38 IN A CHESHIRE GARDEN 



tail, and nearly every year still (1912) I see 

 one. 



One may often hear a tapping sound in 

 trees and shrubs that is made by a great-tit, 

 and I have watched the bird after consider- 

 able tapping draw out a grub of some sort 

 from under the bark. I noticed on another 

 occasion that a tit in making this tapping 

 noise was beating something (through the 

 glass it looked like a beetle) which it held in 

 its beak against a bough of the tree. 



Like torn-tits, great-tits will fly off with 

 grains of Indian corn, and, like coal-tits, they 

 are fond of sunflower seeds. (In spite of 

 what Gilbert White says, I have never seen 

 torn-tits here touch sunflower seeds.) 



A great-tit has a note very much like the 

 " pink, pink " of a chaffinch, which he occa- 

 sionally uses. 



Though great-tits are, no doubt, handsome 

 birds, they are not nearly so interesting in 

 my opinion as either of the other three 

 common kinds of tit. None of them, indeed, 

 can really compare in interest with that 

 audacious little villain, the torn-tit, or blue- 

 tit, or, as he is called here, blue-cap. He is 

 so full of spirits, so resolute and domineering, 

 I delight to hear his cheery little song, if it 

 is to be called a song. 



Tom-tits in abundance come to the food- 

 stand, which in the first instance was specially 

 intended for their benefit. They will come 



