Most representatives of the tit family are known to every person. Small titmouse live next to people, it is difficult to confuse them with other birds. One of the most unusual tit birds is the crested tit. Much is known about her to the villagers, but in the city these birds are little known to people. Many do not even notice such bluebirds among the clusters of other city birds: woodpeckers, jays, crows, sparrows, pigeons. What is remarkable about crested tits? Details of life, appearance, reproduction of crested titmouse can be found in this publication.
Origin of the species and description
Photo: Tufted Tit
The Crested Tit is a very small bird. It belongs to the order of passeriformes, in the family of titmouse. These birds are identified in a separate genus – “Crested Tits”. The Latin name for this species is Lophophanes cristatus. This animal is also called the grenadier. It got its name thanks to the tuft, which looks very much like a grenadier hat. Grenadiers lived in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. They were elite foot soldiers.
Interesting fact: The main habitat of grenadiers is coniferous forests. These tiny birds bring many benefits to the forest. They destroy harmful insects in large numbers, saving trees from certain death.
The main difference between crested titmouse and ordinary titmouse is the presence of a tuft. It is very noticeable, consists of white feathers with transverse gray streaks. The grenadier, like the rest of the titmouse, is very small. The length of her body rarely exceeds eleven centimeters. By its size, it can be compared with the blue tit.
Video: Crested tit
Tufted titmouse differ from other varieties of titmouse not only in their appearance. There are also differences in lifestyle. For example, crested birds are more prone to a sedentary lifestyle. They very rarely roam, only during severe cold weather or due to lack of food in their habitat. Titmouse roam along with other types of birds: chickadees, kinglets.
There are seven types of grenadiers in nature:
- c. cristatus;
- c. abadiei;
- c. mitratus;
- c. scoticus Prazák;
- c. bureschi;
- c. weigoldi;
- c. baschkirikus Snigirewski.
Appearance and Features
Photo: What the Tufted Tit looks like
Titmouse with a tuft has characteristic external features:
- small sizes. These birds are much smaller than the great tit. Their body length is from eleven to fourteen centimeters. The wingspan is about twenty centimeters. The weight of the animal is no more than eleven grams;
- a gray-white crest on the head. This is the most obvious outward sign. It is by this that one can distinguish the grenadier from the rest of the species of the family. The crest is formed by white and dark gray feathers. In females, as a rule, the crest is smaller, has a dull color;
- similar body color in males and females. The top of the body of the birds is painted gray-brown, the bottom is white with small patches of ocher. From the edge of the eye to the beak, the birds have a bright black stripe. The stripe forms a black “crescent”. It looks very impressive against the background of a white cheek;
- dark wings, tail, beak. The wingspan is twenty-one centimeters. The beak is small, but quite strong. With its help, birds deftly extract harmful insects in the bark of trees;
- small eyes. The iris of the eyes is colored brown. Birds have excellent eyesight;
- sticky paws. The limbs are painted in a dark gray shade. Each foot has four toes. Three of them are directed forward, one is backward. This arrangement of fingers helps the Corydalis to hold firmly on the twigs.
Interesting fact: The crest is not just a bright feature of this species of tits. This is a tool for expressing their mood. The height of the tuft, the angle of inclination depends on the mood.
Where does the crested tit live?
Photo : Crested Tit bird
This species of tits is one of the most common in Europe. The natural habitat extends from the Iberian Peninsula to the Urals. Crested titmouse live in large numbers in Russia, Scotland, Spain, France and Ukraine. Birds do not live in Italy, Greece, Great Britain, Asia Minor, Scandinavia.
The natural habitat depends on the variety of the crested tit. Yes, r. c. Cristatus inhabit the north and east of Europe, r. c. scoticus Prazák – the center and north of Scotland. In the west of France, only r. c. Abadiei, and r. c. Weigoldi live in the south and west of Iberia. Subspecies r. c. baschkirikus Snigirewski lives in the Urals.
Crested tits are mostly sedentary birds. The animal rarely changes its place of residence. It shows no interest in long flights. Only occasionally a bird can migrate a short distance. In this case, migration is forced, inherent in the northern populations. Corydalis have to leave their homes due to lack of food.
Climatic conditions are very important for grenadiers. They avoid areas that are too hot or too cold. These birds prefer to settle in temperate zones. For life, crested titmouse choose coniferous forests, gardens, parks, beech groves. Old, rotten trees must be present in the selected area. Deciduous plantings of corydalis are not interested. They avoid this kind of forest.
Interesting fact: Crested titmouse living in Southern Europe have a special preference for tree species. Thickets of Macedonian and sessile oak are very attractive for them. It is in these places that the largest populations of the animal have been seen.
What does the crested tit eat?
Photo: Crested tit, she is also a grenadier
The diet of Corydalis depends on the time of year. In winter, their daily menu is rather meager and monotonous. During the cold season, these birds spend a lot of time in the snow. There they try to find seeds, invertebrates that have been blown from the trees by the wind. Also, the diet includes tree seeds: spruce, pine. If there is not enough food in the habitat, then the bird can migrate to nearby territories.
In the summer, the diet is much wider. It includes Lepidoptera, beetles, homoptera, spiders. Most often, corydalis eat caterpillars, weevils, leaf beetles and aphids. With a similar food preference, crested tits are of great benefit to the forest. Most of the above insects are pests. Less commonly, the diet includes flies, hymenoptera, and other small insects.
A hungry titmouse can spend hours looking for food for itself. She carefully inspects every tree in the forest, examines the ground for suitable food. Every little thing falls under her gaze: twigs, cracks in the bark, crevices. After all, it is in such places that you can find caterpillars, insect eggs, and other delicacies. Corydalis looks out for larger prey from the air. She can almost instantly “slow down” in the air, noticing something edible on a tree or the ground. Despite its small size, the crested tit is an excellent hunter!
Peculiarities of character and lifestyle
Photo: Tufted Tit
Grenadier — a very rare bird for any locality. These animals try to stay away from people, preferring to live in the forest. However, in our time, more and more often you can see crested titmouse in the countryside and even in city parks. They unite with other birds, most often with representatives of the titmouse. The grenadiers sing rather quietly. Their chirping can be heard in early spring.
As already mentioned, the crested tit is an inhabitant of coniferous plantations. It avoids fully deciduous forests. For life, the animal chooses spruce forests, pine forests of middle age. Rarely chooses young trees for nesting. Small populations may occur in mixed forests. Grenadiers avoid too close contact with people. They prefer to spend their lives in the wild, only occasionally appearing in villages, city parks, squares.
Crested titmouse are very active animals. They cannot sit still. Every day, these birds examine the forest for food. They not only eat their prey, but also lay it in the nest, in reserve. Corydalis stock up on food year-round. This helps them survive in the winter when insects are not to be found. Grenadier houses are built in old stumps and trees. They choose natural cavities. Sometimes they occupy abandoned nests of crows and squirrels. Their houses are placed within three meters from the ground.
An interesting fact: It is known that many birds change their plumage due to changes in climate, weather conditions, and seasons. Crested tits, on the other hand, retain their usual color throughout the year.
The Grenadier is a flocking bird. She easily gets along in the same flock with kinglets, pikas, poison dart frogs, woodpeckers. Thanks to woodpeckers, such flocks of tiny birds have a high survival rate. Among the birds of its flock, the Corydalis can be recognized not only by its characteristic external features, but also by its burry sound.
Social structure and reproduction
Photo: Crested Tit, or Grenadier
The mating season for this species of birds begins in the spring. At the end of March, Corydalis are looking for a mate for themselves, they begin to build nests. Animals nest in single pairs. Males during the mating season very often sing loudly. It takes about eleven days for the grenadiers to build a nest. Sometimes it turns out to build a nest faster – in one week. Some pairs settle in already ready abandoned nests of other birds.
Corydalis nests are placed in the cavity of trees, rotten stumps with a narrow inlet. Usually “houses” are built low – at a distance of no more than three meters from the ground. However, nests of Corydalis have been found in nature, located both on the ground and at greater distances from the ground. To build a nest, the titmouse uses different materials: lichen, wool, hair, plant fluff, cobwebs, insect cocoons. Approximately ten days after the construction of the nest, the female begins to lay eggs. In one year, birds of this species can have two broods.
An interesting fact: Corydalis lay eggs before other types of titmouse. They appear in nests already in the first half of April.
At one time, the female Corydalis lays about nine eggs. The eggs are small, have a shiny shell, white in color with reddish and purple spots. By weight, the eggs do not exceed 1.3 grams, and the length is only sixteen millimeters. After the eggs appear, the female remains in the nest. She incubates future offspring for fifteen days. At this time, her pair is engaged in foraging. The male not only eats himself, but also feeds the female. After two weeks, chicks are born. They are born completely helpless, so at first they are looked after by their parents.
Natural enemies of crested tits
Photo: What the Great Great Tit looks like
The grenadier is a very small bird. She is practically unable to defend herself in the wild. For this reason, such animals stray into flocks. So they are more likely to survive. In order not to become a victim of a predator, the crested tit must be extremely attentive, at the slightest danger, hide in narrow crevices located in the trees. Natural abilities help Corydalis to protect themselves from certain death. They are quite fast and maneuverable.
The natural enemies of crested tits include:
- birds of prey. Almost all birds of prey are dangerous. Crows, eagle owls, owls will never refuse to dine with grenadiers. Predators attack small birds right in the air. They deftly capture their prey with tenacious paws;
- cats. Corydalis are hunted by wild cats, but sometimes they become prey for ordinary domestic cats. Domestic cats attack birds that accidentally get lost in the park, in the courtyard of a private house;
- martens, foxes. These animals catch small birds on the ground when they are looking for grain food;
- woodpeckers, squirrels. Grenadiers compete with these animals for the best hollows in the forest. Woodpeckers, squirrels often destroy corydalis houses, sometimes steal their eggs, kill offspring.
Population and species status
Photo: Tufted Tit
The crested tit is a widespread animal. Its habitat covers almost all of Europe, the Southern Urals. This is a sedentary bird, which only in exceptional situations changes its place of residence. Therefore, the size of its population is easily monitored by scientists. At the moment, the number of Corydalis is from six to twelve million. It has been given a conservation status of Least Concern.
Population size is almost always stable. Only sometimes the population undergoes drastic changes. For example, it greatly decreases in years with severe winters. Due to frost and lack of food, many birds die. However, already at the end of spring, crested tits renew their population due to high fecundity. In one clutch of this bird there are always at least four eggs. A female can reproduce twice a year.
An interesting fact: Crested tits are used by scientists as model animals. With their help, the ecology, the behavior of birds is studied. Grenadiers are also used in scientific research by geneticists.
The Corydalis population is currently high. However, there are still certain negative factors leading to a decrease in the number of birds. This is not only a cold snap, but also a significant reduction in the number of coniferous plantations. Uncontrolled deforestation can lead to the extinction of animals.
The crested tit is a small, widespread bird. It has a bright, memorable appearance and is of great benefit to the environment, destroying harmful insects in coniferous forests. Grenadiers are songbirds. Their quiet chirping can be heard at the end of March. Today, this bird species has a stable population.
