Long-tailed Tit

Head is mostly white with broad black eyebrows in the nominate race; mantle is black with pinkish scapulars; wings are black and white; underparts are whitish tinged with pink; tail is very long and black with white outer edges. Sexes are similar in appearance.

Tiny, plump body, disproportionately long black-and-white tail, pinkish tones on the body, and short, stubby black bill.

Length: 13-15 cm (including the 7-9 cm tail); Wingspan: 16-19 cm; Weight: 7-9 g.

High-pitched, repeated trilling notes such as 'see-see-see' or a distinctive rattling 'tsrr-tsrr' call used to maintain contact within the flock.

Insects, spiders, and their eggs, supplemented with seeds and buds in autumn and winter; readily visits bird feeders for suet and fat balls.

Deciduous and mixed forests, scrublands, hedgerows, parks, and large gardens with an abundance of bushes and trees.

Non-migratory resident, though local wandering occurs in winter.

Constructs a remarkable, oval-shaped dome nest made of moss, lichen, and spider silk, lined with thousands of feathers. Usually lays 8-12 eggs in a clutch.

Penduline Tit (Remiz pendulinus), which has a distinctive dark facial mask, and Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus) of North America, which is more uniformly grayish-brown.

Helps control populations of small insects and pests on trees and shrubs by gleaning foliage during winter and summer.

IUCN Least Concern with a stable population trend.

Look and listen for active, chattering flocks moving quickly through deciduous woodlands, scrub, or suburban gardens, often joining mixed-species foraging flocks.

Long-tailed Tits use up to 3,000 feathers to line their elaborate dome nests and often engage in cooperative breeding where failed breeders help raise the young of related pairs.