What they like

Quiet, wet spots with alders and willows. Think: wet woodland, marsh edge, ditch-side, damp park. In the garden? Make a messy corner: shrubs, some dead wood, and especially native berry-bearing plants like elder and rowan. Hang a nest box in a quiet spot; small entrance hole, out of direct sun.

Ecological importance

This tit is a hoarder. It hides seeds and insects, and always forgets a few — a lovely gift for nature. It also keeps caterpillars and small insects in check, exactly the food young birds need. Sparrowhawks and pine martens fancy it too: part of the menu, part of the system.

When in the Netherlands

All year round. In winter often in mixed flocks with other tits, woodpeckers and goldcrests.

Status

Breeding bird, but not numerous: local and vulnerable due to drying out and the loss of wet, rough woodland and scrub.