Titmice

The Tufted Titmice is our bird of the month this January. We haven't posted that much about them except on our website, so I thought I would show him a little love right here. They are cute little guys but can also have a feisty attitude and are quite brave. I have even witnessed a titmouse plucking fur from an unsuspecting golden retriever to use as nesting material .The Tufted Titmouse is actually one of my favorite birds. They are always so faithful to my feeders and so much fun to watch.  I often see them carefully choose a sunflower seed from the feeder and fly off to a near tree to peck it open and eat it. Sometimes the little Titmouse decides to take the kernel and hide it for later use. They are known for hiding seed kernels in cracks of tree bark or other tight spaces they find to stuff a seed. This practice is called "caching".

The Tufted Titmouse is not that picky about his food. They eat a variety of things and love peanuts & suet. The Titmouse is a regular at my Bark Butter Feeder, pulling off a mouthful then flying away.  They are also one of the smallest birds that enjoy peanuts in the shell and have no problem shelling the peanut for their enjoyment. They can often be seen feeding with other birds like chickadees, cardinals, woodpeckers, and finches. They can also grow quite fond of people and are one of the first birds to show up at window feeders. 

Like our Bluebirds, Titmice nest in cavities but have no way to form their own cavity. They use old woodpecker holes in trees, rotted tree holes, or other natural cavities and artificial nesting boxes. Their natural nesting cavities are hard to come by these days so quite often they turn to man made nesting boxes. Some people find Titmice taking over their Bluebird house or Wren house.

Titmice are fun to watch, social around people and other birds, and eat a variety of things. There really isn't much not to like about this bird. They are always a welcome guest at my feeder!

Danielle Motley
Owner

Wild Birds Unlimited
624 Coleman Blvd.
Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464

P:(843)216-8800
F:(843)216-8800
E: wbumtpleasant@yahoo.com

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