Thursday 25 November 2010

Bearded Tit (Panurus biarmicus)

OTHER NAMES: Bearded Reedling, Bearded Parrotbill
Latin Etymology: Panurus ("exceedingly tailed") biarmicus ("bearded")
Adult male Bearded Tit (subspecies P. b. biarmicus) at Oare Marshes, Kent - October 2017

Featured Subspecies: Panurus biarmicus biarmicus
Weight: 11-20g  /  Length: 15-17cm  /  Wingspan: 17cm
UK AMBER LIST / IUCN Red List: Least Concern

Despite the name (and how I've categorised it) not actually a tit, nor a member of any other family - the Bearded Tit is a unique songbird with no close relations. It is a reed-bed specialist, and can primarily be found along the Norfolk marshes. I was however lucky enough to catch a flock of them at Rainham, although they can turn up in any suitable reedbed. Easily identified by their distinctive call (which can be played on the RSPB site) after locating them, if you have a clear enough view of the surrounding marsh you stand a decent chance of seeing them flitting about in flocks not dissimilar to the unrelated Long Tailed Tit.

Related Species:
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Panuridae
Genus: Panurus
Subspecies: P. b. biarmicus, P. b. russicus, P. b. kosswigi

 - Sighting Locations -
UNITED KINGDOM - Scarce and local breeding Species (630 pairs) which can disperse quite widely.
 - A small flock seen at Rainham Marshes in November 2010. Several flocks at Oare Marshes in October 2017

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red ListRSPBWikipediaXeno-Canto

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