City Birds Fare Better in Cold

Scientists have long been interested in whether animals do better in urban or rural environments. In the case of blue tits, scientists from the Angela Ruskin University have been comparing the progress of bird colonies in the city of Cambridge with ones living out in the Brampton Wood nature reserve. In the past they found that the country birds "fared significantly better" than their urban friends, also breeding more successfully.

In 2012, however, the situation reversed. The cold and wet weather of that year hit the country birds much harder. The city birds bred more successfully, laying more eggs and hatching out chicks much more quickly than their rural counterparts.

The main food source of the blue tit is the caterpillar. In the harsh weather of 2012, there was a reduction in the availability of these tasty grubs. This hit the country birds hard. However, the urban blue tits were more used to looking around for other food sources, so they were better able to find other things to eat.

Scientists speculate that if global warming leads to more extreme weather conditions then this may work further to the advantage of the urban blue tit.

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