Long tailed Tit

I thought I would continue with my Saturdays post and today I am showing you the Long tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus).  I was sitting on the doorstep, waiting for Eileen to arrive to go bird watching and these 2 Long tailed Tits were flying back and forth from tree to tree.  I love these fluffy bundles of fun and am linking my post to Saturday Critters.  I will tell you a little about the bird as you go through the photographs.

 Long-tailed Tits are delightful birds to encounter, swinging through the trees in tight noisy groups. Their appearance, like a tiny, fluffy ball with a great long black and white tail is quite unmistakable.

Bottoms up.

Length - 51/2”  Tail is 3” and body 21/2”

 Sexes similar.

Voice -  The impending arrival of a flock is always announced by their calls. Their 'see-see' notes are similar to those of many other small birds but their stuttering 'trrrt, trrrt' notes are diagnostic.

Habitat - Breeds in dense vegetation on woodland edges, scrubby thickets and hedgerows. Occurs more widely in winter including woods and gardens.

Food - Small insects and spiders

 Behaviour - The constant calls of Long-tailed Tits are to help the flock stay together. If one bird gets separated from the rest of the flock, the others will double-back to 'rescue' it. This means that if you can imitate their calls you can attract a flock to within a few feet of you and it also explains why ringers sometimes find that a mist-net full of Long-tailed Tits often contains birds which have entered from both directions. This apparent 'care' for the well-being of other members of the flock is almost certainly related to the fact that many flocks are in fact family parties of closely-related individuals.

 Population trends - Apart from in France, where a decline has been noted, populations throughout Europe are at least stable and those in northern Europe have increased markedly. In the UK, for example, numbers increased by 46% during 1970-1994, though they seem to have levelled off since then.

                                           Migration - Sedentary.

 Population in Britain and Ireland - 273,000 territories in the UK, most common in the south. Ireland supports a further 20-100,000 territories.

Nests - The nests are in the depths of a prickly bush.  Starts weaving moss, cobwebs, wool & hair into a matted base.  Then works from inside making a domed roof with a small entrance near the top.  

Then they cover the outside with 3000 flakes of lichen to make it waterproof and inside they insulate it with 1,500 feathers.  Most found in one nest was 2.800.  I will show you a video at the end of this post however it is not mine but thanks to Grant Auton you can see a nest being build. 

Eggs -  8-12, white, laid in March to April. 

Incubation takes 12-14 days.

Young fledge after 14-18 days. 1-2 broods per year.

Ageing - Juveniles are shorter-tailed than adults, with much less pink in their underparts. The dark on the face is more extensive, completely surrounding the eye. However, once they moult in the Autumn they are indistinguishable from adults. 

The video can be accessed at 

http://youtu.be/kTa6-MXsomg

If there is a black space below, click it and the video will appear.

I hope you enjoyed hearing and seeing this lovely little bird and once again many thanks to Grant Auton from www.gautonphotography.com 

Thank you for visiting and also to those who left comments on any of my blogs.