Coal Tit

Periparus ater

Tiny conifer specialist with a white nape stripe. Caches thousands of seeds and remembers every hiding spot.

Population: Very large and stable global population; UK breeding population alone estimated at ~660,000-680,000 territories, with European totals in the tens of millions of mature individuals
Habitat: Coniferous and mixed woodland (especially spruce, pine, and fir), also parks and gardens; occurs from lowlands up to ~3,800 m in parts of its range (e.g. Bhutan)
Fun fact: The Coal Tit is the smallest member of the tit family in its range, distinguished by a white patch on the back of its black head; it habitually hoards seeds one at a time in bark crevices to retrieve during winter, and in cold winters develops red blood cells with extra mitochondria to help generate body heat.
Range: Widespread resident across the temperate to subtropical Palearctic, including Europe, North Africa, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and Asia from Siberia/Himalayas to China, Japan, and Taiwan; mostly non-migratory except some Siberian populations which move south seasonally
Diet: Insects, spiders, and their larvae in the breeding season; seeds and nuts (conifer seeds, beechmast, sunflower seeds) in autumn/winter, which it frequently caches for later retrieval; also forages with redpolls/siskins on alder and birch seeds
Size: 0.115 m
Wingspan: 0.19 m
Lifespan: 3 years

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