A bird with a red tail and white wings. Brave V.M. School bird identification atlas. Order Passeriformes. Family Thrush. Robin. Nightingale. Rubythroat nightingale. Blue nightingale. Bluethroat. Bluetail. Black redstart. Redstart Coot
Common redstart (coot) Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Length 15, weight 16. The tail is bright red; The bird constantly shakes its tail. The forehead is white, the throat and cheeks are black (the female is uniformly grayish with a reddish tail).
Urges: "fucking-tick-ticking...fucking." Singing: short, slightly nasal trill; begins with an extended sound, then the middle of the song and a special ending (a song in three short steps) “fii-ryururyu-ryu-tsi-kru”; the end of the song is an imitation and, when repeated, can be different even for one bird (copies a great tit, a pied flycatcher, etc.). While singing, it sits motionless, often on the top of a tree. Mixed and deciduous forests, parks, gardens throughout the territory; in warm weather.
In the Carpathians, Crimea, Zhitomir and Kyiv regions, in rocky mountains and cliffs, a very similar species also lives in buildings - black redstart- Ph. ochruros, blackish-gray in color, with a white spot on the wing.
Blackbirds
Robin (robin) Erithacus rubecula
Length 14, weight 17. The chest is orange, the general color is grayish-brown, the tail is without white. The neck is pulled into the shoulders. They jump on the ground, often stopping suddenly and quickly “bowing”, shaking their tail. They don't do long flights. They are inactive on trees: they usually sit with their wings spread. They don't fly after prey.
Urges: “tsik-tsik”, “tsk... tsktsktsktsktsktsk...”, similar to the knocking of a small hammer. Sometimes a quick dry trill is heard. The song is ringing, chirping: it begins with a drawn-out, thin whistle, then follows a lower-pitched, intermittent silvery trill; It sounds minor and solemn. The song is short, but is repeated many times with different variations. In the evenings the bird often sings, sitting on the top of a spruce tree. Deaf, damp forests with dense undergrowth and dead wood. Found throughout the territory; in warm weather.
Hello friends!
For a naturalist biologist, winter is a pause to process the avalanche of spring and summer impressions and systematize observations. Today I was sorting out my archives and notes, planning what I could talk about in the blog, what should be clarified in the next season of observations. And I really wanted spring and blessed summer to come!Therefore, who is talking about what, and I will talk about the warm and fluffy, and infinitely cute - about the chicks from the Bukhtarma Reservoir.
Where is the phoenix bird found?
Do you know what a phoenix bird looks like? The imagination pictures something close to a firebird. Phoenixes are found in legends and fairy tales; they have no place in real life. But let's not rush to conclusions. A living and real phoenix can be found in our forests, parks and gardens.Carl Linnaeus christened it in 1758 redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus, What does phoenix tail mean?
Redstarts are small slender birds from the order Passeriformes, relatives of flycatchers and thrushes. About 10 cm in size, sometimes up to 15 cm. A distinctive feature of the bird is its red tail. The redstart shakes it like a wagtail, but faster, with pauses, so it seems that it has a flame instead of a tail. A bird that constantly lights up and does not burn out is the property of a real phoenix.
At the end of April, redstarts return from Africa to our parks, gardens, forests to their old nesting places and sing their song. But the most popular nesting sites for redstarts are sparse pine forests with shrubby undergrowth.
The males arrive first. They return to their former nesting sites and look for new niches for nests. Redstarts are cavity nesters and raise their chicks in covered nests. They are located in hollows, voids, under the roof, in rotten stumps.
Redstarts are territorial birds with nesting distances. A pair's range is determined by the distance over which the male's song can be heard. About 200 - 300 meters in diameter. Males jealously monitor boundaries and can even attack their own reflection.
Family secrets of redstart
Redstarts have constant pairs, but sometimes the phenomenon of bigamy in males is noted. The male becomes a bigamist. It's time to write a script for a soap opera.
If there are nesting places on the male’s territory, and the territory is rich in food, the female, who is left without a pair, settles on the edge of his territory. Usually, this happens when the first female has just laid eggs in her nest and begins to incubate them.
At the same time, the male rarely takes on the responsibility of feeding the chicks of the second wife, along with the main pair. Dad only feeds the second brood a little, or even pretends that he has nothing to do with it, and the children are not his.More often, the second female is forced to feed the offspring alone.Thus, the female from a permanent pair is a priority for the male.
I suppose the amount of help from the male to the second female depends on the number of eggs laid by the first female. If there are many chicks from the first wife, then the male gives his all there, and if there are few chicks, then the male’s care also falls to the offspring from the second female.
By the end of May, 4-9 bright blue eggs appear in the nest, about 17-19 mm in length and 13-14 mm in width. The female incubates the clutch. The male replaces his wife for about 15 minutes, when she flies out to feed, and sometimes feeds his girlfriend.
After two weeks, blind and deaf chicks hatch from the eggs. Their parents feed them together, making up to 500 flights a day. After another two weeks, the chicks leave the nest and become... The parents feed them for another week, and then the chicks begin adult life. And the ancestors make a second clutch during the summer, in early to mid-July.
Last year I was lucky enough to get into the pine forest during the week when the baby redstarts had already left the nest, but they had only just begun to comprehend the science of flight.
Redstart fledglings
The redstart song includes a main theme and a sub-song. Males constantly improve the sound of their subsong, including ambient sounds and snatches of songs of other bird species. In the Smolensk region, people heard the boastful patter in the redstart song: “I was in St. Petersburg, I was in St. Petersburg. I saw Peter. I saw Peter.”
Listen to the recording with your children. I wonder what words you will hear?
I don’t presume to talk about the song of an adult redstart, but when many years ago For the first time I heard their fledglings murmuring, I was surprised. At first I thought that some crickets were singing in the bushes. Because the calling song of chicks is very reminiscent of the chirping of hoarse and hoarse Orthoptera. Of course, the mystery was immediately resolved when I came closer to the bushes and saw a short red tail among the branches.
At the end of June 2016, I heard familiar murmuring sounds along the route and stopped in search of the source. Not far away I saw three chicks with short red tails and fluff sticking out on their heads. The puffballs have just left the nest.
Perhaps it was the first or second day of their stay on earth. I noted to myself that I saw older redstart chicks nearby. There is a high probability that this is a later brood of the second female. In the video you can hear the chick chirping.
I stood with my camera on the trail, getting closer for a good shot. The kids noticed me, but weren’t too scared. They were hungry. When the chicks were nearby, they began to beg each other for food in a characteristic pose. From a pine tree nearby, a female redstart with a caterpillar in its beak was vigilantly watching me. I embarrassed her, so she didn’t dare to fly up.
And suddenly, about thirty meters away, more voices began to murmur. The redstart darted towards the sound. Another hungry trio of chicks was waiting for her there. A mother with many children has six yellowthroats.
At first, the mother was noticeably nervous from my presence and did not feed either group of chicks. She sat down on a thick branch and examined me carefully, assessing the degree of harmfulness.
Then I began to notice that she left the branch for a couple of minutes and sat down on it again, sticking something with her beak into the cracks of the bark. Yeah! A redstart reserves on a branch. So that when I leave, I can quickly shove the loot into hungry mouths.
It happens that redstarts catch large insects, then they make live canned food out of them, storing them for future use. To immobilize large beetles, they hammer them on the ground, and the legs and wings of locusts and praying mantises are torn off. This supply is vital to ensure the continuous feeding of chicks.
When the bird was convinced that I was not dangerous, it began to feed the distant group of chicks from me. To ensure that both babies got food, I slowly drifted between them, taking pictures.
Every 3-4 minutes, a mother with many children appeared with food in her beak to satiate her offspring. She quickly flew up to the chick and put food into her open mouth. It was impossible to get a good picture of the process.
I was expecting a male to appear. I was interested to know if the other parent is involved in feeding the children. And is she right in the assumption that this is the brood of the second female? So I spent about half an hour next to the kids. I noticed only one female feeding.Leaving my family alone, I moved on my naturalist path towards new adventures.
How to make a house for redstarts
Redstarts are insectivorous birds. Only towards the end of summer are berries added to their diet. The common redstart has another name - garden redstart. Well, if such a bird settles on the site, then insect pests will be in trouble.
Phoenixes can be attracted to your site with small square dwellings. With a side height of 15 cm. Only the top board will be longer (15 by 20 cm) to create a canopy over the entrance. The entrance itself will be 3-4 cm in size.
Tits can also nest in such an artificial nest.You can prepare for spring in winter by making bird houses in advance. Pests in gardens and parks can be controlled using environmentally friendly, biological methods, without poisoning the soil with pesticides.
Orestart (formerly - Orestart)
The entire territory of Belarus
Thrush family - Turdidae.
In Belarus - Ph. ph. phoenicurus.
A common breeding, migratory and transit migratory species, not numerous in places.
The bird is the size of a sparrow. The male has brownish-gray plumage on the top of the head, back and wings, white forehead, black cheeks and throat, brick-red chest, buffy-white belly, bright red tail, only the middle pair of tail feathers are blackish-brown. The beak is black, the legs are brown. The female is colored less contrastingly, in grayish-brown tones. Her tail is the same as the male’s, bright red. The young are similar to the female, but have brown spots. Male weight 12.5 - 19.5 g, female 13-17.5 g. Body length (both sexes) 14-15 cm, wingspan 21-23 cm. Male wing length 7.5-8 cm, tail 5, 5-6 cm, tarsus 2-2.5 cm, beak 1 cm. Length of female wing 8 cm, tail 5.5 cm, tarsus 2.4 cm, beak 1 cm.
It is quite a conspicuous bird, primarily due to the bright color of its tail, which is clearly visible in flight. Voice - repeated several times “fuit-tick, tick.” The song is short and quiet, with flute tones - reminiscent of a short, somewhat nasal trill, begins with an extended sound and ends with a call that is sharply distinguishable from the middle of the song: “fymi, ryuryuryu-ryu, ryu-circus.”
Prefers dry biotopes - mainly light forests with well-developed undergrowth, as well as burnt areas and groves among fields. It is especially common in dry pine forests of different ages, sticking mainly to edges and clearings. It lives in tree plantations of cities and villages - in gardens and parks, in holiday villages.
The common redstart arrives and flies in the middle - second half of April. Old males are the first to fly to nesting sites and look for hollows and other places suitable for nesting. Once found, they sing intensely and guard. With the arrival of females and the formation of a pair, both birds guard the nesting area. At the height of the mating season (May, 1st half of June), the song can be heard not only during the day, but also in the predawn twilight and late evening. Males perch on the tops of trees, on plantings that dominate in height near residential buildings. At this time they are trusting and available for observation. From the 2nd half of June the singing fades away and stops completely in the 1st ten days of July.
It nests in separate pairs, which are sometimes located quite far from each other. It builds nests in various cavities, mainly in hollows. In this case, clear preference is given to those that have a wide inlet opening. It also uses voids and recesses in trunks, rotten stumps, all kinds of niches and crevices in buildings, in attics, under eaves. Often builds nests in woodpiles and piles of brushwood. In dry forests it often nests on the ground: between stones, under the roots of old trees, inversions, etc.
In southwestern Belarus, redstart nests were found in hollows of aspens, birches, and pines at a height of 0.5–4 m, in shallow potholes and niches in trunks, cracks in trees, stumps, in piles of brushwood, under the roofs of buildings, in cracks in walls, in hollows .
Willingly colonizes artificial nesting sites. Depending on the location, the nest can be located at different heights above ground level - up to 10 m or more (sometimes below the level - in rotten voids of stumps, etc.).
Under natural conditions, the nest is built from dry stems, pieces of bark of various trees, leaves, and moss. In human settlements, various rags, pieces of paper and other materials are added to these materials.
The outer part of the nest consists of loosely folded dry stems, grasses, leaves, bast, while the inner part is made of green moss. The nest is lined with feathers and wool, often with the addition of pine bark scales, pieces of bast, and birch bark films. The size of the nest depends on the size of the niche in which it is placed. In spacious hollows, as well as in nests built on the ground, there is, as a rule, much more building material. In some cases, it does not build a nest at all, but lays eggs directly on wood dust (like other birds - woodpeckers, etc.). Nest height 8-11 cm, diameter 10-17 cm, tray depth 5-6 cm, diameter 5-7 cm.
Average sizes of nests in southwestern Belarus: nest diameter 10.3–13.2 cm (average 11.1); tray diameter 7.0–8.2 cm (average 7.6); nest height 5.0–7.0 cm (average 6.1); tray depth 4.0–5.0 cm (average 4.5).
The nest is built by the female within 6–7 days.
In a full clutch there are 5-9, usually 6-7 turquoise or sky blue, sometimes quite dark, unmarked, matte or slightly shiny eggs. Egg weight 2 g, length 17-19 mm, diameter 13-14 mm.
A full clutch in southwestern Belarus contains 5–8 blue eggs (average 6.2). The average size of the eggs found here is 18.4×13.9 mm, egg weight is 2.0 g.
The first clutches appear in the third decade of May - early June. There is one brood per year. In case of death of the clutch, repeated nesting is possible. Two breeding cycles are recorded only in more favorable years in the south of the republic. It is mainly the female who incubates the clutch for 13-14 days, then both parents carry food to the chicks. The chicks are fed on butterflies, sawflies and their larvae, spiders, and occasionally terrestrial mollusks.
The number of food brought to the chicks (5–6) starts from 50 and reaches 390. The maximum number of food brought is noted on the 10–11th day of the chicks’ life. There were 2 feeding peaks: morning (06:00-08:00) and evening (18:00-19:00). The progress of feeding is influenced by the weather condition: in windy and rainy weather the frequency of feeding is reduced. In the first 2 days of life, the chicks are fed mainly by the male, and the female warms them. In subsequent days, both parents bring food at approximately the same intensity.
On the 13-15th day of life, the chicks leave the nest. The young begin to fly 7–8 days after leaving the nest. Within 7–10 days after leaving the nest, the parents feed them in the immediate vicinity of the nest or at a short distance from it.
It feeds on various insects and their larvae, as well as spiders; it collects food both on the ground and on tree branches; Larger insects are often caught on the fly. They eat blueberries, elderberries, etc.
The area of the hunting area is 7-10 thousand m².
The density (os/km²) in a number of ecosystems in southwestern Belarus is: in parks - 16.5, multi-storey blocks - 7.2, individual buildings in the city of Brest - 19.3; Ivatsevichi - 8.5; middle villages of Brest district - 38.6, villages of central Polesie - 14.6; holiday villages - 5.3; in broad-leaved pine forests of Belovezhskaya Pushcha - 6.5; in mossy pine forests of the Tomashovsky forestry 6.7 and Belovezhskaya Pushcha - 12.6.
In the 1980s in summer, 2.5 individuals/km² were recorded in the populated areas of Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Population density of the common redstart 1982–2010 in the village of Tomashovka (Brest district) it varied from 14 to 38 people/km², and in individual buildings in the city of Brest it was slightly lower and varied from 10 to 32 people/km².
Hollow nesting birds
Of all the birds, hollow-nesting birds are the easiest to attract to a personal plot. This group of birds nests in hollows hollowed out by woodpeckers or formed as a result of rotting wood; they also build their nests behind the peeling bark of dry trees, in uprooted roots, and woodpiles.
Common starling
The common starling has black plumage with a shiny metallic tint, a brown tail and wings. In autumn, the starling's plumage changes; white specks appear on it; young birds have lighter plumage on the throat. Starlings of this group settle near villages and villages. The common starling often finds food on the ground, sometimes in trees.
Nests are organized in tree hollows, birdhouses or nest boxes. Eggs are laid in mid-spring (May-April). Clutch - 5–7 blue eggs. Birds feed on various insects, most of which are pests of our gardens (garden cutworms, beetles, click beetles, cabbage weeds). It is estimated that the starling, while feeding its chicks, destroys up to 8 thousand May beetles and their larvae.
Pastor
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The head, neck, tail and wings of the pink starling are black with a metallic tint, the rest of the plumage is pink. Young individuals have lighter plumage. An adult bird has a crest on its head. This is a migratory bird inhabiting the south of Russia. Nests are made in rock voids, cliff crevices, and woodpiles. Egg laying occurs in May-June and consists of 4–6 blue eggs.
The pink starling actively destroys locusts and other insect pests. For breakfast alone, the pink starling requires up to 50-60 locusts; per day it eats up to 200 large insects.
gray starling
The plumage of this species of starling is gray, the upper body, sides of the head and abdomen are white, the neck and back of the head are black, and the base of the beak is bright yellow. The plumage of males is brighter; the plumage of young individuals is reddish.
The gray starling is a migratory bird that lives in mixed forests and groves and lives in flocks. Egg laying in May-June, consists of 4-8 blue eggs. A picture familiar from childhood: a tractor working in a field and starlings chasing it through fresh plowed land. The gray starling's menu consists mostly of insect larvae and earthworms.
House sparrow
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The female and male house sparrow have different plumage. The male has a gray head, a black throat and upper chest, a whitish belly and stripes on the shoulders, and a brown stripe running from the beak through the eye. The female and young birds have brownish-gray plumage, lighter on the lower part of the body. There are light and dark variegated patches on the back.
The house sparrow lives throughout almost the entire forest zone of Russia. Settles in cities and villages. It nests in crevices of buildings, under the roofs of houses, birdhouses, and in burrows on the slopes of ravines.
Laying occurs in April–July and consists of 5-6 eggs, white or grayish-blue with brown spots.
House sparrows feed their chicks with insects, mites, and arthropods; the diet of adult birds is supplemented with seeds of various weeds.
tree sparrow
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The tree sparrow is smaller than the house sparrow. The plumage of the back, wings and tail is brownish-brown, there are brown spots on the back, and a chestnut-brown “cap” on the head. The sides are white, the chest and belly are whitish, the throat is black, and there is a black spot on the cheeks. Females and young birds are similar in color, but slightly lighter.
The tree sparrow lives throughout Russia. During the nesting period it sticks to tree plantations, the rest of the time it prefers outbuildings and farmyards.
It makes nests in hollows, under the roofs of houses, and in birdhouses. Egg laying occurs in April–July and consists of 4–8 whitish or grayish eggs with dark speckles.
The chicks are fed with small beetles, spiders, hymenoptera and other insects. The diet of the first brood chicks consists of sawfly weaver larvae, pine sawfly larvae, and elm springtail caterpillars. Various beetles are added to the food composition of the second brood chicks, reaching up to 80% of the total food mass.
Observations show: sparrows feed their chicks about 26 times within an hour, that is, on average 300 times per day. In 15 days, parents fly to the nest 4500 times.
Jackdaw
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The jackdaw has a gray top of the head and neck, the rest of the plumage is black with a metallic sheen on the back and shoulders. The jackdaw lives mainly in the European part of Russia and the southern regions of Siberia. Jackdaws stay in flocks. This is a bird familiar to villages and villages. Jackdaws love to nest under the roofs of residential buildings, in hollows, chimneys, and burrows.
The jackdaw lays a clutch of 4–6 bluish-green and brown-speckled eggs in April-June. This is an omnivorous bird; it feeds its chicks with various invertebrates and the larvae of large beetles. Even small rodents can become its food. Jackdaws love leaf beetles, ground beetles, elephant beetles, darkling beetles, click beetles, and beetles. The rest of the food consists of plant foods: peas, oats, lentils.
Blue tit
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The blue tit's forehead and cheeks are white, the throat, stripe on the chest and around the cheeks are black, the chest and belly are yellow. There is a blue “cap” on the head, blue plumage on the wings and tail, and a green back.
Lives in the central and southern regions of Russia. The blue tit settles in deciduous gardens. This is a sedentary and nomadic bird. It makes nests in tree hollows. The eggs of the blue tit are white with red-brown spots; the blue tit lays them in April-May. The clutch consists of 5–10 eggs.
The blue tit's food mainly consists of insects, and less often - vegetation. The blue tit feeds its chicks with weevils and their larvae, bugs, butterfly caterpillars, small dipterans and membranous spiders. In huge numbers, the blue tit destroys the main pests of gardens and forests: gypsy moths and centipedes.
The singing period is mid-March to mid-July; they rarely sing in the fall.
Brown-headed Chickadee
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The back, wings and tail of the chickadee are brownish-gray, the top of the head and the spot under the beak are brown. Settles in coniferous and mixed forests. Nests in hollows.
White eggs with red-brown spots are laid in April-June. The clutch consists of 7-8 eggs. With the onset of cold weather, they fly to household plots in search of food.
This is an insectivorous bird that destroys a large number of pests. Chickadees feed mainly on beetles, caterpillars, pupae of moths, cutworms, and leaf rollers. While feeding the chicks, the chickadee flies up to the nest up to 20 times within an hour.
Singing begins in late January-early February and ends in late spring.
Tufted tit (grenadier)
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
This tit received this name because of the large whitish, pointed crest on its head with black transverse stripes. The plumage of the back, wings and tail is grayish-brown, the throat and stripes above the eye are black. The body is white with a brownish coating.
The tufted tit lives in the pine forests of the European part of Russia. In winter, it visits home gardens, looking for food on the lower branches of trees. The tufted tit feeds on insects and spiders. Loves weevils, leaf beetles, click beetles, and sometimes uses plant seeds for food.
Tufted tits make nests in hollows with very narrow holes (no more than 30 mm in diameter). Such hollows are usually located very low, almost close to the ground.
Singing begins in February-March, more often at the end of winter and summer.
Great tit
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
This is the largest of all tit species. The plumage of the head, throat, stripes on the yellow chest, and the undertail are black. The wings and tail are bluish, the back is green or yellowish-gray, the cheeks and the spot on the back of the head are white.
Lives in most of Russia. Likes to settle in thickets along river banks. The nest is made in a hollow. White eggs with red-brown spots are laid in March–June. The clutch consists of 9–13 eggs.
Like all tits, it finds food on trees and bushes. It prefers animal food; in winter it also eats plant food. The great tit eats as much food per day as it weighs.
Regular singing begins at the end of February.
Common redstart (coot)
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The plumage of the male and female coot is somewhat different. The male's top of the head, neck and back are ash-gray, the forehead is white, the sides of the head and throat are black, the lower body and tail are bright red. The female also has a red tail, an ocher-white belly, and the rest of the plumage is brownish-gray. Young birds have brown plumage with light streaks and a red tail.
The common redstart lives in the European part of Russia and the south of Western Siberia. Redstart nests can be seen in rock cracks; redstarts also like to settle under the roofs of residential buildings and titmice. Redstart eggs are white or pale blue. The clutch consists of 4–6 eggs.
The bird feeds its chicks and feeds itself on insects. The coot has different hunting methods; in search of food, it can run on the ground like a wagtail, catch insects in the air like a flycatcher, and collect food on tree branches and bushes like a warbler or tit.
Pied Flycatcher
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The male flycatcher has a black top of the head and neck, back, wings, and tail, a narrow stripe on the forehead, stripes on the wings, the forehead and the underside of the body are white. The plumage of young birds and females is grayish-brown.
The pied flycatcher lives in the European part of Russia and the south of western Siberia. It builds nests in hollows. Eggs are laid in May-June; the eggs are light blue in color; the clutch consists of 5–7 eggs.
The pied flycatcher feeds on flies, butterflies, weevils, click beetles, click beetle larvae, beetles, leaf beetles, tree bugs and other insects.
Gray flycatcher
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The gray flycatcher has a brownish-gray upper body, tail, and wings; there are longitudinal brown streaks on the head and back. The underside of the body is white with a brownish coating and streaks on the crop and chest.
The gray flycatcher inhabits the entire European part of Russia and the south of Eastern Siberia. It makes nests at the base of thick branches behind loose bark or in hollows, and also settles under the roofs of houses. A clutch of 4–6 greenish eggs with rusty spots is laid in May-June.
The gray flycatcher catches insects in flight. She can eat up to 450 flies per day. This is an extremely unpretentious bird; sometimes two pairs can simultaneously live in different corners of the same nesting area. The gray flycatcher is very easy to attract to the site.
Moskovka
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The head and upper chest of the Muscovy are black, the cheeks, the spot on the back of the head and the chest have white plumage. The back is gray with an olive-blue tint, the wings and tail are brownish-gray, the belly and sides are white with an ocher tint. This is a small bird.
Muscovite settles in coniferous and mixed forests throughout Russia. Birds often live in flocks together with tits. When not nesting, it flies to villages and villages, destroying insect pests in gardens and vegetable gardens. The Muscovy makes its nests in hollows.
The Muscovy feeds mainly on insects, but in winter its diet is replenished with tree seeds, mainly conifers. Loves beetles, caterpillars, lepidopteran pupae, spiders, small worms, weevils, pine hawk moths.
Starts singing in February.
White wagtail
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The wagtail has black plumage on the top of the head, the back of the head, the crop, the top of the breast and the tail, the back is gray or black, the forehead, the strip from the beak through the eye to the ear, the stripes on the sides of the tail and on the wings and the entire underside of the body are white. Young wagtails have gray plumage without black spots.
Wagtails settle in floodplains of rivers and other bodies of water. This is a bird familiar to home gardens. It stays on the ground all the time, running alone, less often in pairs. Nests are built in hollows, under the roofs of houses, in niches in cliffs and in rock cracks.
The wagtail's eggs are white with gray spots; the wagtail lays them in April–July. The clutch consists of 5-6 eggs.
The area where the wagtail searches for food is quite large; in search of food, the bird flies 200-300 meters from the nest.
The white wagtail feeds only on animal food: flying insects, spiders, weevils, and beetles. The wagtail is of great benefit in the garden, where this bird quickly runs around the beds in search of prey. Wagtails do not like tall grass; they are more attracted to paths, paths, and weed-overgrown boundaries.
They sing rarely - only at the beginning of the nesting period.
Nuthatch
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The upper side of the body of this bird is grayish-blue, the wings and tail are brownish-black. There is a black stripe from the beak through the eye to the ear, white spots on the tail, white throat, white chest and belly with a reddish tint.
The nuthatch inhabits forests almost throughout Russia. The nuthatch climbs tree trunks and sometimes joins flocks of birds. Usually leads a nomadic life. Nests are built in hollows; the entrance to the hollow is coated with clay to reduce its size.
The nuthatch lays eggs in April–June. The clutch consists of 6–8 white eggs with red-brown speckles.
The nuthatch's food consists of insects (leaf beetles, bugs, moth caterpillars, butterflies, etc.) and tree seeds (hazelnuts, acorns, maple seeds, alder seeds, coniferous trees).
In private plots, the nuthatch can settle in birdhouses and titmouses hung at a height of 4–8 meters; it prefers nest boxes. At its nesting site, the nuthatch does not tolerate its fellows, while it does not pay any attention to other cavity nesters; for example, it can live in a colony of starlings.
The nuthatch begins to sing regularly towards the end of winter; by the beginning of incubation, the singing stops.
Hoopoe
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
A bird with a beautiful large fan-shaped crest. The plumage of the hoopoe is brick-reddish, the abdomen is light, the wings are black with wide white stripes, the tail and stripe on the crest are black, the base of the tail is white.
The hoopoe loves open spaces, lives in the southern regions of Russia, and can also be found in the Moscow region. It makes nests in hollows, piles of stones, rock crevices, and cliffs. Lays a clutch of 3–9 in May-June, the eggs are grayish in color. It finds its food on the ground and feeds on various invertebrates.
Kestrel
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The kestrel is a small falcon. It has wide wings and a long tail. The upper body of the kestrel is reddish-brown with round streaks, the lower body is ocher-colored with longitudinal streaks, the head is gray, and there is a dark stripe at the end of the tail. Young birds have lighter plumage with blurred streaks.
Settles throughout Russia except the tundra. A common bird in villages and villages. Nests in hollows, attics, old nests of crows and rooks. The clutch is laid in April-May; it consists of 4–6 ocher-colored eggs with red-brown spots.
The kestrel's food is small rodents and large insects (locusts, grasshoppers, etc.).
In the central regions of Russia, kestrels making their nests in attics are a common occurrence.
Little owl
Audio: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or higher) is required to play this audio. Download latest version. In addition, JavaScript must be enabled in your browser.
The plumage of the little owl is monochromatic with light specks ranging from light brown to reddish-sand color. The little owl lives in the southern regions of Russia; it makes nests in burrows, which it often digs itself, making them quite deep. He also likes to live in attics in abandoned buildings.
Lays eggs in April-May. The clutch consists of 4–8 white eggs. The little owl's food is small rodents; on occasion it can also catch small birds; it loves lizards and large insects.
The little owl actively exterminates mouse-like rodents, so it must be attracted to garden plots in every possible way.
In the next - third part, you will be able to get acquainted with material telling about open nesting birds.
The common redstart is a bird belonging to the thrush family, suborder of songbirds, order of passeriformes. It is comparable in size to a sparrow: body length is only 16 cm, wings are about 8 cm, weight is less than 20 g. Females and males differ in color. Males have a gray back, a reddish belly, a tail that “burns with fire” (hence the name), and often trembles.
There is a white spot on the forehead, the sides of the neck and throat are painted black. The female is less bright, in gray-brown tones, but the tail is also red.
The redstart bird inhabits almost all deciduous and parks. It prefers to stay on the lower parts of trees, bushes and even on the ground. They often settle close to humans. They sing loudly in a trill.
Males return from wintering on the African continent earlier than females. They immediately look for a nesting place - a hollow, a cave or a pile of dead wood. They jump near the found place, but do not fly far, because their fellow tribesmen may occupy it. It happens that they sit in a hollow and hang out their tail, as if it were a sign: “There is a decent home, and with it - a stylish groom!”
The female stumbles upon an “ad,” flies up to the hollow, and soon 6-7 blue eggs appear there. The chicks will appear in two weeks. She incubates mostly, rarely replaces her, and sits a little. He sings most of the time of the day, and even sang before his “marriage.” It falls silent at midnight, sleeps for 3-4 hours, then again gives out a deep trill, often flying to the very top of the tree.
When the chicks appear, there is neither time nor energy left for singing. The common redstart (both male and female) flies to its nest 500 times a day to feed its offspring. This continues for two weeks until the chicks leave the nest. But it doesn’t get any easier for parents: they have to feed in the same way and monitor their restless offspring. A caring parent is a redstart. The photo in the article demonstrates the process of feeding an almost adult baby. This period lasts another week, since young people are still not good at flying.
When the chicks grow up and become independent, the parents can rest. But after some time, new eggs appear in the nest. And again the hatching and feeding of the second generation per season begins. And the brood independently wanders through the forest.
With the onset of autumn, the common redstart begins to prepare to fly to warmer climes. Muted tones appear in the bird's plumage, it becomes duller, losing brightness. They fly away at the end of September and always at night. In October, the birds reach Africa, where they spend the winter. They leave the wintering area in March, fly quite quickly, and reach their nesting sites a month later.
Over the summer, the common redstart destroys many click beetles, mosquitoes, caterpillars, ants, various leaf beetles, bugs, dung beetles, flies, spiders and other plant pests and their larvae. In this way, it greatly benefits the vegetation of forests and parks. At the end of summer it can eat berries and plant seeds.
People often catch redstarts in the spring, luring them in various ways. The wings of the caught specimens are tied so that they do not fight in the cage for the first time. With good care and proper food, the bird takes root, and it can live for several years in captivity. However, it is extremely rare to hear her melodic songs.