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Oatmeal Remez is a small bird belonging to the order Passeriformes. By their size, these birds more closely resemble sparrows, however, unlike the latter, they have a shorter beak and a long tail.
Appearance description
The length of the bird's body does not exceed 150 mm, the average weight is about 20 grams. Note that this species of birds is quite easy to distinguish from other birds of the order Passeriformes due to the rather variegated and bright color of the plumage. The feather cover of the back of the male is brown with characteristic stripes. The sides and chest are reddish brown. The head is dark with a crest on which white eyebrows stand out with bright spots. The plumage of females is mainly brown. Oatmeal makes quite melodic sounds, songs are not difficult.
Habitat and biotope
The most attractive for living oatmeal remez - taiga forests (mixed type, forest-tundra). Most often found in Europe, Asia, in the Scandinavian countries. The main place of wintering is China, Iraq, Japan, the foothills of Central Asia.
Bunting remez - these are birds belonging to the nesting, migratory species. Birds living in the central and northern parts of the habitat, as a rule, arrive at the nesting site with the arrival of the first heat (early to mid-spring). At the hibernation, birds gather in late autumn, due to the end of the breeding season.
For nesting, birds everywhere prefer a place characterized by the presence of a northern type of landscape - a humid climate and marshy soil.
Note that this species of birds is quite sociable and does not avoid people at all. Often, remez settles nearby with human housing, while not only in the countryside, but also in the city. Most of all, Remez likes to settle nearby farm and agricultural lands, which is explained by the close availability of food necessary for feeding the bird.
Description
Such a small bird, like oatmeal remez, differs from its relatives in a compact physique and bright color of its feather cover. The feathered body length does not exceed 150-160 mm, the average weight is 20-22 g. Remez wing span - up to 250 mm. In a state of excitement in these birds, a crest begins to puff, located in the crown of the head and consisting of several elongated feathers. The beak of the bird, although short, is rather large with a characteristic straight skate. The gap located between the beak and the beak is rather weakly expressed.
I would like to draw attention to the fact that, in general, this species of birds is hardly noticeable, often it lets the enemy close to the nest. Often gives out, starting to make disturbing and quite loud sounds.
The color of the marital feather cover of the male Remez is quite variegated and attracts attention - the top of the outfit is brownish, the lower part is light with a characteristic chestnut band that crosses the chest area. Chestnut streaks are also present on the sides of this small bird. The oatmeal head is decorated with a black cap, the occipital part, chest, chin, and also eyebrows of the remez are white.
The feathers of the bird are dark in color, with the exception of the middle and extreme pairs, which have a lighter color. The legs of the remez are pinkish with an ocher hue, the wide and short beak is dark brown, the mandible is pink-ocher in color.
The female has a dimmer color of plumage, which, in fact, distinguishes her from the male, while the autumn outfit of the male is similar to the one worn by the female.
Features of propagation of the species
The singing of male remez can be heard even during the flight of birds to the nesting site, when individuals still hold in small groups.
As a rule, the separation of birds into pairs begins almost immediately after arrival at the nesting site. Most often, the remez places its nests on the ground, hiding in dense vegetation, bushes. Nests are built mainly from last year's vegetation (dry grass, horsetail).
As a rule, the outer diameter of the oatmeal nest does not exceed 120-130 mm, in depth - up to 50 mm, the bottom of the tray is lined with dry grass.
The maximum number of eggs in a clutch is 6 pieces. A distinctive feature of Remez oatmeal eggs from other species is that they completely lack the characteristic threadlike pattern. The surface of the eggs is brownish with dark spots scattered across it.
The female remeza is mainly engaged in incubating future offspring, the duration of the incubation period is about 2 weeks. For the same amount of time, hatching chicks are in the nest without leaving it until they get stronger. In the event that for any reason the offspring dies, the birds make a new masonry.
Food
The main food for remez in the summer is small invertebrates and a variety of insects. With the advent of autumn, these birds mainly switch to plant foods, and a plant such as oats is a favorite treat for birds.
Captivity
Although such a species as oatmeal remez was quite widespread, nevertheless, these birds are not so often selected for maintenance. This is due to the timidity of these birds and their incredulity. Most often, these singing birds are bred in captivity by canary breeders, the main purpose of this is to teach birds a characteristic tune. As a rule, in this case exclusively young males are selected.
The bird cage should be spacious, at least 700 mm long. If the remez is attached to other birds, then conflicts are not excluded, since oatmeal may show some aggression.
Important! One of the main conditions for the maintenance of such a species as oatmeal is the presence of earthen or sandy soil.
The basic diet of remez in captivity is the seeds of oats, canola, millet, flax, sunflower, and canary. A good supplement to the diet is the so-called screening, which implies a variety of weed seeds. Also, one should not forget about soft bird food - for this you can use gammarus and daphnia. During the period of molting and breeding birds should be fed: vegetables, herbs, insects, flour worms.
Interesting Facts
Under favorable living conditions, oatmeal can live up to 4-5 years. Nevertheless, a case was recorded when a long-lived bird was discovered, the life span of the remez was about 13 years.
Remez is a bird known as an excellent builder, building a strong and reliable nest. Often in southern countries, particularly in Africa, where these birds fly to the hibernation, oatmeal nests are used as purses that resemble in appearance a mitten with a rather narrow entrance.
Video: oatmeal remez (Emberiza rustica)
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