Yakutia is the largest republic in Russia by territory and the most thick and permafrost in the world - from 200 and more than a thousand meters, it occupies about half the area of ​​the country and almost the entire territory of Yakutia.

Winter is long and fierce, spring is colorful and stormy, and summer is hot and short. There is no other place on the planet where the amplitude of temperature fluctuations would reach one hundred degrees: frosts in the sixties, heat in the forties. Summer nights are white and lighter, and long like St. Petersburg.

Such a harsh climate does not frighten birds and animals. We have many different species of birds, both wintering and migratory.

I want to tell you about the little sparrows that I watch both in summer and winter.

The Little Sparrow is a nesting resident bird. The male has a gray top of the head, a black throat and upper chest, and a brown stripe running from the beak through the eye to the ear; the abdomen and stripes on the wings are whitish.

The general color of the female is brownish-gray; on the back there are light and dark streaks; the underside from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail is 14 cm. Wing length is 73-75 mm. The sparrow's weight is about 29-41 grams.

During the nesting period, sparrows have a lot of trouble. First they find a mate. During the mating season, males become even more noisy and cocky. They constantly get into fights. In which each opponent tries to win in order to win a good place for building a nest. The place they choose becomes their territory. For example, they built a nest under the roof of our house. Both birds build the nest. They are built from stems, grasses, tow, wool, and feathers. At this time, it is not difficult to notice where the birds are building a nest. Everywhere you can see birds carrying something in their beaks. Birds have no teeth.

Sparrows have two clutches. At the end of May and at the end of June. The clutch consists of 4-8 grayish eggs with brownish spots. The dimensions of the eggs are 23x16 mm, weight 2.8-3.4 g. Both birds incubate for 11-13 days. After incubation ends, the eggs hatch into chicks. The chicks are born blind and naked. The chicks squeak loudly. They are always hungry. Beaks open wide. Parents put the food they brought into them. And again they go on a search. It's not so easy to feed voracious chicks. At this time I place worms, small insects, on the feeder. After a few days, the chicks can eat both beetles and mosquitoes. They stay in the nest for 10-12 days. After departure, the chicks are fed for 5-6 days. Their parents teach them to fly, look for food, and hide from enemies.

Sparrows take care of their feathers, take a “dust bath,” and preen themselves with their beaks.

It is very difficult for small sparrows to live in our cold northern conditions. In winter it is difficult to get anything edible. I know that birds die not from cold, but from hunger, so I regularly feed the birds. Sparrows are practically omnivores: they feed on food waste, bread crumbs, seeds, and insects. Our feeder hangs in the garden. There we grow elderberry, rowan, and birch. Sparrows constantly fly into the garden. I feed them during the day. Sometimes I throw seeds on the ground. They are not afraid of me, but they do not come close, they sit and watch me. I quietly move away and then they rush to eat, there are up to 50 of them, they walk in flocks.

Sparrows harm plantings by eating large quantities of seeds, but at the same time they also bring benefits, helping in the fight against insect pests. Many species of birds are of great importance in reducing the number of insects - pests of agriculture and forestry, carriers of pathogens of dangerous diseases of humans and animals. Birds kill especially a lot of insects during the period of feeding their chicks. They act as orderlies in nature.

We all need to take care of birds. Birds are our friends.

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