78 PASSE RES 
Tongue horny, obtuse, divided at the end, terminating in a few horny bristles. Wing moderately 
long, narrow and somewhat pointed, third, fourth and fifth primaries longest and nearly equal in 
length, sixth a little shorter; second as long as sixth; first primary rudimentary, reduced to an 
excessively narrow, lanceolate feather, even shorter than primary coverts. Tail much length- 
ened, very much longer than wing, exceedingly graduated, outermost rectrix scarcely half as 
long as median; rectrices narrow, attenuated at tip. Under tail coverts remarkably well-deve- 
loped, in length equal to outermost rectrix. Tarsus strong, about twice as long as middle toe 
without claw; acrotarsium distinctly scutellate; middle toe longest, outer toe slightly longer 
than inner one; claws slender, compressed, acute; hallux stouter and shorter than the other 
toes, 1ts claw much stronger. Wing 57-63, tail 75-go mm. 
Coloration. Plumage soft, though less copious than in the Parinae. Sexes different, the 
male ornamented by a broad black moustache of elongated feathers. The adult male is a very 
elegantly coloured creature. Top of the head, nape and ear coverts delicate pale grey, passing 
into white on frontal edge and sides of neck. Lores, cheeks and moustache deep velvety black. 
Back and rump deep cinnamon-buff; upper tail coverts brownish pink; scapulars white; wing 
coverts black, broadly edged with colour of back; primary coverts and bastard-feathers 
blackish, with broad white edges; primaries dark grey-brown, the outer ones with white, 
the remaining with isabelle margins; secondaries dark greyish brown, broadly edged with 
deep cinnamon-buff; the three innermost with a broad black stripe along the shaft and nearly 
white on inner web. Rectrices isabelle-colour, below more cinnamon, the two outer pairs 
black on basal portion and with a long white tip. Throat and breast white, sides of breast 
washed with pale pink, flanks cinnamon-buff; under tail coverts deep velvety black, The 
female differs by having the head above and nape pale brownish, the sides of the head dingy 
white, without the black mystacal stripe, and the under tail coverts very pale buff. The 
black of the outer rectrices, too, is less pronounced, The young have the middle of the back 
and the rectrices (except the median pair) mostly blackish; the first primarv is well developed, 
of normal shape and almost half as long as second, Bill yellow. 
Geographical Distribution. South- and Western Europe, and Palearctic Asia eastward 
to Northern China and Amoorland. One species with two subspecies. 
Habits and Nidification. The Bearded Tit lives exclusively in extended reed-thickets 
and marshes. Its call-note and song are not unlike those of the true Parinae, which it also 
resembles in habits and food, The nest, an open, cup-shaped, loose structure of dried reed- 
stems, grasses, leaves etc., inside lined with various soft material, feathers etc., is placed on 
or near the ground. The clutch consists of from five to seven roundish eggs, which are glossy 
or buffy white, speckled with blackish brown. Two broods: one in April and May, the second 
from June to the beginning of August. 
21. GENUS PANURUS C. L. KocH 
Panurus C. L. Koch, Syst. Baier. Zool. p. 201 (1816) (sp. un. : P. biarmicus). 
Calamophilus Leach, Cat. Mamm. Birds Brit. Mus. p. 17 (1816) (sp. un. : C. biarmicus). 
Mystacinus Boie, Isis, p. 556 (1822) (sp. typ. : M. barbatus). 
Hypenites Gloger, Gemeinn. Naturg. Vég. Deutschl. p. 28r (1842) (sp. un. : H. barbatus). 
