Blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus))
Eurasian blue tit is usually 12 cm (4.7 in), long with a wingspan of 18 cm (7.1 in) for all genders, and weighs about 11 g (0.39 oz).A typical Eurasian blue tit has an azure-blue crown and dark blue line passing through the eye, and encircling the white cheeks to the chin, giving the bird a very distinctive appearance. The forehead and a bar on the wing are white. The nape, wings and tail are blue and the back is yellowish green. The underparts is mostly sulphur-yellow with a dark line down the abdomen—the yellowness is indicative of the number of yellowy-green caterpillars eaten, due to high levels of carotene pigments in the diet.[The bill is black, the legs bluish grey, and the irides dark brown. The sexes are similar, but under ultraviolet light, males have a brighter blue crown.Young blue tits are noticeably more yellow. The Eurasian blue tit will nest in any suitable hole in a tree, wall, or stump, or an artificial nest box, often competing with house sparrows or great tits for the site. Few birds more readily accept the shelter of a nesting box; the same hole is returned to year after year, and when one pair dies another takes possession. It is estimated by the RSPB that there are 3,535,000 breeding pairs in the UK.
Eggs are 14–18 mm (0.55–0.71 in) long and 10.7–13.5 mm (0.42–0.53 in) wide. Egg size appears to depend mostly on the size of individual females and secondarily on habitat, with smaller eggs found at higher altitudes. The clutch's total weight can be 1.5 times as heavy as the female bird.
The bird is a close sitter, hissing and biting at an intruding finger. In the South West of England such behaviour has earned the Eurasian blue tit the colloquial nickname "Little Billy Biter" or "Billy Biter", originating from the UK.[When protecting its eggs it raises its crest, but this is a sign of excitement rather than anger, for it is also elevated during nuptial display. The nesting material is usually moss, wool, hair and feathers, and the eggs are laid in April or May. The number in the clutch is often very large, but seven or eight are normal, and bigger clutches are usually laid by two or even more hens. It is not unusual for a single bird to feed the chicks in the nest at a rate of one feed every 90 seconds during the height of the breeding season. In winter they form flocks with other tit species.
In an analysis carried out using ring-recovery data in Britain, the survival rate for juveniles in their first year was 38%, while the adult annual survival rate was 53%.[18] From these figures the typical lifespan is only three years.Within Britain, the maximum recorded age is 10 years and 3 months for a bird that was ringed in Bedfordshire.The maximum recorded age overall is 11 years and 7 months for a bird in the Czech Republic ..... I simply love these little acrobatic colourful stunning birds .
Blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus))
Eurasian blue tit is usually 12 cm (4.7 in), long with a wingspan of 18 cm (7.1 in) for all genders, and weighs about 11 g (0.39 oz).A typical Eurasian blue tit has an azure-blue crown and dark blue line passing through the eye, and encircling the white cheeks to the chin, giving the bird a very distinctive appearance. The forehead and a bar on the wing are white. The nape, wings and tail are blue and the back is yellowish green. The underparts is mostly sulphur-yellow with a dark line down the abdomen—the yellowness is indicative of the number of yellowy-green caterpillars eaten, due to high levels of carotene pigments in the diet.[The bill is black, the legs bluish grey, and the irides dark brown. The sexes are similar, but under ultraviolet light, males have a brighter blue crown.Young blue tits are noticeably more yellow. The Eurasian blue tit will nest in any suitable hole in a tree, wall, or stump, or an artificial nest box, often competing with house sparrows or great tits for the site. Few birds more readily accept the shelter of a nesting box; the same hole is returned to year after year, and when one pair dies another takes possession. It is estimated by the RSPB that there are 3,535,000 breeding pairs in the UK.
Eggs are 14–18 mm (0.55–0.71 in) long and 10.7–13.5 mm (0.42–0.53 in) wide. Egg size appears to depend mostly on the size of individual females and secondarily on habitat, with smaller eggs found at higher altitudes. The clutch's total weight can be 1.5 times as heavy as the female bird.
The bird is a close sitter, hissing and biting at an intruding finger. In the South West of England such behaviour has earned the Eurasian blue tit the colloquial nickname "Little Billy Biter" or "Billy Biter", originating from the UK.[When protecting its eggs it raises its crest, but this is a sign of excitement rather than anger, for it is also elevated during nuptial display. The nesting material is usually moss, wool, hair and feathers, and the eggs are laid in April or May. The number in the clutch is often very large, but seven or eight are normal, and bigger clutches are usually laid by two or even more hens. It is not unusual for a single bird to feed the chicks in the nest at a rate of one feed every 90 seconds during the height of the breeding season. In winter they form flocks with other tit species.
In an analysis carried out using ring-recovery data in Britain, the survival rate for juveniles in their first year was 38%, while the adult annual survival rate was 53%.[18] From these figures the typical lifespan is only three years.Within Britain, the maximum recorded age is 10 years and 3 months for a bird that was ringed in Bedfordshire.The maximum recorded age overall is 11 years and 7 months for a bird in the Czech Republic ..... I simply love these little acrobatic colourful stunning birds .