Meet the little bird that looks like a white cotton ball with wings (Gallery)
On Japan’s second largest island, you may see small balls of floof fluttering among the trees.
They look like little cotton balls with wings, people have also compared them to cotton candy.
These unique birds are known as long-tailed tits or Shima enaga in Japanese.
this particular subspecies of bird is only found on this Japanese island.
So what makes these long tail titties so special?
Firstly, they are absolutely tiny, measuring 13-15cm long, and half of that is the tail!
Long-tailed tits typically have black eyebrows (see below), in Hokkaido they lose their eyebrows as they move into adulthood.
This only happens in this eye and leaves them with a completely white face that makes them look like mini snowmen.
This completely white face helps them go unnoticed during the island’s long winters.
These little cotton balls usually move in flocks of around 20-30 and even perform cool acrobatic tricks while fluttering around.
They typically lay 7 to 10 eggs at a time, which helps keep the population high.
They are quite vulnerable in cold winters, their young always recover due to the large number of eggs they lay.
Although the long-tailed tit is widespread from Western Europe through Russia to Japan, there is nothing like Hokkaido’s unique version.
With their fluffy little round bodies, it’s no wonder they have transformed into adorable stuffed animals.
source: Kingdomstv
