a paler shade than in the male, and 

 the crown is wood brown, often of a rather dark 

 tint ; in the tail the inner webs of the three outer 

 feathers are brownish black, the under parts are 

 pale yellowish or brownish white ; and although 

 the feathers of the part forming the moustache 

 are elongated,' there is no difference of colour 

 either there or on the under tail coverts. The 

 size is slightly smaller than that of the male. 

 According to Mr Yarrell, the young bird from 

 the nest, or in young plumage, has the back 

 black, the wing and tail feathers are patched with 

 black, and the under surface is entirely fawn 

 colour. In the young males, the "moustache" 

 is marked by a narrow black line. In the adults 

 the length is about six inches. 



