Species

Tufted titmouse

Baeolophus bicolor

A small grey bird with a jaunty crest and big dark eyes, whose 'peter-peter-peter' rings through Georgia's woods.

Photo Rhododendrites (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)

Nesting

At a glance

Size: About 14 to 16 cm long
Weight: About 18 to 26 g
Habitat: Woods, parks, suburbs and yards
Diet: Insects, caterpillars, seeds, acorns and berries
In Georgia: Common resident statewide
Voice: A loud, whistled "peter-peter-peter"
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: Grey above, pale below; pointed crest; rusty flanks; black forehead; large dark eyes
Told apart from: Carolina chickadee, which has a black cap and bib and no crest
Where to look: Feeders and woodland, often with chickadees

Behaviour

Tufted titmice take seeds from feeders one at a time and fly off to eat or hide them. They pluck hair from sleeping animals, and even from people, to line their nests.

Why they matter

Titmice are key members of mixed winter flocks and eat many insects in the breeding season. Their habit of hiding seeds helps spread oaks and other trees.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A tree cavity or nest box lined with moss, leaves and hair
Eggs — Usually five or six
Incubation — About 12 to 14 days
Chicks — Fed by both parents; young from the previous year sometimes help
Flight — At about 15 to 16 days
Lifespan — Usually a few years

Living around people

Nest boxes and old woodpecker holes provide nest sites.
Window strikes kill many titmice; decals help.

Misconceptions

Titmice are related to mice. "Mouse" here comes from an old word for a small bird.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	Mixed flocks	Singing	Nesting	Nesting	Chicks	Young fledging	Families	Families	Mixed flocks	Caching seeds	Mixed flocks	Mixed flocks

Where it lives

Recorded in 38 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

If you found one

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