As a reedbed reserve Leighton Moss is home to some real specialist wildlife, species which are reliant on the particular conditions of a reedbed in order to feed themselves and raise their young. One of those species is the Bearded Tit also known as Bearded Reedling.
Male bearded tit - David Mower
Bearded Tits spend all year at Leighton Moss, but most of the time they are deep in the reedbed, and visitors only get occasional sightings. But in the Autumn, particularly October and November, the birds change their diet. The insects they feed on in summer start to reduce in number, so Bearded Tits change their diet to something in plentiful supply in a reedbed, reed seed. Their beak is not adapted to breaking up seed like other seed eating birds, so instead they ingest grit into their crop, which they use to "chew" the seed.
The birds used to pick up grit from our footpaths, but they were often disturbed whilst doing this, making it harder work for them. So back in the mid-90s the wardens installed bird tables, and rather than putting out food, they put out grit, hence we call them ‘grit trays’. We still do the same thing to this day, and the Beardies love it.
Here are our top tips for viewing Bearded Tits at Leighton Moss:
Bearded tis on the grit tray - Keith Kellet
We have grit trays in two locations on the reserve, there are some just off the Causeway, with a viewing platform to give visitors a bit more room to view them. We have another set of trays on the path to Grisedale hide. These locations can be found on our trail guide, click on this link to view the trail guide. Please speak to our Welcome team when you arrive and they will be able to give you more specific details about recent Beardie sightings, plus anything else that’s been seen on the reserve recently.