First snow - blue tit.

Blue tit (Parus caeruleus) is very well known and numerous titmouse in Europe (and Asia). It is common bird in woodland, gardens, even in city parks, it can be seen all year round. Often visitor at bird feeder in winter season. Nests in the holes in the trees and walls, also ocupies nestboxes.
This bird has one of the largest clutch among nidicolous species - it lays 10-12 eggs, but even up to 20 ! This is their strategy of survival - to produce as many chicks as possible, because this small bird has many natural enemies. Their eggs and chicks are often eaten by squirrels and great spotted woodpeckers. Adult birds are favourite meal of sparrow hawks and small falcons. Long and frosty winters are also deadly for them, so I ask everyone to feed those small birds in winter season. They have very short lifespan, about 2 years. So this is important to protect the population against decreasing.

Now it's hot summer and the heat is unbearable, so I still miss a winter, hence the winter mood on this pic.

Done in corel painter 8, brushes mostly used: oil pastels.

EDIT: oh, I forgot to write something about the.. shrub... It's Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa), a spieces of wild plum, popular eauropean plant, that blooms beautifully in early spring and has many blueish little fruits - sloes (drupes) - in late autumn. The sloes are edible (but bitter before first frost. The frost make them more juicy and less bitter) and good for jam od for producing a wine or something called "sloe gin"