Youngsters
get to know the young hero and the adventures
that carry him toward manhood. As they come to know Jeremiah as a friend who would
understand their own growing pains, they look forward to each book in the
series.
Teachers
will Achieve..
Teachers will appreciate the ways
that Jeremiah Stokely novels, kits, and activities make literature
meaningful to children. Teachers can download free classroom idea
packets to hold a hand-on workshop based on each book.
Click the >Play button
to listen to the bird's song!
Tufted Titmouse (Parus
bicolor)
Length 6½ in., wingspan 9¾ in., Family Paridae
The Tufted Titmouse appears at first to be just a
plain gray bird, but on closer inspection, it is quite unordinary. It has a
conspicuous crest similar to that of a jay or cardinal, a bold black eye in
a pale face, white breast and belly, and peach-rust flanks (sides).
This active bird’s song is a cheery “tweeter, tweeter,
tweeter,” but it also has an angry, nasal call. It is tolerant of humans and
may even respond to a person’s whistle. It frequents feeders and is often
seen in the company of chickadees, nuthatches, kinglets, creepers, and small
woodpeckers. Like the chickadee, it sometimes perches upside down on a
branch, looking for insects, and may even hang upside down from a bird
feeder. When it catches a moth, it wipes the wings off on a branch before
eating the body.
The Titmouse lives year-round in the eastern U.S. It
frequents broadleaf shade trees such as oaks in towns or parks, as well as
moist woodlands or swamps. It lays five or six brown-spotted white eggs in a
tree hole or nest box stuffed with leaves and moss.
The “Black-crested Titmouse” is a subspecies in Texas
and southwestern Oklahoma.
