Aegithalos caudatus

Geographic Range

Aegithalos caudatus , or the long-tailed tit, is found over a wide range. It is native to all of Europe, including Great Britain, with the exception of the northernmost areas. The range extends from Europe across Asia as far east as China and Japan. Across its range, this species is known by 2 other common names: European tit and alpine tit.

• Biogeographic Regions
• palearctic palearctic
  • native native

Habitat

Found mostly in deciduous forests, hedges, scrub, and increasingly in gardens, Aegithalos caudatus is uncommon to rare in coniferous or mixed forests. Elevational limits and the northern extent of the range are limited by availability of preferred habitat and severity of winter.

• Habitat Regions
• temperate temperate
• terrestrial terrestrial

• Terrestrial Biomes
• forest forest
• scrub forest scrub forest

• Other Habitat Features
• suburban suburban

Physical Description

Long-tailed tits are small and delicate looking. They are mostly easily distinguished from other tits by their long tail, which doubles the length of the body. They have rounded bodies and heads with black and white plumage tinged with dusky pink. The beak is tiny and triangular.

• Other Physical Features
• endothermic endothermic
• homoiothermic
• bilateral symmetry bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• sexes alike

Reproduction

Groups of long-tailed tits split into pairs and begin building nests in early spring. As the nesting season continues, parents are often joined in provisioning their young by close relatives that have lost their broods to predation.

• Mating System
• monogamous monogamous
• cooperative breeder cooperative breeder

Long-tailed tits begin nest building in late February or early March. Nests are elaborate spheres constructed with moss, hair, lichens, spiderwebs, and feathers. From 6 to 15 unpatterned eggs with reddish spots are laid, with an average of 8 to 12. Young hatch in 13 to 17 days and fledge from 14 to 18 days after that.

• Key Reproductive Features
• iteroparous iteroparous
• seasonal breeding seasonal breeding
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual sexual
• fertilization fertilization
• oviparous oviparous

Long-tailed tits have relatively large broods which are raised by both parents often with the help of other members of the family group. Only the female parent incubates the eggs while the male provisions her with food. Before laying the eggs, an elaborate nest is built of moss, held together with spiderwebs and hair, disguised with lichens, and lined with up to 1500 feathers. Parents and relatives all help to feed hatchlings.

• Parental Investment
• altricial altricial
• pre-fertilization
  • provisioning
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-hatching/birth
  • provisioning
    • female
  • protecting
    • male
    • female
• pre-weaning/fledging
  • provisioning
    • male
    • female
  • protecting
    • male
    • female
• pre-independence
  • provisioning
    • male
    • female
• post-independence association with parents

Lifespan/Longevity

Long-tailed tits live short lives of only 2 to 3 years. Immature birds begin molting into adult plumage very soon after fledging.

Behavior

Long-tailed tits travel and forage in flocks of around 20, they travel quickly through the trees and hedges acrobatically gleaning tiny insects from twigs. They are highly active and noisy. During the winter they roost communally to conserve heat, though they still have a high winter mortality rate. Dominance relationships in the flock influence whether birds get interior spots in communal roosts, thus saving more energy. Flocks initially split into breeding pairs in the spring to raise young, but failed pairs often join others to help provide for young.

• Key Behaviors
• flies
• diurnal diurnal
• motile motile
• sedentary sedentary
• social social

Home Range

Home range size in long-tailed tits is not known.

Communication and Perception

Loose groups of long-tailed tits are constantly making contact calls as they move through the woods.

• Communication Channels
• visual visual
• acoustic acoustic

• Perception Channels
• visual visual
• ultraviolet
• tactile tactile
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

Food Habits

Long-tailed tits are insectivores. They move through the scrubs and trees gleaning tiny insects from the foliage. They have been increasingly seen visiting seed feeders in the fall and winter.

• Primary Diet
• carnivore carnivore
  • insectivore insectivore

• Animal Foods
• insects

• Plant Foods
• seeds, grains, and nuts

Predation

Nests suffer high predation rates from jays and crows ( Corvidae ). Nests not subject to predation have a 97% survival rate. Adults suffer predation from small hawks. They are cryptically colored and maintain a high level of vigilance by living in small flocks.

• Anti-predator Adaptations
• cryptic cryptic

Ecosystem Roles

Long-tailed tits are important predators of small spiders, aphids, and other small insects. They are prey for predatory birds, such as crows and jays and small raptors. They are hosts to a number of common bird parasites, such as bird lice.

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

Long-tailed tits are acrobatic birds that are occasionally enjoyed at feeders.

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

There are no known adverse effects of long-tailed tits on humans.

Conservation Status

Although populations fluctuate and are rare in some areas, long-tailed tits have a large global range and are considered stable.

Additional Links

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.

Kyle Waite (author), Northern Michigan University, Alec R. Lindsay (editor, instructor), Northern Michigan University.

References

Akatsuka, T. 2006. Morphological development in young long-tailed tits. Ornithol Sci , 5: 231-235.

Hatchwell, B., M. Fowlie, D. Ross, A. Russel. 1999. Incubation Behavior of Long-tailed Tits: Why do Males Provision Incubating Females?. The Condor , 101: 681-686.

Hatchwell, B., A. Russel, M. Fowlie, D. Ross. 1999. Reproductive Success and Nest-Site Selection in a Cooperative Breeder: Effect of Experience and a Direct Benefit of Helping. The Auk , 116(2): 355-363.

Jannson, G., P. Angelstam. 1999. Threshold levels of habitat composition for the presence of the long-tailed tit (Aegithalos caudatus) in a boreal landscape. Landscape Ecology , 14: 283-290.

Maccoll, A., B. Hatchwell. 2004. Determinants of lifetime fitness in a cooperative breeder, the long-tailed tit Aegithalos caudatus. Journal of Animal Ecology , 73: 1137-1148.

McGowan, A., S. Sharp, B. Hatchwell. 2004. The structure and function of nests of Long-Tailed Tits Aegithalos caudatus. Functional Ecology , 18: 578-583.

Tomas, D. 2002. "The Birds of Europe" (On-line). Accessed April 16, 2008 at http://sunny1446.free.fr/affiche_en.php?lettre=L&index=17 .

2004. "Garden BirdWatch" (On-line). Accessed April 16, 2008 at http://www.bto.org/gbw/Species/BIRDS_LOTTI.htm .

2008. "RSPB" (On-line). Accessed April 16, 2008 at http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/longtailedtit/index.asp .