Grey Tit or Cinereous Tit

The Grey Tit
Parus major Linnzus.

Size: That of the Sparrow,

मराठी नाव: कवडी रामगंगा.

इंग्रजी नाव: Cinereous Tit (जुने नाव: Great Tit).

शास्त्रीय नाव: Parus major

Field Characters: The glossy jet black head, throat and
broad ventral band down centre of breast contrasting with the
white cheek-patches, grey back and whitish underparts help
to recognise this typical tit. Sexes alike.

Distribution ; Practically throughont the Indian Empire,
in the plains as well as hills upto abont 6,000 feet. In this range
four races are recognised on slight differences in size, shade
of colouration and the relative extents of black, white and
grey iu their tail feathers.

Habits: The Grey Tit is found in well-wooded localities, but
it avoids heavy evergreen forest. It goes about singly, in pairs
or small flocks either by themselves or in association with other
small insectivorous birds. They scatter ahout the trees keeping
in touch with one another by a joyous cheeping and twittering,
These restless little busy-bodies spend most of their time hunting
for insects—climbing about and clinging tu sprigs and flowering
stems in every conceivable position, peering under leaves, probing
into flowers and searching the crevices of the bark. Their food
consists mainly of insects, but seeds and berries are also eaten,
Tits destroy large numbers of noxious insects and their larvae
and are thus welcome in orchards inspite of some little damage
they may do to fruit and fruit-buds, They get at the kernels
of hard-shelled nats by holding the nut down under one foot
and piercing it with repeated blows of their strong conical bills.
In the breeding season the male utters a loud, clear, whistling
song: IWhee-chi-chi..whee-chi-chi. .whee-chi-chi. &e,

Nesting: The season, which varies somewhat in different
localities, ts between February and November, Often two
successive broods are raised. The nest is a pad of hair, moss
er feathers placed in holes in trees, masonry walls or earth cut-
tings, 5 te 15 feet from the ground. It is remarkable what a
tiny entrance hole the bird will squeeze itself through. Four
to six eggs are laid, white or pinkish-white in colour, spotted
and speckled with reddish-brown. Both sexcs share in building,
incubation and care of the young. Thev are close sitters and
will often refuse to desert even while the nest hole is being
hacked open,

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