LONGTAILED-TIT !". 



The eminently practical wren certainly manages her domestic* 

 a Hairs letter ; but then she is a unique example of the way in which 

 two extremes of temperament may meet in one small person, being 

 both artistic and utilitarian. Tin- \\ivi i'x nest is ornate ami beautiful ; 

 but she does not worry about her tail, having in past ages reduced 

 ili:ti ;I|.|M ii.l i^ (< strietlx luisiness-lilve proportions. 1 1 or young are 

 not subject to drowning fatalities at least, not according to my own 

 experience. A casual examination of both nests will at once reveal 

 tin- fact that Jenny Wren's nursery is more porous than that of the 

 lon^tailcil tit. so that the moisture passes through it more |iiicklv. 



It is curious that both these birds should choose to build a long 

 domed nest in open situations, instead of seeking refuge in ready- 

 made holes as do the tits and several other species akin to them in 

 general habits. Also, when comparing their skill as architects, one 

 cannot help coming to the conclusion that the little brown wren 

 consciously brings its more or less brown nest into complete harmony 

 with its surroundings; whereas the black-and-white longtailed-tit, 

 which has never been known to build other than the usual black-and- 

 \\hite nest peculiar to this species, seems on the contrary to choose a 

 situation which will harmonise with her dwelling. 



The longtailed-tit shows to best advantage when clinging to the 

 side of its nursery. The soft blending of black and white in its 

 plumage, together with the flush of pink on breast and flanks, make a 

 beautiful colour-scheme which somehow melts into the silver-and- 

 black lichen composing the exterior of its nest The tail is then used 

 as a support. In-ill;.' curved elegantly upwards. ^i\iii^ r an idea of 

 hitherto unsuspected strength latent in this long slender appendage. 



The young are fed on insects and their larva?. During their 

 earlier stages the food supplied is so minute one cannot say definitely 

 of what it consists, but by and by succulent caterpillars form the 

 principal article of diet 



It is wonderful how the young tits manage to stow themselves 

 away inside their long narrow nursery, and how every bird con- 



