TITMICE 



'3i 



sunflower in autumn as by a meaty bone in winter. It nests in holes, 

 either in decayed trees or in hedge-banks ; the hole being occasionally of the 

 bird's own making. The marsh tit is a very lively bird, quick and versatile in 

 its movements, and also in variations of note. The song is neither loud nor 

 noteworthy, although so varied ; but the two calls are more audible, especially the 

 sharp tse-yerrel, which has given the bird its name of ziaerrl among the country- 

 people of Germany. The marsh tit is more of a resident than a migrant ; many 

 individuals not leaving their birthplace in winter, although others wander about, 

 particularly during October, in pairs or small families. There are several local 

 races of this bird, which by some naturalists are treated as separate species; the 

 British marsh tit, for instance, which breeds as far north as Perthshire, being known 

 as P. palustris dresseri. In northern Scandinavia the species is represented by 

 P. palustris borealis ; in the Alps and the Tyrol we have the somewhat similar 

 Alpine marsh tit, P. palustris alpestris ; while in south-eastern Europe this is 

 replaced by P. palustris lugubris. The typical race is found all over central 

 Europe, and northern and western Siberia. The total length is about 4A inches ; 

 the head is black with a bluish metallic glitter, the chin and throat have a small 

 black spot, and the body is a grej-ish brown above and buff below ; the British 

 birds being of a warmer brown above, and i-edder on the flanks. 



The blue titmouse (P. cwruleus) dwells in leafy woods, especially 

 Blue Titmouse. .... .. ; . J r J 



those in plains, or river-valleys, and is also common in orchards and 



gardens. Although on migration it may pass through pine - forests, it never 

 chooses these for its summer residence. This pretty bird is the same size as the 

 marsh tit, from which it is at once distinguished by its blue w T ings, tail, and head ; 

 although in young birds the tint is greenish. Ranging almost all over Europe south 

 of 64° N. latitude, it is a resident species whose numbers are increased by migrants 

 from the north. It lives in pairs or families ; those that migrate leaving for the 

 south in the middle of September, to return in March. In some places it is an 

 inland migrant, and its southerly journeys are often interrupted by the open 

 plains, which it hesitates to cross. The nest is built in a hole in a tree, a wall, 

 or elsewhere, and is loosely made of moss and grass with wool, hair, and feathers, 

 but not with rabbit's fur, like that of the marsh tit. The blue tit feeds chiefly on 

 beetles and other insects and their larva?, on spiders, and aphides and other garden 

 pests, in pursuit of which it pecks out the buds it is supposed to destroy, 

 whereas it is simply slaying the destroyer. It is a bright, restless little bird, brisk 

 in all its movements, and flying hurriedly with many sudden dips and rises. 

 Like other tits, it clings to the thinnest twigs that will bear its weight ; and 

 when it sees a bird-of-pre}^ utters a peculiar call, warning every bird in the 

 neighbourhood. The courting of the cock is a remarkable performance ; on 

 such occasions the bird hops among the twigs, chirping and twittering with 

 many strange antics, and then returns to the female with outspread wings, hover- 

 ing between the trees like a bird-of-prey. Indeed, owing to the bristling of the 

 feathers, it is scarcely recognisable on these occasions. 



Crested The crested titmouse (P. cristatus), by preference a dweller in 



Titmouse, pine-woods, although also found where there are oaks or birches, is 



restricted to Europe, ranging from southern Sweden to the Alps, and from Spain 



