Who would ever name a bird “titmouse?” The poor little tufted titmouse has nothing in common with a mouse, or the other part of its name. The regal little bird with the crest should have been named the silver prince or something equally as distinguished. But its name is the tufted titmouse, and we always have them at our feeder.
About 10 years ago, I was blessed to witness the fledging of a titmouse family. We were on the patio and saw a pair of titmice on a limb above. They were calling to their chicks to “fly the coop”. Until that moment, I wasn’t even aware the titmice had even nested in what we put up as a bluebird box. Yet, one by one, four little titmice emerged into their new world. Strangely, they have never used that box since then.
Titmice derive the “tit” part of their names from the Scandinavian word, which means “little”. They are indeed elegant little songbirds, and quite vocal. Their call of ‘peter-peter-peter” announces their presence and their excitement at finding a stash of black oil sunflowers seeds. The small birds are unable to swallow a seed whole, so they snatch one from the feeder and fly to a nearby branch. There, they hold the seed with one foot and peck it open with their sharp beak. I have never seen a titmouse fumble a sunflower heart once it has been unhusked. They are amazingly agile.
I suppose titmice are territorial since I rarely see more than one family, even in winter. But the friendly little titmouse is always a welcomed addition in our backyard.
