Long-tailed tit - description, habitat

The long-tailed tit is understood as a songbird belonging to the order of the Passeriformes. Individuals from this pedigree group are popularly referred to as tail mate or titmouse. You can also find in some sources the name Apollonovka. Birds stand out for their miniature size and interesting behavior. In appearance, they look like a swollen ball with a thick protruding plumage and an interesting beak shape. But let's not get ahead of ourselves by revealing cards. We study all the subtleties in turn.

Lifestyle

1. A miniature-sized bird has long won recognition in the vastness of our homeland. She is called a mate, as well as a tit with a long tail. All thanks to interesting external data that distinguishes this individual from the self-similar.
2. The tail of the birds is elongated, stepwise, patterned. The very shape of the body is blown due to the dense and standing plumage. Beak inflated, moderately large. The representative of the family differs from her relatives by behavioral signs and external characteristics.
3. The voice of individuals is squeaky, thin, different from others. It is easy to distinguish a titmouse from a titmouse because of beautiful coloring and peculiarities to dwell in packs.
4. If you look from a long distance on individuals sitting on trees, it seems that before the eyes there are balls with tails. As a rule, during rest, these birds squeeze their heads and sit motionless. Actually on this soil, the birds got their name.

Description and habitat

1. It is difficult to take your eyes off these individuals. By their dimensional characteristics, they hardly reach 15 cm, but in nature there are even smaller birds. As for the mass of the body, tits weigh about 12-13 grams.
2. In color, the representatives of the group are almost everywhere whitish. Unless black marks can be observed on the back, and spots of a red, violet-red hue in the sacral region. In the area of ​​the lateral parts, pink plumage is visible, the same can be said about the abdominal part.
3. There are no significant differences in gender; females are slightly smaller than males and paler in shade of plumage. In young animals, the color of the body varies, when compared with adults. The younger generation does not look so beautiful, all the shades are “dirty”, blurry, there are many spots of crimson tone.
4. However, in nature, you can find individual individuals in which these spots remain from infancy for life. This quality is more characteristic of the Caucasian tit.
5. Militiamen lead a hidden lifestyle, try not to fall into human sight. The population is quite extensive, during the migration you can observe hundreds of individuals that are transported to other lands.
6. In the summer season, breaking into pairs, the newly-minted family behaves secretly. Partners coo, prepare for procreation. They choose secluded places, settle next to willows, birches.
7. They prefer to live in European countries, Ukraine, Russia. They are found in the highlands of Crimea, the Caucasus and Siberia. Individuals living north are sent to warm regions for wintering, then returned to their native expanses.

Characteristics

1. The considered representatives of birds possess a very fussy and moving temperament. It is thanks to such characteristic features and because of the squeak that birds belong to the genus of tits. Since the end of summer, the considered individuals begin to roam the forests.
2. During this period, birds try to rummage through all the treetops. It is worth noting that individuals have a wavy flight.It is because of this that they are somewhat reminiscent of the behavior of wagtails. The amazing fact is that during the flight, the tits are not lowered to the lower level of the branches. Also, birds cannot get insects from the bark of trees. Their beak is too small.
3. It is worth noting that birds do not have a strong timidity. Birds without any hesitation can tolerate the presence of outsiders. You yourself can approach a flock of birds at a distance of up to 4 m. In rare cases, in nesting sites, such individuals can even sit on a person’s hand.
4. Feathered construction can be carried out both in low bushes and on the tops of large trees. Tits often build nests from cocoons of insects, cobwebs, stems, moss and all kinds of fibers. Outside, birds mask a nest with tree bark. As a result, it is almost impossible to consider a home.
5. As for the lining, individuals use feathers and wool inside the nest. Separately, it is worth mentioning that birds have a fairly peaceful temperament. Therefore, tits, you will never see in any fights and skirmishes. However, this cannot be said of the big brothers.
6. If such individuals are not kept free, then they very quickly get used to the person. As a result, they are very calm. In the wild, tits do not attack other birds and only tender feelings towards each other. They take care of the satellite. It is worth knowing that the birds can not stand loneliness.

Nutrition

1. Tits have dexterity. Thanks to this, they quickly fly between the branches and grab any insects that come across them in the way. They also collect larvae. Tit food is swallowed right away.
2. It is worth noting that aphids are a favorite delicacy of birds. As a result, tits will destroy pests, which positively affects the general condition of forests. In the winter season, birds often pick up seeds of plants and trees.

Long-tailed tits begin to form pairs in the spring. After that, they begin to build nests. As for the offspring, both parents are engaged in this. Young growth begins to hatch after half a month. In this case, chicks can appear at a time up to 15 pcs. After 3 weeks, young growth becomes almost independent.

Video: long-tailed tit (Aegithalos caudatus)