201 



PAUASYTE3 NAGEUR3. 



PARID.E. 



20.! 



false parasites, or Epiphytes, which merely fix themselves upon other 

 plants without deriviug food from them. 



Parasitical Plants, properly so called, are extremely numerous, and 

 belong to various parts of the vegetable kingdom. Some attack their 

 victims externally, others are insidiously introduced into the interior, 

 where they flourish until they pierce through the skin, place them- 

 selves in communication with the open air, and disseminate them- 

 selves ; hence, physiologists divide them into intestinal and superficial. 

 The former are exclusively fungi, and appear under the forms to 

 which the popular names of mildew, rust, brand, smut, &c. [FuNGi ; 

 ENTOPHYTA; MILDEW] are applied ; it is among the latter that para- 

 sites of so many different kinds are met with. These are again 

 divisible into such as have true leaves, green, and capable of acting, 

 in the manner of ordinary leaves, as organs of respiration and 

 digestion ; and such as have scales, brown or some colour not green, 

 in the room of true leaves, without any powers of digestion or 

 assimilation, except in a low degree. The first, or leafy or green 

 parasites, elaborate their food for themselves ; the second, or scaly or 

 brown parasites, obtain it in a state of elaboration from other species. 



Green leafy parasites belong exclusively, as far as is yet known, to 

 the genera Viicum and Loranthui. [VlsfUM ; LORANTHUS.] 



Brown scaly parasites always attack the roots of plants, and their 

 underground habits have caused them to be little examined. The 

 most common species in Europe are various kinds of Orobanche, which 

 attack hemp, clover, lucern, and many other crops ; Monotropa and 

 Lathrtea, which infest the roots, the first of the fir, and the second of 

 the ash ; in other countries Uhizanths abound [RHIZANTII.K], and 

 probably many others of which we have no sufficient knowledge. To 

 these are usually added Neottia Nidia Avis and Corallorhiza innata, two 

 Orchidaceous plants, concerning whose real habits we have however 

 no precise information. The best account of the manner of growth 

 of brown parasites is by Mr. Bowman, who studied with care the 

 habits of Latkrata tquamarla. In that plant he found that the fibres 

 of the roots are each tipped by a tubercle about as large as a pin's 

 hend, which tubercle attaches itself to the roots of the ash-tree, and 

 gradually buries itself in the bark until it gets into communication 

 with the wood, from which it derives its nutriment. One of the most 

 remarkable peculiarities of such plants as these is the constant absence 

 of all green colour, although exposed to the brightest light. Oro- 

 banches grow in pastures and open places, and yet their scale-like 

 leaves indicate no visible tendency to any colour except brown or 

 purple ; and in Lathrtea Mr. Bowman baa shown that the same thing 

 always happens, although the plants associated with it in its growth 

 are as green as usual. Connected with this is another curious property, 

 that of resisting the attraction of light, towards which all the green 

 parts of plants irresistibly tend ; in Lathraa, when the flower-stems 

 have acquired their full stature, they are always perpendicular, and 

 in groups of 20 or 30 ; in the moat umbrageous situations the rows 

 of flowers, which have always a unilateral direction, are as frequently 

 turned from the only side on which light is admitted as towards it. 



PARASYTES NAGEURS. [SU-HONOSTOMA-] 



PARDALOTUS. [IIFRIK.K.] 



PARE1RA. [CISSAMPEI.OS.] 



PARELLA (sometimes written ' Perelle '), the French name of a 

 Crustaceous Lichen, Lecanora Parella of botanists, but which is 

 applied to several species similar to it in habit, and employed for the 

 same purpose, that is, for yielding a rich dye known by the name of 

 Litmus. [LITMUS, in ARTS AND Sc. Div.] 



PARENCHY'MA is the term which was applied by the old 

 anatomists to an imaginary substance, through which they supposed 

 the blood at the ends of the veins to be strained. It is seldom now 

 used in animal physiology, but it is retained by botanists to distinguish 

 some forms of cellular tissue. [TISSUES OF PLANTS,] 



PARE'XUS, a genus of Fossil Fishes. [Fisa] 



PARGASITE. [HORNBLENDE.] 



PARIAS. [C'ROTALlDiE.] 



PARID^E, a natural family of Perching Birds. [INSESSORES.] 



Linnxus, in his last edition of the ' Syatema Naturae,' placed the 

 genus Parui between Pipra and Jlirimdo, in hu order Pattern. 



Latham arranges it also at the end of the same order. 



Pennant too gives it a place in the Passerine section, between the 

 Warblers and the Swallows. 



M. De Lace'pcde places it immediately before the Larks ; M. Dumdril 

 in the eighth family of the Passeres (Subuliroitrea, or Raphiorampkes), 

 in company with the Manakins, Larks, and Bee-Fins ; M. Meyer, in 

 the third sub-order (Subulatce) of his fifth order (Osciiies), between 

 Atauda and Regulut ; Illiger, at the head of the Paxterini, among the 

 Amb<t/aloret, immediately before Alauda,; Olivier, among the Cant- 

 roitrei, directly after the Larks; Vieillot, in the family of jKyU/ialen 

 in the tribe Anitodactyli ; Temminck, in the order Qranivarei, between 

 the Larks and Buntings ; and Latreille in the family Con iron/ res, also 

 between the Larks and the Bunting!). Selby arranges it between the 

 same two forms. 



Mr. Vigors places the genus Panu among the Pipridte. [DENTI 

 KO8TRE8; PIPUID.K] 



Mr. Swainson (' Classification of Birds ') enters among the Titmice 

 by the American genus ticiunu, remarkable for the motion of its tail 

 One - I'i'iu aquation (iivr,), frequents the sides of streams 



and runs upon the ground, whilst another, S. aurocapillm (Sw.) is, 

 le observes, confined to damp woods, and runs along the low branches 

 of trees. Here Mr. Swainson sees a change of economy, which, he 

 says, plainly shows that nature has assumed a new form ; and as the 

 labit of running along branches of trees is the chief faculty of the 

 Scausorial Birds, or of their representatives, so, he remarks, we may 

 suppose that the group next in succession to the Hotacittina would 

 jossess something of the same characters. These he finds manifested 

 u the genus Accentor, and he adverts to an unpublished notice which 

 le heard read at a meeting of the Linntean Society of London, relating 

 x> the habits of an Accentor which was killed near one of the public 

 Buildings at Oxford, and which was seen to climb so adroitly round 

 ;he steep abutments of those buildings as to baffle for a considerable 

 ;ime the aim of the person who shot it. He also states that he has 

 seen the common Hedge-Sparrow frequently hop along the whole 

 .ength of a strong oblique branch, peeking into the crevices of tlio 

 Dark so as to remind the observer of a scansorial creeper, or of a 

 Woodpecker; and he makes the Titmice a sub-family of the Sylviadce. 

 ISYLVIAD.E.] 



Mr. Yarrell places the Panda, or True Tits, between the Warblers, 

 Sylviadce, and the Ampelidce, the latter being represented by the 

 Bohemian Waxwing. [BOMBYCILLA.] 



Prince Bonaparte ('Birds of Europe and North America," 1838) 

 arranges the Farina as the seventh sub family of the Turdida, placing 

 it between the Motacillina (Wagtails), and the SylmcoUnce, The 

 following genera are included by the Prince under the Parirue : 



Jtegului, Ray (Wren, including Gold-Crests) ; Parus, Linn. ; Mecis- 

 lura, Leach (Paroidei, Brehm Long-Tailed Titmouse) ; Calamophili/a, 

 Leach (Myttacinut, Brehm Bearded-Titmouse); jEgithalus, Vigors 

 (Pcndulinus, Cuvier Penduline Titmouse). 



Mr. G. R. Gray ('List of the Genera of Birds,' 1841) makes the 

 Parimc the fifth sub-family of his Ltiscinidtc, and places it between 

 the Acceniorinte and the Sylvicolime. The Parina, according to 

 him, consist of the following genera : JEyithdlus, Vig. ; Melano- 

 cklora, Lesson ; Parus, Linnrous ; ilegiitina, Vieill. ; Tyrannulus, 

 Vieill. ; Sphenostoma, Gould ; Calamophilua, Leach ; Oritea, Mschr 

 (Mecistura, Leach ; Paroidei, Brehm Long-Tailed Titmouse) ; Pari- 

 loma, Swainson ; Psaltria, Temminck ; jKyithina, Vieill. ; Hylophilia, 

 Temminck. 



In this article we shall confine ourselves to those examples of tho 

 family which are more commonly known as Titmice. 



The following species are found in Europe : 



The Great Tit, P. major ; the Sombre Tit, P. luyiibris ; the Siberian 

 Tit, P. Siberieut; the Toupet Tit, P. bicolor ; the Azure Tit, P. 

 cyancut; the Blue Tit, P. earuleiu; the Coal-Tit, P. ater ; the Marsh- 

 Tit, P. paliutris ; the Crested Tit, P. crittatui ; the Long-Tailed Tit, 

 P. caudatiu of authors (genus Oritea) ; the Bearded Tit, P. biarmicua 

 (genus Calamophilus) ; the Penduline Tit, P. pcndullnun of authors 

 (genus *Kyithalua). 



The Great Tit, the Blue Tit, the Crested Tit, the Coal-Tit, the Marsh- 

 Tit, the Long-Tailed Tit, and the Bearded Tit, are British. 



There is little doubt that the Tits are the AfyfloAoi of Aristotle. 

 The Great Tit, the Long-Tailed Tit, and the Blue Tit, are referred by 

 Belon to the Alyt9o\os, the A.iyi9o\6s tripos, and the rptros Alyi9o\6s of 

 that author, and we think with good reason. 



The Great Tit, the Blue Tit, the Coal-Tit, and the Marsh-Tit, are 

 too well known to require description ; but a sketch of their habits 

 may not be unacceptable. White, speaking of the English Tit, says : 

 " Every species of titmouse winters with us : they have what I call 

 a kind of intermediate bill between the hard and the soft, between 

 the Linniuan genera of Pringilla and Motacilla. One species alone 

 spends i*-s wholo time in the woods and fields, never retreating for 

 succour in the severest seasons to houses and neighbourhoods ; and 

 that is the delicate Long-Tailed Titmouse, which is almost as miuuto 

 as the Golden-Crowned Wren; but the Blue Titmouse, or Nun (P. 

 cceruleiu), the Coal-Titmouse (P. ater), the Great Black-Headed Tit- 

 mouse (Pringillarjo), and the Marsh-Titmouse (P. paluatru), all resort 

 at times to buildings, and in hard weather particularly. The Great 

 Titmouse, driven by stress of weather, much frequents houses ; and 

 in deep snows I have seen this bird, while it hung with its back down- 

 wards (to my no small delight and admiration), draw straws lengthwise 

 from out the eaves of thatched houses, in order to pull out the flies 

 that were concealed between them, and that in such numbers that 

 they quite defaced the thatch, and gave it a ragged appearance. 

 The Blue Titmouse, or Nun, is a great frequenter of houses, and a 

 general devourer. Besides insects, it is very fond of flesh ; for it 

 frequently picks bones on dunghills : it is a vast admirer of suet, and 

 haunts butchers' shops. When a boy, I have known twenty in a 

 morning caught with snap mouse-trap baited with tallow or suet. It 

 will also pick holes in apples left on the ground, and be well enter- 

 tained with the seeds on the head of a sun-flower. The Blue, Marsh, 

 and Great Titmice will, in very severe weather, carry away barley and 

 oat-straws from the sides of ricks." (' Selborne.') 



We can confirm, if confirmation were needed, the account of this 

 admirable observer relative to the straw-extracting labours of the 

 Great Tit The thatch of a root-house in Gloucestershire was nearly 

 destroyed by those fly-seekers. But they have more to answer for 

 than fly-catching : they are small-bird murderers, and frequently kill 



