Opinions about the subspecies of the Marsh Tit on the European continent have always differed; the populations are more or less clinally connected to one another. Acknowledging the western, brownish P. palustris longirostris KLEINSCHMIDT would be somewhat justified if the birds in central Germany are counted as ssp. palustris and the eastern ones as P. palustris stagnatilis C.L. BREHM, 1855 [E Galicia]; see Eck (1980: 142 “n= 7 aus Bolu”); Roselaar (1995: 137); Horvath & Keve (1975).
Parus palustris, palustris group
P. palustris dresseri STEJNEGER, 1886 [Kent]; P. palustris palustris LINN., 1758 [according to Hartert Sweden; syn. communis CONRAD, 1827, loc. typ. restr. Graubünden; subpalustris C.L. BREHM, Renthendorf, see Hartert 1918: 27; longirostris KLEINSCHMIDT, 1897, La Tour d’Auvergne, Puy de Dôme, France]; P. palustris italicus TSCHUSI & HELLMAYR, 1900 [Siena, Tuscany]; P. palustris stagnatilis C.L. BREHM, 1855 [E Galicia, today W Ukraine, see Hartert 1918: 27]; P. palustris kabardensis (BUTURLIN, 1929) [near Vladikavkas].
Parus palustris, brevirostris group
Between the European and Asian Marsh Tits there is not only a broad geographical gap; they also differ remarkably in morphology, although negligibly in their molecular genetics (Gill et al. 2005: 127). The Asian forms have a larger throat spot, smaller feet, more bold bill. I know of no vocal comparisons. For the populations between Altai and Ussuria only subtle differences in colour have been described, but they should not be ignored here. The Sakhalin form is very close to the Japanese one (Eck 1980: 144). — In NE China P. p. jeholicus is adjacent to P. p. crassirostris towards the south; the two presumably interbreed.
P. palustris altaicus JOHANSEN, 1952 [Buchtarma River, KatonKaragai, S Altai]; P. palustris brevirostris (TACZANOWSKI, 1872) [Lake Baikal]; P. palustris crassirostris (TACZANOWSKI, 1885) [Sidemi, S Ussuria]; P. palustris ernsti YAMASHINA, 1933 [Naihoro, S Sakhalin]; P. palustris hensoni STEJNEGER, 1882 [Hakodate, Hokkaido*]; P. palustris jeholicus KLEINSCHMIDT & WEIGOLD, 1922 [30 km north of Balihandién, NE Jehol (Chengde)]; P. palustris hellmayri (BIANCHI, 1902) [Peking].
* The types of hensoni and seebohmi are extremely similar to a bird from the Kuriles in the collection in Washington (No. 96145), according to a letter received from Watson dated 26 December, 1978 (cf. Morioka et al. 2005: 115).
The population groups: P 26 dresseri, palustris, stagnatilis, italicus, kabardensis; W Palaearctic. – Figs. Kleinschmidt 1897, J. Ornithol. 45: PlateIII, upper Fig (“ longirostris ”), PlateIV, upper Fig. (palustris); Quinn: Plate 15: 46 a–b (dresseri).
* Clinal change from dorsal brown colour in the west to grey in the east, with slight
increase in wing length (in England maximally 66 mm, in Slovakia 70 mm). — TWI
84 %, lower in England.
P 27 altaicus, brevirostris, crassirostris, ernsti, hensoni; central to E Palaearctic. — Fig. Eck 1980 b: Plate 1 (brevirostris).
* In comparison to P 26 thick bill, small feet. Varies in upperside/flank coloration and
bill height (Sakhalin and Japan). — TWI: n= 28 altaicus to crassirostris on average
96.6 % ± 2.26; n= 10 ernsti 89.7 % ± 1.5; n= 24 hensoni 89.5 % ± 2.1. P 28 jeholicus, hellmayri; NE China. — Figs. Eck 1980 b: Plate I (hellmayri); Quinn: Plate 15: 46 d–e (hellmayri).
* Dorsal colour consistently brown, differentiated in wing length and relative tail
length (13 hellmayri x = 86.2 % ± 1.15; 11 jeholicus x = 92.5 % ± 1.52).