Bushtit

Bushtit male

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Bushtit female

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A very small, drab gray bird with a long tail and a social nature. Bushtits are usually found in flocks of up to 40 individuals, often mixed in with other species.

Description

• Very small bird.
• Long tail and short wings.
• Plain gray-brown without markings.

• Size: 7-8 cm (3-3 in)
• Weight: 4-6 g (0.14-0.21 ounces)

Sex Differences

Female has light eyes, male has dark eyes.

Sound

Calls given constantly by flock. Contact call is distinct "tsit" or "spit." Also high pitched, bell-like "sre-e-e-e."

Conservation Status

Adapts well to suburbs. Range slowly expanding north and west.

Other Names

Mésange buissonniere (French)
Sastrecillo (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• The Bushtit is the only member of its family in the Americas; seven other species are found in Eurasia. All have similar complex hanging nests.

• The Bushtit often has helpers at the nest, birds other than the parental pair that feed nestlings.

• All family members sleep together in the complex nest during breeding, but they leave it after the young fledge, and sleep on branches.

Sources used to construct this page:

Sloane, S. A. 2001. Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus). In The Birds of North America, No. 598 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.