*; PARID.e 



It it found in UK outWn and nutcni province* of Europe prin- 

 cipally ; h in Rustia, Poland, Hungary, Austria (along the bunk* of 

 U> IXuubr, wbw it breed*), the couth of France, and Italy. 



M. Temmiock bat placed tbit specie*, together with the Bearded 

 Til. in bu Mcowi Mction of Titmice, the Rireraini ; and indeed the 

 IVodulm* TiUnoute, both in habit* and in the choice of iU food, lim 

 Buy point* in common with the other specie* abore described. Like 

 the Bearded Tit, the Pnduline Titmouse haunt* the reedy banks of 

 riven, or the margins of wide-watered shores ; and it* food comints 

 not only of the Metis of the reeda, but of aquatic insects and molluscs. 

 It derives it* name from it* pensile purse-like or flask-like nest, gene- 

 rally suspended at the end of some willow twig or other flexible 

 branch of an aquatic tree. Thi* skilfully-wrought era lie is woven 

 from the cotton-like wool or down of the willow or poplar, with an 

 opening in the aid* for the Ingres* and egress of the artificers and 

 their young, and mostly overhwg* the water ; sometimes however it 

 is interwoven among the reed-stems. The eggs, which are pure white 

 marked with some red spoU or blotches, are generally six in number. 



/' ja*tl,oyrtiih* the head with a full crest of black feathers; 

 occiput, superciliary stripe, and cheek", yellow; ear-coverts black; 

 back olive; wings and tail black, the former spotted, and the latter 

 tipped with white ; a broak black line passing down the throat, and 

 extending along the middle of the abdomen ; sides of the cliest and 

 flanks pale-yellow ; bill and feet black ; size rather less than that of 

 the Orator Tit, P. :>ijor. (Could.) 



This bird is a native of the H iuialuya. Mountains. 



PAUID.E. 



HI 



Farm lanlhnfrnft. (Gould.) 



/'. mtntapilltu, the Black-Cap Titmouse. The male has the upper 

 aspect of UM bead, nape, chin, and throat, velvet-black. A white line 

 from the nostrils through the eye, spread* out on the side of the 

 neek ; back lead coloured, glovied with yellowish-gray, quill and tail- 

 feathers blackuh-gray, edged with grayhh white; under-plumnge 

 brownish white, deepening in tome specimens to yellowish gray ; bill 

 pitch black; leg* bluish; total length 5 inches 6 line*. ('Fauna 

 Bo real i*- Americana.') 



Some ornithologist* hare considered this bird identical with the 

 Marsh-Titmouse, /'. ,,aJuiini, of Europe, M. Temminck in the first 

 part of bis ' Manuel ' declare* that individusls sent to him from North 

 America bad ab*olut-ly the same distribution of colour* on their 

 pitman as IhoM kille 1 in Europ*, only the hue* of the American 

 individual* were wore pure, In thi third part, where be notice* 

 P. fuhutrit, and add* to it* synonym*, be cays nothing to contradict his 

 or1(itl obHrvatloo ; ami in the first part he give* P. alrirapitlui, 

 U Mrwap a TU Noire da Canada (Brio.), and the Black Cap and 

 Canada Titmouse (Uth.), a* synonyms of /'. pofcrfn*. 



Mr. Swainwo and Sir John Richardson however, after referring to the 

 opinion* of tbo*e who have connidered the European and the American 

 bird a* UM *am*, *UU that the two species appear to them to be 

 sufficiently dirtinct According to them this Tit is the f. atricapilliu, 

 J-inn , who by tbe wy gives Canada a* its habitat ; Mdsange h T.He 

 olr d* Canada, P.u. ; P. airicapiUu, Wils , BUck-Capt Titmou*e; 

 P. airinpiUmi, Bonap. ; PeecbebkeaduMOM* of UM Cm Indians; 

 and Mrmage of UM Canadian voyagrurs : and they observe that it* 

 loow plumage, like that of UM Canadian Jay, U well qunli: 

 iU protection in UM **ven arctic winter*. According to Nuttall, 

 ChKwU*' is UM familiar name for thi. bird. 



distinct sfiecies, it U f .uud throughout 



the whole width of the American continent, from C.'i" N. lat to the 

 southern district* of the 1'nited State*, throughout the year. It is 

 one of the most common birds in t h.- Fur-( 'ountries, a small family 

 inhabiting almost every thicket (' Fauna Uoreali-Americano.') In 

 winter it is resident around Hudson's llay, and has been ni'-t. with at 

 62 N. hit. on the north-west coast. It is difficult to say in what psrt 

 of the United State* it is most common, so generally and equally 

 has it colonised the temperate part*. In wint.-r it in abundant in 

 all the forest* of the southern states to Florida, and probably extends 

 its visits into Mexico. (Nuttall.) 





Block-Cap Titmouse (Pants atricapilltu). 



Nuttall gives a graphic description of the manners of this Titmouse 

 iu his ' Manual of the Ornithology of the United State* and of 

 Canada.' " In all these countries," he says, " iu autumn families of 

 them are seen chattering and roving through the woods, busily engaged 

 in gleaning their multifarious food, along with the preceding species 

 (Panu bicolor), Nuthatches, and Creepers, the whole forming a busy, 

 active, and noisy group, whose manners, food, and habit*, bring them 

 together in a common pursuit Their diet varies with the season ; 

 for besides insects, their lurvic and eggs, of which they aro more 

 particularly fond, in the month of September they leave the woods 

 and assemble familiarly in our orchards and gardens, and even > -nt. r 

 the thronging cities in quest of that support which their native forests 

 now deny them. Large seeds of many kinds, particularly those which 

 are oily, as the Run-lower, and pine, and spruce-kernels, are now 

 sought after. These seeds in the usual manner of the genus, are 

 seized in the claws and held against the branch until picked open by 

 the bill to obtain their contents. Fat of various kinds is also greedily 

 eaten, and they regularly watch the retreat of the hog-killers in tin: 

 country to glean up the fragments of meat which adhere to the ; 

 where the carcasses have been suspended. At times they feed upon 

 the wax of the candle-berry myrtle (Myrica ccrifa-a), they likewise 

 pick up crumbs near the houses, and search the weather-boards and 

 even the window-sills familiarly for their lurking prey, and are parti- 

 cularly fond of spiders and the eggs of destructive moths, especially 

 those of the canker-worm, which they greedily destroy in all iti stages 

 of existence. It in said that they sometimes attack their own 

 wh.-ii the individual is sickly, and aim their blows at the skull with n 

 view to eat the brain ; but this barbarity I have never witnessed. 



" On seeing a cat, or other object of natural antipathy, the Chicadec, 

 like the peevish jay, scolds in a loud, angry, and hoarse note, like 

 ' "Tnhc, ditigh, diiigh, diiigh.' Among the other notes of this species, 

 I have heard a call like ''Tshe-dc-jay, 'tahe-dc-jny,' the two first 

 syllables being a slender chirp, with the 'joy 1 strongly pronounced. 

 The only note of this bird which may be called a song, is one which 

 in frequently beard at intervals in the depth of the forest, at times of 

 the day usually when other birds arc silent. We then may sometimes 

 hear in the midst of this solitude two feeble, drawling, clearly-whistled. 

 and rather melancholy notes, like "te-derry,' and sometimes 'yc-|K-nit,' 

 and occasionally, but much more rarely, in the same wiry, whistling, 

 solemn tone, ' 'phcbe.' The young in winter also sometimes drawl 

 out these contemplative strains. In all cases the first syllable is very 

 high and clear, the >ecoud word drops low, and cud* like a feeble 



