The Great Tit is a familiar and widely distributed songbird found across Europe and parts of Asia, recognized for its energetic presence in various environments. This adaptable species is a common sight in gardens and woodlands, easily identified by its distinctive appearance and lively vocalizations. Its widespread presence makes it one of the more recognizable members of the tit family.
Identifying the Great Tit and Where It Lives
The Great Tit (scientific name: Parus major) is the largest member of the tit family, similar in size to a Robin, typically measuring around 14 cm in height and weighing between 14 to 22 grams. It features a black cap on its head, prominent white cheeks, and a black stripe that runs down its bright lemon-yellow belly to its vent. The upperparts are generally olive-green, contrasting with blue-grey wings and a blue-grey tail edged with white. Males often display a wider black stripe on their chest and brighter yellow plumage compared to females, while juveniles tend to be duller in color.
This species thrives in a variety of habitats across its extensive geographical range. Great Tits are found throughout most of Europe, excluding Iceland and northern Scandinavia, and extend across the Middle East, Central Asia, and eastward to northern China and the Amur Valley. They commonly inhabit open deciduous woodlands, mixed forests, and forest edges, but have also adapted well to human-modified environments such as gardens, parks, and urban areas.
What Great Tits Eat
Great Tits are omnivorous. During spring and summer, especially the breeding season, their diet consists predominantly of insects, with caterpillars making up a large portion, sometimes as much as 90% when feeding nestlings. They also consume other invertebrates such as spiders, beetles, flies, wasps, bees, and ants, which they find by searching tree bark, leaves, and vegetation. A single pair can deliver over 1,000 caterpillars to their young during the nesting period.
As autumn approaches, Great Tits shift to a more plant-based diet, including seeds, nuts, and berries. They are particularly fond of beech mast and acorns, which they crack open with their strong bills. During winter, bird feeders become an important food source, where they readily consume black sunflower seeds, sunflower hearts, peanuts, and suet products. Great Tits often take a single seed from a feeder, fly to a nearby perch, and hold it with their feet while pecking it open.
Nesting and Social Life
Great Tits are cavity nesters, typically choosing holes in trees or readily using nest boxes. Nests are constructed by the female, consisting of moss and dried vegetation, lined with softer materials. The clutch size generally ranges from 5 to 12 eggs, which are white with reddish-brown spots. The female undertakes all incubation duties, lasting between 12 to 15 days, during which time the male feeds her.
Once hatched, both parents participate in feeding the chicks, which fledge after approximately 16 to 22 days. Great Tits usually raise one to two broods per year. Outside the breeding season, Great Tits are gregarious, often joining mixed-species foraging flocks during winter. Males are highly vocal, especially during the breeding season, using a diverse repertoire of calls and songs to attract mates and establish territories. Their most recognized song often sounds like a repetitive “teacher-teacher” call, characterized by alternating high and low-pitched notes.