200 CHESTED TIT. 



for itself a place for a nest in the wood of a 'decayed' tree, 

 which has been impugned, on the ground that it could not 

 be understood by a writer opposed to the belief of the account 

 how the bird could scoop out for its c If a hole in a 'sound' 

 tree, is most fully borne out by all the writers on the subject 

 who are best entitled to credit. There seems in fact among 

 such to be no difference of opinion about it, so that it is 

 difficult to imagine, in the presence of facts, how the contrary 

 opinion could have suggested itself. 



The eggs are from seven to ten in number, white, spotted 

 and speckled, most so at the larger end, with light purple red. 



Male; weight, about two drachms and a half; length, a 

 little above four inches and a half; bill, black. Iris, dark 

 brown, over it is 'a dull white streak towards the nape, and 

 from behind it runs a black streak, which unites with a curved 

 band of the same; this is succeeded by a patch of white, and 

 this again by another black band, which comes round in front 

 of the shoulders, until it meets the black of the throat; 

 forehead, black and white, the feathers small and scale-like. 

 The head is surmounted by a pretty crest of black feathers, 

 deeply margined with white; it is of a conical shape, somewhat, 

 not inappropriately, in the form of a Scotch cap; the feathers 

 are shortest in front, and gradually heighten, arching forwards 

 the longest is about an inch in length : at the side it is yellowish 

 white, with a few black specks. Chin, throat, and upper part 

 of the breast, black, in a triangular shape; beneath it is a 

 very light dull fawn-colour, darker at the lower extremity, 

 and tinged with rust-colour, as also the sides; back, pale 

 brown, with a slight tinge of green. 



The wings extend to the width of eight inches, and within 

 an inch of the end of the tail; underneath they are dark 

 grey Greater and lesser wing coverts, as the back, and mar- 

 gined with pale grey; underneath, light grey; primaries, 

 secondaries, and tertiaries, as the back, but darker; the first- 

 named are edged with pale grey on the inner webs; the first 

 feather is less than half the length of the second, the third 

 and fifth nearly equal, larger than the second, and not quite 

 so long as the fourth, which is the longest in the wing. 

 Greater and lesser under wing coverts, dull white, tinged with 

 rust-colour; tail, as the wing feathers, but not so dark, and 

 edged with light rust-colour, except the outer ones, which 

 have narrow white edges; underneath, light grey it is of 

 twelve feathers; tail coverts, as the back, but lighter; under 



