Birds come in all different types and sizes. They live all over the world. Among all animals, only birds have feathers. There are about nine thousand different species of birds.

Birds can be very large (ostrich), but they can also be tiny, no larger than a butterfly or dragonfly, which weigh only a few grams (hummingbird). There are also birds that cannot fly at all (penguins).

Some birds live only in the forest (cuckoo), some - only in the steppe (lark). But there are also birds that cannot live either in the forest or in the steppe. There are birds that nest only in the mountains (eagles), or only near the sea (seagulls).

Some birds feed on fish, others on insects, and others on berries and seeds. Birds that eat other birds and animals (falcon, kite) are called raptors. Birds that feed on insects (swallow) are called insectivores. “Vegetarian” birds that eat only plant foods, mainly berries and seeds (bullfinch, waxwing) are called granivores.

Some birds settle in hollows, while others build their nests on the ground or in the branches of trees and bushes. Birds that settle in hollows (woodpecker, nuthatch, pika) are called cavity nesters. Birds that build their nests on the ground (lapwing, partridge and quail) or in the branches of trees and bushes (crossbill, oriole) are called open-nesting.

In addition to official scientific names, some birds have “unofficial” names that people give them. Some birds received names because of their unique voice (pischka), others because of their original coloring (yellow-headed wren), and others because of behavioral characteristics (nuthatch).

My parents and I regularly go for walks in the park near the Niva stadium. We often watch birds, listen to their singing and try to determine by their voice what kind of bird it is. One day, in the spring of 2008, we noticed a small motley bird running upside down along the branches and trunks of trees. We began to take a closer look at this bird. She had a bright red chest and dark brown wings and tail with white spots. At the same time, the bird uttered a ringing cry reminiscent of “tweet-tweet-tweet.” At first we thought it was a titmouse. We were very surprised that the titmouse was running upside down along the tree branches. Maybe she is sick and asks for help? Or was it shot down by evil boys with a slingshot? Suddenly we saw exactly the same bird on a nearby tree, which was also running up the tree upside down and loudly shouting “tweet-tweet-tweet.” This seemed very strange to us, and we began to watch these birds. I soon realized that the birds were not sick or injured at all, but that they just liked to run upside down, and that a ringing cry was not a call for help at all, but simply a way of communicating with each other. Taking a closer look, we noticed that they even differ in appearance from tits, as they have a short tail. We told our teacher that we had seen “acrobat” birds in the park, running upside down through the trees. The teacher explained to us that these birds are called nuthatches, and recommended reading literature about them. We decided to find out: what are the similarities and differences between the nuthatch and the tit? Why did we first see a nuthatch and mistake it for a tit?

The nuthatch belongs to the order of passeriformes, the nuthatch family. It weighs no more than 40 grams and looks like a sparrow. Has original coloring. The plumage on top is from ash-gray or grayish-blue to dark brown. The male's chest and belly are white, while the female's are yellowish or red. The undertail and sides of the body are red or brown, however, in the female they are less bright than in the male. The wings and tail are dark brown, sometimes with white spots. On the sides of the head, wide, long black stripes pass through the eye. The nuthatch flies relatively poorly, but it climbs tree trunks very well, carefully examining with its beak every crack and crevice in the bark, looking for insects in the cracks. The nuthatch has a rather long, strong, straight beak, similar to the beak of a woodpecker. He has strong legs, short and tenacious fingers. The special structure of the feathers of the short tail allows the bird to stay well on tree trunks and move along them both up and down with its head. The nuthatch is a sedentary bird; even in winter it moves only short distances from its nesting sites. The nuthatch is found throughout Russia. Settles in deciduous and mixed forests, in parks and gardens, as well as in the alleys of old deciduous trees.

The tit also belongs to the order Passeriformes, the tit family. Weighs from 20 to 40 grams, looks like a sparrow. It has a variegated color. The back is gray, the wing has a black “strap” stretching from the black throat to the abdomen, which is usually yellow. All tits have a wonderful distinguishing feature: white “cheeks”. The head is black on top with a bluish, raven tint, especially noticeable in males. The tit has a sharp, straight and rather short beak and strong tenacious legs. It is also found throughout Russia.

The nuthatch feeds on insects, caterpillars, and larvae, and only in the fall does it become interested in nuts and plant seeds. The nuthatch's beak is strong, and therefore this forest acrobat can easily cope with both hazelnuts and pine nuts. The nuthatch makes small reserves of food for the winter from various tree seeds.

In the summer, tits eat insect eggs, caterpillars, butterflies, aphids and beetles as food. An adult tit eats about two and a half times its own weight in insects per day. In winter, when insects become inaccessible, tits feed on seeds of spruce, pine, larch or fir. Unlike the nuthatch, the tit cannot cope with pine nuts or hazels, since its beak is not strong enough. In winter, tits are unpretentious; they will eat everything: from bread crumbs to porridge, but tits especially like fresh lard. They tolerate hunger worse than cold. A hungry tit will not be able to survive even minor frosts. Therefore, in winter, tits need help; they need to be constantly fed.

The nuthatch nests in tree hollows or birdhouses. If the entrance hole of the hollow is large, then he covers it with clay mixed with resin, adjusting it to its size. He does this so that no one else can squeeze through the hole.

The tit also nests in tree hollows or birdhouses. However, unlike the nuthatch, it can build its nest in the most unpretentious, hard-to-reach places, such as a hole in a wall, an iron pipe, a mailbox or a tin can.

The nesting period for nuthatches lasts from April to June. Usually, in one season, the nuthatch manages to make one or two clutches.

The nesting period for tits lasts from April to July. In one season, a tit manages to lay two or three clutches.

Usually, a female nuthatch lays 5-8 white eggs with rusty-red spots. Sometimes the number of eggs in a clutch can reach 13.

A female tit usually lays 8 to 10 white eggs covered with sparse dark brown spots. Sometimes the number of eggs in a clutch can reach 15.

The female nuthatch incubates the eggs for about 20 days.

The female tit incubates eggs for approximately 12-16 days.

Nuthatch chicks spend approximately 24-28 days in the nest. They grow up very slowly compared to the chicks of other passerine birds. After the chicks are born, the male helps the female to feed the offspring. They have to be fed very often, up to 350 times a day. Parents take care of the chicks even when they fly. However, after the second nesting, the parents do not have time for the first flow.

Tit chicks spend about 15 days in the nest. The parents feed the newly hatched chicks about 300 times a day. Parents take care of the chicks for about a week after they leave the nest.

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