Coal Tit ( Periparus ater )

Another day of using one of my "just in case" shots.  We had guests leave the Lodge on Wednesday and more arriving tomorrow.  Today was our only chance to do the cleaning.  Clickychick was busy in the morning so we had to go after an early lunch.  By the time we had finished, dropped off the laundry etc it wa dark.  Hence the just in case shot.

Coal Tits are, I find very difficult to photograph, they barely touch the perch grab a seed and are off. Today this one was a little slower than usual, not that helped a lot as it mainly perched with its back to me.

Coal Tits are a species that has, thankfully maintained a good population right through since the 60s.  There are around 166,000 pairs.  The blip just shows a good identification point, just.  One of the clear signs of a Coal Tit is the white stripe from the nape to the crown.  A tiny part shows in the blip.