Bushtit

Bushtit — The Bushtit is a long-tailed tit found in North America. It is the only species in the family found in the New World, and the only member of the genus Psaltriparus.

The Bushtit inhabits mixed open woodlands, often containing oaks and a scrubby under story. It is a year-round resident of the western United States and highland parts of Mexico, ranging from Vancouver through the Great Basin and the lowlands and foothills of California to southern Mexico and Guatemala.

The Bushtit is one of the smallest passerines in North America, at 11 cm in length and 5.3 g in weight. It is gray-brown overall, with a large head, a short neck, a long tail, and a short stubby bill. The male has dark eyes and the adult female, yellow.

The Bushtits is active and gregarious, foraging for small insects and spiders in mixed-species feeding flocks containing species such as chickadees and warblers, of 10 to over 40 individuals. Members of the group constantly make contact calls to each other that can be described as a short t sit.

As the “plain” Bushtit form lacks major identifying markings, it is often identified by their shape, calls, and behaviors.