…captured in the village of Saku, just south of Tallinn. Avid North American birdwatchers or even those who put a birdfeeder out for the winter months will recognize the characters on this ball of suet as the chickadee – tihane, and nuthatch – puukoristaja. Their characteristic shapes, not to mention behaviour, are a dead giveaway. But in the case of the chickadee, which on the eastern shores of the Atlantic is known per British English as the tit; some of its euro cousins got an extra splash of colour. Photo: Reigo Lehtla

On the left is a Great Tit (Parus major in Latin) or rasvatihane, the direct translation of which, given its weakness, is fat or suet tit. Its black cap, white cheeks and black bib are like those of its relatives residing at Kotkajärve and Jõekääru in Ontario, but is embellished by a broad black stripe extending down the middle of its yellow belly, (the stripe being broader and the yellow brighter in males). Its back is slightly olive in colour. It is the largest of its family, about 14 cm in length, but is topped in the colour department by the Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus) or sinitihane, also common at feeders, who sports a striking blue cap and blue on its wings and tail in addition to the yellow belly and olive-green back.

The 4 remaining representatives of the Parus family in Estonia: soo- (Marsh), põhja- (northern / Willow Tit), tutt- (Crested) and musttihane (black / Coal Tit), are a more subdued black, brown, beige. The black and white tail of the very social sabatihane (Long-tailed Tit) is longer than its entire tiny, fluffy ball of a body.

If Canadian chickadees are known to call “chick-a-dee-dee-dee”, then the call of their Estonian counterparts is similar and humanised to “tii-tii-tihane”. This is in addition to a varied repertoire, including their unmistakable springtime mating tune. The rasvatihane makes its nest in tree hollows, nest boxes or even mailboxes, just as Canadian Black-capped Chickadees can be lured to the right nesting box.

It’s interesting to note that Finnish and Estonian sources of the origins of names claim the female names Tiia and Tiiu (Tiio) to be derived from the word tihane (or tianen in Finnish); prior to the foreign import Dorothea becoming another viable influence. Estonian bird names currently in use as given names include the female Lagle – brant or wild goose and Leevi – from leevike, bullfinch and male Kiur – pipit and Kaur – loon / diver, which is currently popular.

As for the other player, the nuthatch on the right of the photo (Sitta europaea), is the only one of its family to be found in Northern and Central Europe; 5 reside on the shores of the Mediterranean and another 4 in North America. It could be described as a small woodpecker (rähn), but has a characteristic short tail, flat-bellied shape and slightly upturned beak. It is quite similar to the New World Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis): blue-grey above and whitish below, with faintly rust-coloured sides and a black eye-stripe. The puukoristaja – which means “tree tidier” in Estonian, is most easily recognised by its manner of circling down tree trunks head-first, tidying them of insects or, contrarily, hoarding sunflower seeds in their crevices. Their English name is a corruption of the older “nuthack” from this habit of wedging nuts and other food in the cracks of tree bark and then hacking at them with repeated strokes of its long, sturdy bill.

These two birds lead the flock at winter feeding stations, but if you’re lucky, then not far behind are various sparrows (varblane), finches (vint), Redpolls (urvalind), Blackbirds (musträstas) and beautiful pink-breasted Bullfinches (leevike, Pyrrhula pyrrhula), whose relation to the North American Cardinal and Grosbeaks can be seen in its penchant for lingering dining. It enjoys its sunflower seeds at the feeding station, as opposed to the “grab and fly” method favoured by the more restless acrobats of the suet ball, who inspired poet Juhan Liiv (1864-1913) to pen the simple, yet endearing opening lines: Tihane lendab mu aknale, kaela alt valge, kõht kollane… A chickadee flies to my window, white-throated, its belly is yellow…

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