Identification: The striking Blue on the wings, tail and especially on the crown make the Blue Tit an easy bird to identify. It is also the only British tit, apart from Crested, to have a dark stripe through the eye, a feature by which the yellower juveniles can be identified.

Habitat: Breeds and winters in woods, parks, orchards, hedgerows and gardens.

Distribution: A very abundant and widespread bird, present everywhere except Orkney and Shetland. In winter, varying numbers of continental birds increase the local population in southern and eastern England.

Widespread and numerous in most of Europe.

Population: 3 300 000 territories across much of Britain with over a million in Ireland.

16-21 million breeding pairs widespread across Europe (representing 75% of this species range). Absent only from northern Scandinavia.