The Bigg Bird Forum

[Martin]

one thing I've noticed so far from looking at vids and clips is the black strip directly beneath it's beak - in a male it appears to be wider and almost triangular wider at the base, whereas in the female it seems to be a thinner oblong shape

anybody else notice this also ? or is it a bit pot luck ?

[Strixaluco]

Malcolm has a theory about the width of the band at the back of their heads - I'll see what he thinks of this new idea!

[ornithopod]

That seems very likely. The black stripe down the front of a great tit is much wider and stronger in the male than it is in the female.

My sexing guides are the result of watching bluetits from overhead when they are in their nest box. The black area you mention is very difficult to see from this vantage point so I cannot comment on it other than the above. The indications of a bluetit's sex that I have noticed are that the white band around the head of a male is wider than that of a female and that their head feathers are a bit darker and rougher, particularly during the breeding season. The trouble is that although in general I believe that a male's white band is wider, there is considerable variation in this between individuals of the same sex and so some broad banded females have wider bands than some narrow banded males!

Towards the end of the breeding season, males can loose their entire head feathers. Both sexes moult towards the end of summer and into early autumn, but the male's head feathers sometimes seem to start early and can leave the male's head completely bald - see the attached picture for a good example!

[Kit]

That's HILARIOUS! It looks like a baby turkey!!

[pauco]

Martin has brought up a very valid point here, and to me its why our hobby is so interesting. Just to add to the debate, i think the blue 'beret' on the male is much brighter, as is his wide blue neck 'collar' Overall the colour of the female is duller. This is not 100% its just my opinion.
Elizabeth, did we have a disscusion on this subject in a ermm other Forum? could be a few years back, dont time fly when your having fun, ok folks over to you, this could be a very interesting subject.

[Diana May]

I have looked in several of my bird guide books and each one says that the male and female bluetit is identical!! Only the juvenile is slightly different by being slightly duller and having yellowish cheeks.

Diana May

[Strixaluco]

I think differences gradually become apparent if they have been studied as closely as several people here have - and that's impossible to describe in a book.

There are theories about the difference between male and female robins too - but unless you get them to sit facing you side by side, you're not going to notice any difference in the red pointy bit on the head, as it comes down towards the beak!!!

[Kit]

The only way I've ever managed to determine their gender reliably is when they're feeding chicks, and the female sometimes has a very noticeable brood patch on her tum. Still, having a camera taking stills from the nestbox entrance makes a huge difference – you usually have to rely on memory, and even if you've had good and frequent sightings of your usual visitors with binoculars, it's still hard to 'hold' the image in your head when you're comparing tiny details.

Anyway...I want to know why Paul's so shy about telling us he's fond of starlings...!

[Emma]

[pauco]

[Strixaluco]

[Kit]

[Karwin]

[Strixaluco]

[pauco]

Are we not going off thread a little? Blue tit gender was it, we have covered colour-head cap-neck band- & neck stripe, just too try another tack. Is there a difference in the length of tail on the femail as against the male? i know it depends on stance and can be mistaken, but after a few weeks of looking i just wonder ? any thoughts folks? over to you.