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Blue tit Facts

Blue tit Facts
Blue tit is a songbird that belongs to the tit family. There are 9 subspecies of blue tit that can be found in Europe, Asia and northwestern parts of Africa. Blue tit inhabits deciduous and mixed forests, hedgerows, farmlands, gardens and parks. It belongs to a group of non-migratory birds. Blue tit often gathers in large flocks with other species of tits during the winter. These birds are numerous in the wild, especially in Europe where 20 to 44 million pairs of blue tits currently exist.
Interesting Blue tit Facts:
Blue tit can reach 4 to 5 inches in length and 0.39 ounces of weight.
Blue tit has greenish-blue dorsal side of the body, blue tail and wings and white head with blue cap. It has black stripe over the eyes and dark blue chin and collar. Bottom parts of the body are yellow colored. Females are slightly duller in color than males.
Blue tit has short, black beak, short, rounded wings and short tail.
Excited blue tit can be recognized by erect, short crest on the nape.
Blue tit eats mostly caterpillars and insects during the spring and summer. Besides that, it consumes fruit, nectar and seed. People often put peanuts in the bird feeders to allure blue tits into their gardens.
At the beginning of the 20th century, blue tits learned to remove the foil from the bottle of milk and collect the cream located on the top. When a practice of milk delivery became obsolete, blue tits returned to their original food sources.
Diet based on yellow-green caterpillars increases the intensity of the yellow color of the male's breast and increases his chances to find the mating partner (yellow breasts signalize that male can provide adequate amount of food for the offspring).
Song of blue tit consists of loud, high-pitched trills that are frequently repeated. Rattling calls are used as alarm calls.
Hawks, sparrows, magpies and cats are predators of adult birds, while weasels and squirrels attack chicks.
Mating season of blue tits starts in April. Blue tits produce one or two broods per year.
Male sings and provides food for the female as a part of courtship.
Blue tits nest in the tree holes, buildings, boxes and traffic lights. Nest is cup-shaped and made of grass and moss. Female uses mint and lavender (strongly scented herbs) to disinfect the nest.
Female lays 8 to 10 eggs that hatch after 13 to 15 days. Male brings food to the nest during the incubation period.
Both parents participate in rearing of chicks. They are able to collect 15.000 flies and caterpillars for their offspring before they become ready to leave the nest at the age of 3 weeks. Young birds are ready for the independent life at the age of 5 weeks.
Blue tit can survive 2 to 3 years in the wild.


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