Long tailed tit flocks (1 Viewer)

[Monahawk]

An impressive flock of 26 long tailed tits moved through my garden late morning. That was largest flock I've had in my garden, but not the largest flock I have encountered. About 10 years ago I witnessed a flock of 33 birds down my road.
I wonder if any forum members have witnessed larger flocks or even know the largest flock seen of this impressive little bird.

Si.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Difficult to say if can be classified as a single flock, but the northern white-headed Long-tailed Tits are migratory and it is not uncommon to have mass movements of them here in Lithuania in late September-October, regular movements of 20, 30, 40 etc moving through in fairly short time periods almost anywhere in the country. On the coast however movements can be far more pronounced and, at its extreme, it is quite possible to have literally hundreds moving through at the same time at key sites - a more or less continual movement of birds involving thousands per hour.

 

[PYRTLE]

I'm always amazed how the occasional "Northern" l.t.tit manages to turn up in the UK. These have to be ship assisted surely ; watching their jerky flight in family or winter groups through the hedgerows and shrubs again puzzles me as to how / if they can make the North Sea crossing.

 

[Jos Stratford]

I'm always amazed how the occasional "Northern" l.t.tit manages to turn up in the UK. These have to be ship assisted surely ; watching their jerky flight in family or winter groups through the hedgerows and shrubs again puzzles me as to how / if they can make the North Sea crossing.

They truly are big scale migrants here and while the majority are streaming south and literally pouring from one tree/bush to the next, some are flying higher. At a place called Ventes Ragas, they all then launch off across the water ... admittedly only a handful of kilometres to the shore opposite, but a water crossing nonetheless. Further north, I assume they are also crossing from Finland to Estonia.

I guess the rarity of records actually crossing to Britain does however bear out what you are saying.

 

[01101001]

I guess the rarity of records actually crossing to British

Not only are they rare, but also not carefully identified:

Long-tailed Tit (caudatus) - Aegithalos caudatus caudatus - Media Search - Macaulay Library and eBird

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media.ebird.org

Schwanzmeisen - www.ornitho.de

 

[PYRTLE]

I've seen Bearded Reedlings carrying out post breeding dispersal where they rose ( "exploded" ) almost vertically from a reedbed and then shot off horizontally till lost to view. I'd love to see l.t.t. funnelling through a crossing point. Most I've seen in a winter group was c. 40 at a coastal site.