ACREDULA 157 



Frequents marshes and fens where there are large reed-beds, 

 and feeds on aquatic insects in summer and seeds, chiefly those 

 of the common reed, in winter. Its flight is short and low, only 

 just clearing the reed-tops. Its note is musical, and has been 

 described as ping, ping and zit, zit, and during the breeding- 

 season zit-zrrrr. 



It breeds in April and again in July or early in August. 

 The nest is placed amongst the reeds close to the ground, 

 constructed of dry grasses and reed-fibres, lined with the same 

 but finer materials ; is round, the opening small. The eggs, 

 from 4 to 6 or even 7 in number, are white, sparsely covered 

 with irregular reddish brown scratches, and measure about 

 073 by 0-55. 



Eastern birds are considerably paler than those from the 

 west, and are by some naturalists considered as subspecifically 

 separable, the eastern form having been named, P. sibericus 

 (Bp.), Compt. Rend., 1856, p. 414. 



ACREDULA, Koch, 1816. 



223. LONGTAILED TITMOUSE. 

 ACREDULA CAUDATA. 



Acredula caudata, (Linn.) Syst. Nat. i. p. 342 (1766) ; (Naum.) iv. 

 p. 84, Taf. 95, figs. 4, 5, 6 ; (Gould), B. of E. pi. 157 ; Dresser, iii. 

 p. 67, pi. 104 ; Gadow, Cat. B. Br. Mus. viii. p. 59 ; Saunders, 

 p. 101 ; Lilford, ii. p. 110, pi. 50 ; (Tacz.) F. 0. Sib. 0. p. 443 ; 

 Seebohm, B. Jap. Emp. p. 87. 



Mtsange cb longue queue, French ; Codona capo bianco, Ital. ; 

 Schwanzmeise, German ; Staartmees, Dutch ; Stjertmeise, Dan. ; 

 Stjarttita, Norweg. ; Stjertmes, Swed. ; Pyrstotiainen, Finn. ; 

 Dolgovostaya sinilckka, Russ. 



ad. (Sweden). Head snowy white ; hind neck and back black, the 

 latter with the sides and scapulars vinous red, and the lower part and 

 rump pale rosy red ; upper tail-coverts black ; wings and tail blackish 

 brown externally margined with white, the outer tail-feathers broadly 

 terminated with white ; under parts white washed with vinous on the 

 flanks and under tail-coverts ; bill and feet black ; iris brown ; ring round 

 the eye lemon-yellow. Culmen 0'3, wing 2*5, tail 3'5, tarsus 0*6 inch. Sexes 

 alike. The young have the upper parts brownish black, the centre of the 

 crown white, and the under parts duller than in the adult. 



Hob. Northern and central Europe, extending across N. 

 Asia to Kamchatka and Japan, in winter ranging into southern 

 Europe, and occurs as a rare straggler in Great Britain. 



