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  • Long-tailed tit

Long-tailed tit

Long-tailed tit (adult)
Long-tailed tit (adult)
Long-tailed tit (juvenile)
Long-tailed tit (juvenile)
  • Scientific name: Aegithalos caudatus
  • Bird family: Long-tailed tits
  • UK conservation status: Green
  • Protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Long tailed tit song

Your browser does not support this audio feature.

Patrik Åberg, Xeno-canto

Key information

The long-tailed tit is easily recognisable with its distinctive colouring, a tail which is bigger than its body, and undulating flight. Gregarious and noisy residents, long-tailed tits are most usually noticed in small, excitable flocks of about 20 birds.

Like most tits, they rove the woods and hedgerows, but are also seen on heaths and commons with suitable bushes.

What they eat:

Insects, occasionally seeds in autumn and winter.

Measurements:

Length:
14cm
Wingspan:
16-19cm
Weight:
7-10g

Population:

UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.
UK breeding:
340,000 territories

Identifying features:

Long-tailed tit

Long-tailed tit
Feather colour: Black Brown Cream/buff Pink/purple White
Leg colour: Brown
Beak: Black Short Thin
Natural habitats: Woodland Farmland Heathland Urban and suburban

Similar birds:

Adult pied wagtail
Pied wagtail

Where and when to see them

Long-tailed tits are found across the UK except for the far north and west of Scotland. They can be seen in woodland, farmland hedgerows, scrubland, parkland and gardens. In winter they form flocks with other tit species.

* This map is intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.
  • Resident
  • Passage
  • Summer
  • Winter
Long-tailed tit distribution map

You can see long-tailed tits all year round.

  • jan
  • feb
  • mar
  • apr
  • may
  • jun
  • jul
  • aug
  • sep
  • oct
  • nov
  • dec

RSPB reserves

  • RSPB Flatford Wildlife Garden
  • RSPB Fairy Glen

Video

Footage of a long-tailed tit.

Footage of a long-tailed tit preening itself in a tree, and sitting on a branch in the snow.

Long tailed tit in the snow
 Mute swan Cygnus olor, cygnet on adult's back seeking shelter, Langford

Save nature, donate now

  • More than 40 million birds have vanished from the UK in 50 years
  • One in ten of our wildlife is critically endangered

Within your lifetime, species such as song thrushes, cuckoos and even hedgehogs could die out altogether. As the UK’s largest nature conservation charity, the RSPB use your donations to restore habitats, protect species and save nature. Give a little today and make a big difference tomorrow. Thank you.

DONATE NOW

In more depth

Long-tailed tit nests

Long-tailed tit nests

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