PARID/K — TIIK TITMICK. ^y 



tireuiifst solitiuU's of tli*' J^^nutluTM Statt's tlicsr l>ii(ls were his constiint and 

 jiiiiusiiig eoinpanions. Tlicir .sjMi^rljtly iiioveiiieiits uu<l tlieir varitKl luusieal 

 talents niaile it even nnuv jn'culiarly inte resting at a time when all the other 

 tenants of the forest were >ileiit. The notes of this l»ir(l, whieh, when ex- 

 |iress»Ml hy this writer (»n jjaper, seem only jjuaint and eeeentrie artieulations, 

 were characterized l>v him as livelv, eheerin*', and varied, delivered with a 

 delicacy, ener^^y, pathos, and variety of exju'ession to which it was far l)eyond 

 the power of description to do justice. 



Thes(! notes, at times, even parto(»k of the hi^di-echoin^ and clear tones 

 of the Oriole. The usual sonj^' of this Titmouse is presented hy Mr. Xuttall 

 hy the following,' char.icteristics : " jr/iijt-f(nn'/>i//t/'k{ff//-i/(lt/-ihli/-ifn-if-fshif'a- 

 (fee-ilaj' varied with " KoT-fn-iJ id-did-tf ul i' etc., etc. Later in the season, 

 under the milder iuHuences of sjuin^', these Titmice ])ursued the insects from 

 hranch to hranch, callinj^ ri'stle.ssly anil with loud anil echoing voices, peto- 

 ]hfo-jyfi>, witli freipient quaint variations too numerous to be re{)eated. 

 Their song even consisted of successions of jdayful, jiathetic, or (juerulous 

 calls, never exhihiting any trills after the manner of the Warhlers, yet the 

 comi)a.ss and t<ines of their voice, their capricious variety, and their general 

 etlect are descriljed as quite as pleasing as the more exquisite notes of our 

 summer si»ngsters. 



When wounded this Titmouse resists with great s])irit any attempt to take 

 him alive, hut soon becomes tame and familiar in confinement, subsisting on 

 seeds, broken nuts, etc. Impatient of restraint, it incessantly attempts to 

 work its wav out of its caufe. 



The general habits of these birds correspond ch)selv with those of the lame 

 family to which they belong. They move usually in small flocks of from 

 live to ten through the branches of trees and bushes in quest of insects, 

 examine the cracks and crevices oi' the bark, hang on the under side of small 

 branches, move sideways around the trunks of trees, prol)e the openings in 

 acorns, pine-cones, nuts, etc., for its food, and retain apparently the family 

 gioup until the sja-ing, when they sei)arate into pairs. 



One of these birds kept in confinement by Dr. Bachman of Charleston 

 was in the habit of hiding its food in the corner of its cage, in a small 

 crevice, and of creeping at night into a small box, where it lay doubled up 

 like a ball till the first light of the morning, when it resumed its restless 

 habits. 



The Tufted Titmouse passes its nights and days, when the weather is in- 

 clement, in the hollows of decayed trees or the deserted holes of the wood- 

 peckers. In such places it also builds its nests. It has been known to exca- 

 vate a hole for itself even in hard sound wood. Its nest is simply a rude 

 lining of the selected cavity, composed of various soft and warm materials. 

 In this are deposited from six to eight eggs. But a single brood is raised in 

 a season. The young birds, as soon as they are fledged, hunt in company 

 with their parents, and remain associated with them until the following 



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