Discover the Great Tit (Parus major): A Bold and Familiar Garden Visitor

Identification: Bold and Distinctive

The Great Tit is a relatively large tit, easily identified by its characteristic plumage and confident demeanour.

Plumage Details

Adult Great Tits sport a glossy black head and "bib" that contrasts sharply with prominent white cheek patches. The back is an olive-green, while the wings are blue-grey with a distinct white wing-bar. The tail is also blue-grey with white outer feathers. The underparts are bright yellow, bisected by a broad black stripe running from the bib down the belly. This stripe is a key identification feature.

Male, Female, and Juvenile Differences

Males and females are similar, but the male's black belly stripe is typically broader, blacker (especially towards the vent), and more clearly defined than the female's, which is often narrower and sometimes broken. Females may also have a slightly duller yellow on the breast. Juveniles resemble adults but are much duller overall, with yellowish-tinged cheeks and bib, and a less distinct, often sooty, belly stripe. Their colours become more defined after their first moult in late summer/autumn.

Size and Build

• Length: Approximately 13.5-15 cm (5.3-5.9 inches).
• Wingspan: Around 22-25 cm (8.7-9.8 inches).
• Weight: About 16-21 grams (0.56-0.74 oz), making it noticeably larger and heavier than the Blue Tit.

They have a sturdy build with a relatively strong, black, conical beak suitable for cracking seeds and dismembering larger insects. Their legs and feet are strong, allowing them to cling to various surfaces, though they are generally less acrobatic than Blue Tits.

Habitat & Distribution

The Great Tit is a highly adaptable species, found in a wide array of habitats across an extensive geographical range.

Preferred Habitats

Great Tits favour broadleaved and mixed woodlands, but they are equally at home in parks, mature gardens, hedgerows, and orchards. They are less common in purely coniferous forests and very open, treeless areas. Their adaptability has allowed them to colonise urban and suburban environments successfully, becoming one of the most frequently encountered garden birds.

Geographic Range

This species boasts a vast distribution, stretching from the British Isles and Iberia across the entirety of Europe, into much of Asia (including parts of the Middle East, Central Asia, India, and Southeast Asia), and even parts of North Africa. Numerous subspecies are recognised across this range, exhibiting variations in size and plumage details. Most populations are resident, but northern and eastern birds may undertake irruptive movements south in harsh winters.

Behaviour: The Intelligent Investigator

Great Tits are known for their intelligence, boldness, and complex social behaviours.

Foraging and Problem-Solving

They are active foragers, searching for food on tree trunks, branches, and on the ground. While they can hang upside down, they are generally less agile than Blue Tits. Great Tits are renowned for their problem-solving abilities and capacity for learning. The historical example of them learning to peck through milk bottle tops to access cream is a classic testament to their ingenuity. They are often dominant over smaller birds at feeding stations.

Social Interactions

Outside the breeding season, Great Tits often form flocks, sometimes joining mixed-species flocks with other tits and small woodland birds. Within these flocks, complex dominance hierarchies can exist. During the breeding season, they become highly territorial, with males defending their territories vigorously through song and aggressive displays.

Diet & Feeding Habits

The Great Tit has a varied diet that shifts according to seasonal availability.

Primary Food Sources

During spring and summer, particularly when raising young, their diet is primarily insectivorous. They consume a wide range of insects, spiders, and are especially fond of caterpillars, which form a crucial part of their chicks' diet. A single pair can collect thousands of caterpillars to feed their brood.

Autumn and Winter Diet

In autumn and winter, as insects become scarce, Great Tits switch to a diet rich in seeds (especially beechmast, sunflower seeds), nuts (like peanuts and hazelnuts, which they can hammer open), and berries. They are enthusiastic visitors to bird feeders, readily taking sunflower hearts, peanuts, suet products, and seed mixes. They are also known to cache food for later retrieval.

Feeding Young

Both parents are actively involved in feeding the chicks, making countless trips to the nest with protein-rich insects. The availability of caterpillars is a key factor in their breeding success.

Nesting & Reproduction

The breeding season for Great Tits is a period of intense activity, from courtship displays to diligent chick-rearing.

Courtship and Nest Site Selection

Courtship begins in late winter or early spring, with males singing to establish territories and attract females. Displays can include exaggerated postures and courtship feeding. Great Tits are cavity nesters, utilizing holes in trees, walls, or readily adopting nest boxes. A nest box with an entrance hole of around 28mm or 32mm is suitable. The female typically chooses the nest site and does most of the construction.

For guidance on building or siting nest boxes suitable for tits, the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) provides excellent resources on nest box design and placement.

Nest Construction

The female builds a cup-shaped nest using moss, grass, plant fibres, animal hair, wool, and a soft lining of feathers or hair. This process can take up to two weeks.

Eggs and Incubation

A typical clutch consists of 6-12 glossy white eggs, speckled with reddish-brown. The female incubates the eggs alone for about 13-15 days, during which the male feeds her on or near the nest.

Raising the Chicks

Once hatched, the chicks are altricial (blind and helpless). Both parents work tirelessly to feed them, primarily with caterpillars and other insects. The nestling period lasts for about 18-21 days. After fledging, the young birds stay with their parents for a few more weeks, learning to forage independently. Great Tits usually raise one brood per year, but a second may be attempted if the first fails or in favourable conditions.

Vocalisations: A Varied Repertoire

Great Tits are highly vocal birds with an impressive range of songs and calls, making them one of the easiest garden birds to identify by sound.

Song

The male's song is typically loud, clear, and repetitive, often described as a "teacher-teacher" or "see-saw, see-saw" phrase. However, individual males can have a repertoire of many different song phrases. They sing from prominent perches to defend territory and attract mates, primarily from late winter through spring.

Calls

They possess a wide array of calls for different situations, including contact calls ("chink-chink" or "pit-pit-pit"), alarm calls (a harsh "churring" or scolding notes), and calls used in aggressive encounters. You can explore the diversity of Great Tit sounds and listen to recordings on dedicated ornithological sound archives like xeno-canto.org.

Conservation Status & How You Can Help

While generally common, understanding the conservation needs of the Great Tit helps ensure its continued presence in our environments.

Current Status

The Great Tit is classified as "Least Concern" on the IUCN Red List due to its extremely large range and large, stable population. It is one of the most successful and widespread passerine birds.

Threats

Despite their robust status, local populations can be affected by:

• Habitat Degradation: Loss of mature woodland and old trees can reduce natural nesting sites.
• Pesticide Use: Reduces insect prey, especially caterpillars vital for chicks.
• Predation: Sparrowhawks, domestic cats, and weasels are common predators.
• Competition: Competition for nest sites with other cavity-nesting species.

How You Can Help Great Tits

Making your garden attractive to Great Tits is straightforward:

• Provide Food: Offer sunflower seeds (especially hearts), peanuts in mesh feeders, suet balls, and seed mixes, particularly in winter. Keep feeders clean.
• Offer Water: A bird bath provides essential water for drinking and bathing.
• Install Nest Boxes: Use boxes with a 28mm or 32mm entrance hole, facing north to east. Clean them annually after the breeding season.
• Plant for Wildlife: Native trees (like oak, beech), shrubs, and caterpillar food plants will benefit them.
• Avoid Pesticides: Promote a natural insect population in your garden.
• Maintain Cover: Dense shrubs and trees offer shelter and protection.

Interesting Facts About Great Tits

• Great Tits are among the most studied birds in the world, particularly regarding their behaviour, ecology, and evolution.
• They have demonstrated impressive learning capabilities, including observational learning and problem-solving.
• A male Great Tit can have a repertoire of dozens of distinct song types.
• They are known to occasionally prey on hibernating pipistrelle bats in caves during very harsh winters if other food is exceptionally scarce, by pecking into their skulls.
• The black stripe on their chest is thought to be a "badge of status"; males with wider stripes are often more dominant and preferred by females.