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Parus coeruleus L.
Aves, Passeriformes, Paridae .

Blue tit

Description, Biology, Life Cycle, Damage, Common Names, Images

[R]Description
- Adult: 11-12 cm long; 19-21 cm wingspan; skullcap blue with edges white; cheek white with black bar crossing the eye; upper side of wings and tail blue; underside of body uniformly yellow; back greenish (*) .
- Egg: white with red dots (*) .
- Nest: built mainly of moss, lined with wool and hairs and situated in a hole in a tree or an old wall or in a nest-box.

[R]Biology
- Blue tits live in woods, thickets, parks and gardens. As soon as the breeding season is over and until the following spring, they form small restless flocks composed mainly of the current year's young, adults being more solitary.
- They shelter in the cavities of trees during winter nights.
- Feeding habits: usually insectivorous during the summer months, blue tits feed on insect larvae and adults (especially caterpillars) as well as on spiders. In the autumn, additional vegetable food (berries, fruits, seeds, buds) is required. Fat-rich food is needed in the winter.
- In certain years, real migrations may be observed in France from September onwards, birds from Central Europe coming to Western Europe to spend the winter and leaving in February-March.

[R]Life Cycle
- Each pair rears 2 broods per year on average; 7-12 eggs are laid in late April-early May, others, less numerous, in early summer.

[R]Damage
- The extent of the damage is linked to the high density of the populations. Damage is caused in the autumn and the winter, a period when blue tits feed on fruits (*) , cereals grain, oil plants (rape), Compositae (sunflower) and buds of fruit trees.

[R]Common Names
DE: Blaumeise ES: Herrerillo FR: Mésange bleue IT: Cinciarella PT: Chapim azul GB: Blue Tit

[R] Images

  1. Parus coeruleus L. (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Nest and eggs
  2. Parus coeruleus L. (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Adult
  3. Parus coeruleus L. (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Damage to mature cherry
  4. Parus coeruleus L. (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Damage to pear
  5. Parus coeruleus L. (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Damage to buds of currant Partly hollowed-out buds.
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  6. Parus coeruleus L. (ACTA)
    Adult

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