Parus caeruleus
Pix taken by MarcoSepulvedaLeón in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
The Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus) is a resident and non-migratory bird that is widespread throughout temperate and subarctic Europe and western Asia.
About 4.7 inches long, with a wingspan of 7.1 in, the bird weighs about 0.39 oz. The sexes are similar, but under ultraviolet light, males have a brighter blue crown. Young Blue Tits are noticeably more yellow.
The blue tit prefers insects and spiders for their diet. Outside the breeding season, they also eat seeds and other vegetable-based foods. Blue tits are famed for their skill, as they can cling to the outermost branches and hang upside down when looking for food.
This is a common and popular European garden bird, due to its perky acrobatic performances when feeding on nuts or suet. It swings beneath the holder, calling “tee, tee, tee” or a scolding “churr”.
Blue Tits are able to culturally transmit learning to other Tit species. An example of this, dating from the 1920s, is the ability to open milk bottles with foil tops, to get at the cream underneath. Alas, this learnt behavior is no longer displayed because of the gradual change of human dietary habits, from full-fat to low-fat or skimmed milk, and the replacement of the milkman by the supermarket.
The Blue Tit has an average life expectancy of 1½ to 3 years. The longest recorded lifespans by country for the species are: 11 years 7 months in the Czech Republic, and 9 years 9 months 2 days in the United Kingdom.
H/t Project Noah
~Eowyn
