Bushtit (Aegithalidae Family)

Year-round residents of Quail Ridge, Bushtits (Psaltriparus minimus) are prevalent in live oak and chaparral habitats both on the ridges and in Decker Canyon. In California they inhabit all biomes except the High Sierra and the southeastern desert region. Bushtits are small, unmarked, gray-brown birds with a short bill and a relatively long tail. Adult females have cream-colored eyes, whereas those of juveniles and adult males are darker. Commonly found in loose flocks, Bushtits emit a high-pitched twittering from trees or shrubby thickets. They also are highly gregarious with other species, forming mixed flocks with kinglets, wrens, and chickadees in the winter. Bushtits forage by gleaning insects and spiders from foliage. They breed from April to July and have a clutch size of five to 13 eggs. Bushtits construct gourd-shaped nests of twigs, moss, leaves, and lichen that are bound with spider silk and suspended from trees or bushes.

Species and Guild Accounts

Birds Page

Listen and identify birds at: http://identify.whatbird.com/mwg/_/0/attrs.aspx

Photo Credits: Title, California Quail and Bushtit (Joyce Gross). For more pictures see: http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/photos/browse_imgs/bird.html