Penduline Tit - Remiz pendulinus

Small bird known for its extraordinary building ability. Livery similar in both sexes. The adult has a striking black face mask on its grey head and a rust coloured back. The juveniles lack black parts and are a rather uniform hazel. Its habits and posture are similar to others tits, but unlike these it is associated with wetland vegetation. It prefers fresh-water habitats with cane and reed thickets and riparian trees. It can only manage without the latter at its over-wintering grounds. It builds a typical flask-shaped nest, with a bottom opening, by cleverly plaiting the cotton-like material it takes from bulrush spikes. The nest usually hangs from the tip of a willow branch, near the water. Sometimes, in the phase when the eggs hatch and the young leave the nest, the bird makes a second, side opening to air the nest better. The family nucleus stays together for a few weeks after the young have taken off. Its voice is a frequently repeated soft "zii-i". Its twittering but quiet song can only be heard in short bursts. The species is normally resident In Italy, whilst the north-eastern populations migrate south- westwards, over-wintering in large numbers in peninsular Italy. The number of pairs of Penduline Tits nesting in the wetlands of northern Tuscany seems to have suffered a decline in recent years.

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