Tufted Titmouse

We get such a kick out of seeing how many mealworms the Titmouse can stuff in its bill. Reminds us of seeing all those photos of Atlantic Puffins where they have stuffed an enormous number of fish in their bills.

This morning Don and I were talking about how the Titmouse stuffs as many mealworms in its bill as possible then flies off. Mr. and Mrs. bluebird, (see yesterday's post) just sit on the mealworm feeder and devour the mealworms themselves. That's because our Tufted Titmice are in a different stage of breeding than the bluebirds. The Titmice are feeding young, Mrs. Bluebird is sitting on eggs. She just needs to feed herself, for now.

You can tell a lot about your birds, just by tuning in and watching their behavior. The ones hurrying around with food in their bills are feeding young in the nest or fledglings who are out of the nest, but still dependent on the parents. Watch a bird with food in its bill and see where it goes, that will tell you where its nest is.