THE BEARDED TITMOUSE. 257 



centre of mantle occasionally with a few black streaks, very rarely 

 with a number of black streaks) ; scapulars white basally with 

 cream-coloured tips ; upper tail-coverts like rump but with bases 

 rose-coloured, extent of latter varying considerably ; ear-coverts 

 pale ash-grey ; lores, extending slightly over eye, and broad mou- 

 stachial stripe black (feathers of " moustache " long and lanceo- 

 late) ; chin, throat and centre of breast white, latter tinged ash- 

 grey ; sides of base of neck and sides of breast tinged rose ; centre 

 of belly creamy-white ; flanks tawny ; under tail-coverts black ; 

 axillaries and under wing-coverts cream-colour ; tail tawny- 

 chestnut, tips slightly marked blackish, central pair more yellowish 

 than rest, outer pair with outer web and tip of inner dusky-white 

 and rest of inner web and base black, next pair with distal half of 

 outer web duskv-white ; primaries black-brown inner webs fringed 

 white, 3rd to 7th with conspicuous white margins to outer webs, 

 rest with yellowish -tawny margins ; secondaries with margins 

 of outer webs tawny, rest of outer webs becoming black on inner 

 secondaries and inner webs of these feathers becoming creamy- 

 white, innermost secondary entirely creamy-white ; primary- 

 coverts black with most of outer webs white ; greater and median 

 coverts black fringed and tipped tawTiy ; lesser coverts ash-grey 

 tipped yellowish-tawny. This plumage is acquired by complete 

 moult in autumn. Summer. No moult and scarcely any change 

 in coloration by abrasion, but tail soon becomes very ragged. 



Adult female. Winter and summer. Fore-head, crow r n and 

 nape yellowish-brown, sometimes without and sometimes with 

 varying number of brownish-black streaks on crown ; mantle, 

 back, and rump as male, but more yellowish, not so reddish-tawny, 

 and usually with some broAvn-black streaks ; ear-coverts pale 

 brown ; lores and moustachial region dusky-white (not black as 

 male ; feathers of moustachial region somewhat elongated and 

 occasionally with blackish shaft-streaks) ; base of neck and sides 

 of breast occasionally with a slight rose tinge ; flanks paler and more 

 yellowish-tawny than in male ; under tail-coverts as flanks (not 

 black as in male) ; rest of plumage like male but tail and edgings of 

 secondaries and wing-coverts paler and duller and lesser coverts 

 not so grey. 



Nestling. Down absent. Mouth inside yellow with a number 

 of white spots" on palate and tongue. 



Juvenile. Crown, nape, and hind-neck yellowish-buff, sides 

 of crown occasionally with .blackish streaks ; scapulars very pale 

 yellow-buff with a few dark shaft-streaks ; centre of mantle and 

 back black, lower feathers of back with buff tips ; rump and upper 

 tail-coverts yellowish-buff ; lores dusky ; chin, centre of throat, 

 breast and belly very pale yellowish-buff, rest of under-parts deeper, 

 more tawny buff ; tail : centre pair pale buff often with black 

 shaft-line at tip, next pair mixture of black and buff, rest black with 

 buff bases, outermost pair with tip and distal hah* of outer web 



