466 BRITISH BIRDS. 



be taken into consideration, if a view of the parent birds cannot possibly 

 be obtained. From small eggs of the Nuthatch the eggs of the Great Tit 

 are very difficult to be distinguished ; the only sure guide is to see the 

 parents belonging to a nest ere taking the eggs. 



In many instances the Great Tit rears two broods in the year. The 

 actions of the parent birds when the nest is approached are very bold. 

 They will endeavour to repel your intrusion by angry cries ; and should 

 the sitting bird be caught on the nest, as it most easily can be, it will hiss 

 and bite vigorously without any show of fear. The young birds are almost 

 exclusively fed on caterpillars and grubs, which the old birds obtain from 

 the neighbouring trees and bushes. 



The food of the Great Tit is composed of insects of various kinds. It 

 also eats small seeds, which it often shells by placing them in a crevice 

 and hammering them with its beak like a Nuthatch. Like the Crows, it 

 is almost omnivorous, and is very fond of picking a bone. Dixon has 

 known fields, which had been manured with refuse from slaughterhouses, 

 frequented by large numbers of Tits, prominent amongst them being 

 the present species, which fed on scraps of flesh on the bones and even 

 on entrails. It was a curious sight to see such tree-haunting birds 

 hopping about on the ground and feeding in company with Starlings 

 and Rooks. The Great Tit also feeds on fruit, as may often be noted in 

 autumn. Its young, however, are almost entirely fed on small caterpillars 

 and grubs. It is also said sometimes to kill small birds by repeated blows 

 on the head, and then to eat their brains ; but such instances are certainly 

 far from common. 



The notes of this bird are varied ; and in spring it is often heard to utter 

 a double yioie, peek-ur , peek-ur , very much like the monotonous sound of a 

 rusty axle of a cart or wheelbarrow creeking with every revolution of the 

 wheel. Its other notes are a si, si, si, or a metallic ping, ping, and a harsh 

 spluttering chur-r-r-r-si. Its only attempt at song is heard in spring, 

 and consists of a loud but not unmusical note or two. The flight of 

 the Great Tit is undulating, uncertain at times, and performed with quick 

 beats of the wings with occasional long pauses. Although gifted with no 

 small powers of wing, it rarely flies for long distances, but goes in little 

 jerking flights from tree to tree. 



In autumn our resident Great Tits undoubtedly recei\e accessions to 

 their numbers by migrants. From what may be gathered from the annual 

 reports on migration made by numerous observers on our lighthouses and 

 light-ships, " Titmice " appear sometimes as early as the first week in 

 August ; but notes specially referring to the present species on the east 

 coast of England show that the second Avcek in October is an average date 

 for their appearance, as is the case with the Goldcrest. It would also 

 appear that these little travellers sometimes choose to cross the sea bv 



