At this time of year, the reserve’s blue tits are pairing up and scouting for nest sites.
Continue reading “Preparing for spring”Preparing for spring
DYK
Did you know that there are six million breeding pairs of blackbirds in the UK, each pair capable of producing up to four broods each year? No, neither did we.
Common blackbird song recorded by Beatrix Saadi-Varchmin (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) xeno-canto.org
Blue tit nest part 3
In the header photograph, the blue tit’s eggs are lying in a cup shaped nest lined with soft feathers that are obviously intended to keep the eggs warm. But around the edge of the cup there are larger feathers; their purpose is not so clear.
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Blue tit nest part 2
After yesterday’s video post, a reader asked what triggered the blue tit female (it is always the female blue tit that builds the nest) to stop collecting moss and to begin collecting what he called fluffy stuff. While failing entirely to find an answer to his question, I found a treasure trove of research into blue tit nests and the materials they use to build them.
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Southwick Country Park Nature Reserve 