| Marsh Tit | ||||||||||||||
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
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| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Poecile palustris |
The head and neck are glossy blue-black; the chin and upper throat are black, the feathers of the latter edged with white. The cheeks are white, the back is sandy brown with an olive tinge, and the rump browner. The absence of the nape spot distinguishes it at once from the Coal Tit.
The wings and tail are greyish, and there is a clear bar on the former, a further distinction from the Coal Tit. The underparts are greyish white, shading into buff on the flanks. As a rule the upper and under surfaces are more sharply defined than in the Willow Tit. The bill is black, the legs lead-coloured, and the irides very dark brown.
It can be told from the Willow Tit by its glossy blue-black head and squarer tail. The sexes are alike and seasonal changes are not striking; the young are duller. Length, 4.5 ins. Wing, 2.45 ins.
"Marsh Tit" is a misleading rather than incorrect name, for though the bird is found in damp and marshy places, it is as common in dry woods and hedgerows and even occurs in gardens. In mixed winter tit flocks, seldom more than one or two Marsh Tits are present, and parties of this species alone are infrequent. Its performances in the bushes and branches are just as neat and agile as those of other tits; it often hangs upside down by one leg. Like the others it has a large range of vocal utterances ; it has a quick "sip, sip", metallic and shrill, a loud "tay, tay, tay", described as the alarm note, and a subdued "sis, sis,.ris, see", called the song.
The food is animal or vegetable; caterpillars and other insects, and spiders are eaten, and seeds of various kinds, including those of the thistle.
The nest is occasionally in a hole in the ground, but the bird is more of a tree species than some of its relatives. it selects a hole in a rotten willow or other trunk or stump for choice, and though it never starts a hole, it undoubtedly enlarges the hollow, carrying the chips to a distance before dropping them. The hole may be within a foot or two of the ground or high up in a tall tree. Wool, hair, fur and moss are felted together, and occasionally willowdown is added, but the quantity of material used is variable.
Five to nine eggs of the usual tit type are laid late in April or in May, and second broods are recorded. The bird sits closely.
