Since the dawn of the 2011 one of the characteristic sights and sounds of our reedbeds has been ominously absent; namely the chiming call and unmistakable plumage of our bearded tits. Like many of our wetland birds bearded tit numbers plummeted with the wide scale drainage of fens and wetland in the past 200 years. As it became scarcer its value to egg collectors increased, further hastening its decline.
Although the numbers recovered through the early 20th Century, 'beardies' thereafter performed a boom and bust cycle in the British Isles with numbers tumbling during cold winters. According to Birds in Britain (Brown and Grice) the winter of 1947 the British population shrank to a single bird in Norfolk and 2-4 pairs at Minsmere in Suffolk.
The prolonged cold of winter 09/10 saw this trend enacted on Radipole where our healthy population dwindled with only a single confirmed pair last summer. This pair were clearly busy and by autumn numbers had recovered probably aided by autumn dispersal from Lodmoor, (where curiously, the population withstood the cold) and possibly elsewhere. This year to date we have had just one bird heard on Radipole and two seen on Lodmoor. We are keen to get a handle on how they are fairing so news of any birds seen or heard on the reserves will be gratefully received by the VC and entered into our wildlife diary.
Bearded tits (male above and female below) eating reed seed which forms the bulk of their diet outside of the breeding season. In summer their constitution alters and they feed exclusively on insects.
If you were unsure what to listen out for then click on the link below.
http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/b/beardedtit/index.aspx
Still worryingly quiet on the beardy front. Checking the fish fences yesterday in the reeds fringing island pool, north pool and top reeds where you normally expect a cacophony of pings was utterly ping-less. Still a few holding up on Lodmoor by all accounts.