KILDARE WILDLIFE WATCH: What lays white eggs with red dots?

BirdWatch Irelands citizen science garden bird survey is underway. The Irish Peatland Conservation Council take part in this survey each year and since our return to the Bog of Allen Nature Centre after the Christmas break we have been busy recording the diversity of garden birds observing chaffinch, robin, blue tit, rook, blackbird, dunnock, treecreeper and even the little coal tit (Meantán dubh as Gaeilge).

Coal tits are one of Irelands smallest birds from tip to tail they are said to measure 10-11cm, however it is not the smallest bird in Ireland as the gold crest holds that title measuring 8.5-9.5cm.

You can identify the coal tit from its black tail, crown and bib, its wings are grey with a hint of green, its bill it small and pointed and it has blueish legs.

The coal tit feeds on conifer seeds and insects but when visiting your garden bird feeder they love peanuts and sunflower seeds.

Coal tits build their nest in small cavities in trees or walls, but are also happy to take shelter in one of your nest boxes often choosing mosses to line the nest. Coal tits breed from March to April with most eggs laid in May.

Each clutch will have between seven and eleven white eggs with red dots. The chicks will fledge within sixteen days but the young will be fed by their parents for at least another two weeks after that.

Thankfully, according to BirdWatch Ireland, there is no conservation concern around the population of coal tit with it also listed within the top 20 garden birds in Ireland.

The BirdWatch Ireland garden bird survey is a citizen science initiative asking members of the public to record wildlife and submit their records.

The National Biodiversity Data Centre is the national organisation responsible for maintaining Ireland’s biodiversity records.

You can visit the website and even find out what wildlife has been recorded in your community by looking at their maps.

We have been experiencing some really cold weather so while you are staying warm indoors why

not explore the biodiversity of your area this week by visiting https://maps.biodiversityireland.ie.