Female Blue Tits: A Complete Guide

blue tit (blue algae) are very common in gardens in the UK and most of Europe. As you watch these beautiful little bluebirds hopping, gliding and dancing around your feeding station, you may be wondering if they are male or female. Well, here’s a complete guide to female blue tits, what they do, and how to tell them apart from the males.

It can be difficult to distinguish male and female blue tits based on feather color alone. They’re so similar in appearance that unless you’re an ornithologist, you might have a hard time noticing any differences.

Female blue tits are a little darker in color than males, while male blue tits have a neckband that extends from the eyes to the neck. However, unless the male and female are sitting together, not moving at all, it can be difficult to clearly identify the sex of a blue tit using these markings.

Some behavioral differences between male and female blue tits do make them easier to tell apart. That’s what we’ll focus on below.

The best time of year to differentiate female and male blue tits is April. This is when the breeding season for these birds begins and both sexes are busy with their respective jobs. Female blue tits build their nests every year. So, if you see a blue tit with moss, twigs, or grass in its beak, there’s a good chance it’s a female.

Male and female blue tits can be hard to tell apart by feathers alone

What is the difference between a male blue tit and a female blue tit?

Female blue tits have slightly darker plumage than males. However, unlike other birds where the females are brown and the males are the brightest green or blue, blue tits, for example, have very similar plumage colors. Therefore, identifying female blue tits by their feathers alone is very difficult, even for experts.

The biggest differences between male and female blue tits lie in certain behaviors. For example, at the beginning of the breeding season, female blue tits build their nests. They take about 1-2 weeks to complete. So, in early April, if you see a blue tit with a twig, grass, or moss in its beak, there’s a good chance it’s a female.

Males also become very territorial during the breeding season. They will fight other males to protect the female and the nest. So, if you see a blue tit feuding with another, they are likely males. If you see a blue tit rolling its eyes and questioning their life decisions, it’s a female.

Female blue tits have a truly remarkable ability to distinguish males by the ultraviolet color of their crest feathers — colors that, as humans, we simply cannot detect.

A pair of blue tits perched on a tree

What does a female blue tit look like?

Female blue tits have yellow breasts and blue wings, as well as rump feathers. Their faces are mostly white, with blue streaks starting at their eyeliner and running from the back of their heads down their necks.

They look very similar to male blue tits, but their plumage is slightly darker than the males. They also have slightly smaller neck bands than males. However, their colors are so similar that it can be difficult to tell if they are male or female based on that alone.

Female blue tit collecting nesting material

behavioral difference

April is the best time to sex a blue tit. This is the start of their breeding season, and both sexes have different jobs to accomplish. The female builds a nest. This takes about 1-2 weeks, which gives you a window of time to determine their gender. If you see a blue tit with any nesting material in its beak (twigs, hair, moss, feathers, grass, etc.), it is likely to be a female.

Male blue tits are also very territorial and aggressive towards other blue tits during the breeding season. So if you see any aggressive blue tits in your area during this time, it’s most likely a male blue tit.

sing and call

The songs and calls of male and female blue tits are very similar. However, male tits become very vocal during the breeding season. This is where he says it’s his patch and tells other males to avoid it.

If you hear a loud blue tit in April, it’s probably a male. Or a female telling him to return to the nest she had tirelessly prepared.

Blue tits feeding chicks in nest

nesting and feeding

During blue tit nesting season, you are less likely to see female tits. This is because they are busy laying eggs and brooding. They lay one egg per day and can lay up to 12 eggs. So, the female doesn’t have much time to do anything other than lay eggs and keep warm.

During this time, the male blue tit will bring back food from the nest for the female. After the chicks hatch, the males are also responsible for most of the feeding, but the females do some too. Thus, from early May to June, males are very active, while females spend most of their time nursing their young. If you see a blue tit during this time, it’s more likely to be a male than a female.

Eurasian blue tit perched on a branch in winter

Can a female blue tit raise her offspring alone?

Female blue tits build their nests and incubate their eggs alone. However, they rely on the male to bring food back to the nest. During nesting, females expend a lot of energy laying eggs (they lay one egg per day and can lay up to 12 eggs). Therefore, they have no energy to find food.

It is unlikely that a female blue tit would have the energy to raise her young alone, given how much energy she would use up this time of year.

How to Distinguish Blue Tits Outside of Breeding Season

Identifying blue tits outside of breeding season is very difficult unless you have very keen eyes. Their colors are so similar that even keen professional birders will struggle with it. The best way to do this is to take lots of pictures and compare those pictures with pictures of female and male blue tits.