For the past month at roughly three o’clock  a flock of delightful long-tailed tits descend on to my bird hangers to  feast on suet treats. They stay for about fifteen minutes and  then as quick as they have come, they have gone.

        These small attractive birds weigh about the same as a 10 pence piece and possess a tail  more than half their  length. They are very striking with  black, white and pink plumage.  The first clue that there are about are from their high-pitched calls. They  also never travel  alone and  can often be seen with other members of the tit family. A flock of long tail tits  which can be more than  50  is called a party. The  usual number consists of ten birds, comprising  a breeding pair, their offspring and one or two non-breeding adults that are related to the male of the pair. This flocking instinct is very important to such a small bird as many eyes can detect predators and numerous voices raised in alarm will alert all the birds to danger.

                 They have a weak flight described as ‘whirring’ and’ bouncy’ but  despite this they can travel as much as 7 kilometres in one day.  Found  mainly in woodlands. hedgerows and gardens  they do not live on moors and mountains.  They feed almost entirely on insects, spiders, caterpillars  and moth and butterfly eggs.  it has only been in relatively recent years that long tailed tits have become  visitors to garden feeders eating  suet balls and blocks, peanuts and to a lesser extent seeds.

                                   Mid-February is the start of pair formation. In March and April winter flocks will disband and females will disperse to join other flocks. Males establish their own territories and when unpaired females arrive the males perform jerky display flights  rising five or six  metres into the  air before diving into the vegetation  all the while opening and closing their tails. Sounds like a lot  of work! These displays may be performed by as many as four males  until a female chooses one  lucky suitor. Once they have paired, they begin  nest building.  This may take as long as a month to complete as the nest is very intricate. It is a domed  oval  structure with a round entrance hole high in one side and is made of mosses and  lichen held together with cobwebs. They also use silk from  bees and wasps  cocoons as it provides both strength and elasticity for the fragile nests. Nests are lined with tiny feathers and  are usually located  high in the trees. Once completed the birds will leave their winter flock and occupy their new nest.

                        The female lays between 7 to 12 smooth white eggs with tiny reddish speckles. The incubation period is about 15 days. On hatching the young are naked and are brooded by the female. The male as well as other helpers feed them, and this improves the breeding success. By 17 days the chicks fledge although they are still fed by the parents. A hierarchy eventually becomes established among the young birds.

The status of the long-tailed tit remains stable with an estimated population of  around 250,000  plus breeding pairs. In the UK the population can suffer in severe winters and  losses of up to 80 %  have been  recorded. Nests are often destroyed by jays and crows and of course adults suffer from predation by birds such as sparrowhawks.  Another threat is a  mismatch between when caterpillars are available  to eat and when the   baby birds are hatching. Little food  means chick fatalities. The loss of  habitat of course is always  a problem to all wildlife  but overall, it appears that the  long-tailed tit will  continue to delight us for  many years to come.

                                                                 BOOKS

Wildlife Watchers : Long-Tailed Tit  by Ruth Owen

                                                               TO MAKE CUTE  BIRDS.

                                                NEED :-

              Toilet Roll

              Glue

              Feathers-----buy or pick up feathers on country walks

              Felt tip pens and paint

              Material (optional)

1.Glue  feathers inside the end of a toilet roll tube.

2.Press these feathered  ends  together bend upwards and glue.

3. At the other end press ends together in opposite way  and using a felt tip pen make a    curve with scissors

4. Use one of the cardboard  scraps to make a beak by drawing a diamond shape , Cut this out and fold  in two. You have now got a little beak!

5. Paint the bird. If it is a Long-tailed tit paint it black, white and pink. Or you can make a very colourful bird by  gluing  scraps of material on to it.

6. Make wings out of cardboard scraps by drawing a leaf shape . Cut this out and paint or glue material on to it and then glue on to the sides of the bird.

7. Using a black felt tip pen draw and colour in eyes. You now have a bird!   Make more than one and hang them up using thread or set  them on a shelf or be very creative and make a nest from moss and twigs and set ‘Birdie’ in it

Long-tail Tit Article by Maureen Graham