Willow tit

It looks like it's wearing a black beret.

Scientific name	Poecile montanus
English name	Willow tit
Japanese name	小雀
Classification	Aves
Classification details	Passeriformes Paridae
Full length	12-13m.
Distribution	Distributed across the Eurasian continent. Found in Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

Characteristics

A small bird of the tit family, about 12cm long.

The head above the eyes is jet black, as if it is wearing a beret. The upper part of the body is grey, but sometimes appears to have a slight brown tint. There is black feathers below the beak and down to the throat, but the area is smaller than that of the great tit or coal tit. The belly is entirely white.

Ecology

It lives in mountains and forests, and comes down to lowlands in winter. Outside of the breeding season, it sometimes forms mixed flocks with other crows. It eats small animals such as insects, as well as seeds.

Habitat

Hokkaido in May

Early in the morning, while walking along a forest path, a tit came down from the top of a tree. It seemed to be walking on the ground looking for food. It searched the ground for a while before returning to the forest.