278 THE BLUE TIT, OR TOM TIT. 



the other birds of seeds and bits of nuts, and run and hide them imme- 

 diately in any crevices they may find, often visiting these stoleti stores 

 afterwards to see if they are safe. The blue tit and the oxeye are also 

 accustomed to carry part of their food into a corner, but they do not hide 

 with so much care, or from the same cause, as the cole tit. These birds 

 are commonly fed on the universal paste, but they are accustomed to it 

 •with difficulty. 



Breeding. — This species generally places its nest either in some hole 

 deserted by a mole or mouse, or under the overhanging edges of some deep 

 wheel-rut in an old disused road, rarely in holes of trees or walls. The 

 nest is composed of a layer of moss covered over with the fur of the hare, 

 roe-buck, and stag. There are two broods in the year, each of six or eight 

 white eggs, prettily speckled with pale red. The plumage of the young 

 differs from that of the old only in having the black duller and less glossy. 



Diseases. — Decline is the most common disorder of these birds, and it 

 is sometimes prevented by giving them fresh ants' eggs, particularly when 

 moulting. I kept a cole tit six years, and it then died of old age, having 

 first become blind, and been often attacked with vertigo or giddiness. 



Mode of Taking. — Less timid and distrustful than the oxeye, this 

 species may be caught with greater ease. A limed twig fastened to a pole 

 is often sufficient, with which you approach the tree on which the bird is, 

 and, touching it with the twig, it becomes your prisoner. Its call is " tzip 

 teune." Like all the tits, it is delicate, and, in the house, often dies soon 

 before being accustomed to the common paste. 



Attractive Qualities. — This is a very amusing little bird ; bold, 

 lively always In motion, hopping and fluttering about continually. Its 

 song is only a clashing of harsh tones, relieved by a clear sonorous " tei/?," 

 repeated twenty times in succession. It sometimes ends, however, with so 

 reflective an air, that you would think it was going to give something very 

 fine. 



THE BLUE TIT, OR TOM TIT 



Parus cseruleus, Linn^us ; La Mesange bleue, Bcffon ; Der Blaumeise 

 Bechstein. 



This pretty bird is four inches and a half long, of which the 

 tail measures two. The beak is three lines in length, antJ 



