490 



country as either the Great or the Blue Titmouse, and inhabits 

 woods, plantations and shrubberies, particularly such as 

 contain firs. Like those birds also, this species stays with 

 us the whole year round, though somewhat varying its haunts 

 according to season, and is constantly in motion, roving in 

 troops from tree to tree in eager search of food, often asso- 

 ciated with the Golden-crested Wren and accompanied by 

 the Treecreeper, while community of occupation sometimes 

 brings it into contact with a flock of Redpolls. Insects form 

 its chief food for the greater part of the year, and Macgillivray 

 thought it lived entirely upon them ; but various berries and 

 seeds are also eaten by it, some of them, it is said, being 

 carried off and hidden for future use. Thompson found 

 fragments of stone in its stomach, a fact pointing to what, on 

 other evidence, is pretty well established, namely, that this bird 

 is more vegetarian in its diet than either of the species of 

 Titmouse already described. Though most generally engaged 

 among the branches of trees, it often comes to the ground in 

 search of the pupae and larvae which are concealed in the 

 grass as well as the seeds, especially those of the fir, which 

 have dropped from above. Macgillivray was informed by 

 Mr. Hepburn that it delights in examining a ditch which 

 has just been cleaned out, and that he had seen it pull small 

 earth-worms to pieces and devour them. 



The notes of this bird have a general resemblance to those 

 of its congeners, and like them are subject to frequent 

 repetition, but they are usually more shrill and can be at once 

 distinguished by a practised ear. The observer last named 

 says that he has heard it " compound a note, which is repeated 

 for twenty minutes or so, and then seem to forget it", but 

 the same has been and may be remarked of most species of Tit- 

 mouse. The spring-notes of the cock are varied, and, though 



mouse " a possible explanation of the first having been already (p. 333) given 

 has nothing to do with the quadruped so called, but it is cognate with the root 

 of the French Mesanye, the Anglo-Saxon Masc, the German and Danish Meise, the 

 Swedish Mes and the Dutch Mees (pi. Meczen). It may therefore be doubtful 

 whether the plural of " Titmouse " should be " Titmice " as custom has it, but the 

 Editor has not the courage to use ' ' Titmouses", though he believes he has heard East 

 Anglians say " Titmousen ", just as they always use the old form housen for houses .' 



