Eurasian blue tit
Cyanistes caeruleus
Paridae
| Other names | |
|---|---|
| Catalan | Mallarenga blava |
| Spanish | Herrerillo común |
| English | Eurasian blue tit |
| French | Pimpelmees |
| Basque | Amilotx urdin |
| Galician | Ferreriño azul |
Description
Small passerine. The wings, tail and top of the head are bluish. A dark line goes from the bill to the nape of the neck, passing through the eye. The cheeks are white. The back is greenish and the breast is yellow with a dark line down the middle. It is about 11.5 cm long. It feeds on seeds, fruits, aphids, insects, and spiders. The young eat caterpillars. It lives in forests and often visits gardens.
It generally breeds in deciduous or mixed forests, in parks and gardens. It builds a nest of moss, hairs and feathers and uses tree holes or nest boxes. The female lays between 7 and 16 whitish eggs with dark dots and incubates them for two weeks. Chicks begin to fly after 20 days.
It can be found frequently occupying edible dormouse nest boxes during breeding season, from mid-April to the end of June.