The European Crested Tit, or simply Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus) (formerly Parus cristatus),called Tofsmes in Skåne, is a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. It is a widespread and common resident breeder in coniferous forests throughout central and northern Europe and in deciduous woodland in France and the Iberian peninsula.
T
In Great Britain, it is chiefly restricted to the ancient pinewoods of Inverness and Strathspey in Scotland, and seldom strays far from its haunts. A few vagrant crested tits have been seen in England. It is resident, and most individuals do not migrate.
Passerine bird
A passerine is any bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or — less accurately — as songbirds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by the arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back)
, which facilitatesperching. With more than 110 families and some 5,100 identified species, Passeriformes is the largest order of birds and among the most diverse orders of terrestrial vertebrates.
The passerines contain several groups of brood parasites such as the viduas, cuckoo-finches, and the cowbirds. Most passerines are omnivorous, while the shrikes are carnivorous.
The terms “passerine” and “Passeriformes” are derived from Passer domesticus, the scientific name of the eponymous species (the House Sparrow) and ultimately from the Latin term passer, which refers to sparrows and similar small birds.
Perch
nouna thing on which a bird alights or roosts, typically a branch or a horizontal rod or bar in a birdcage. • a place where someone or something rests or sits, especially one that is high or precarious:Marian looked down from her perch in a beech tree above the road.
verb[no OBJ., with ADVERBIAL OF PLACE] (of a bird) alight or rest on something:a herring gull perched on the rails for most of the crossing.
Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus) distribution map
By Viktor Kravtchenko - Own work based on the following data:, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6738589By Viktor Kravtchenko Own work based on the following data:, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6738589
Range map from www.oiseaux.net - Ornithological Portal Oiseaux.net
www.oiseaux.netis one of those MUST visit pages if you're in to bird watching. You can find just about everything there
Taxonomy and systematics This species was formerly placed in Parus, but the distinctness of Lophophanes is well supported, and it is now recognised by the American Ornithologists' Union and the British Ornithologists' Union as a distinct genus.
The current genus name, Lophophanes, is from the Ancient Greek lophos, "crest", and phaino, "to show". The specific cristatus is Latin for "crested"
Behaviour and ecology It is an easy tit to recognise, for besides its erectile crest, the tip of which is often recurved, its gorget and collar are distinctive. It is, like other tits, talkative, and birds keep up a constant zee, zee, zee About this soundbirdsong, similar to that of the coal tit.
It makes a nest in a hole in rotting stumps. This bird often feeds low down in trees, but although not shy, it is not always easily approached. It will join winter tit flocks with other species.
Like other tits it is found in pairs and it feeds on insects (including caterpillars) and seeds.