Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor)

Carolina Chickadee with a mouthful of caterpillar

Carolina Chickadee with caterpillar courtesy of Douglas Tallamy

This sparrow-sized bird, about six inches long, has gray feathers above, a white breast and belly, with rust-colored sides. Its gray pointed crest is flat, or erect when curious or aroused. It has a small black patch on its forehead and striking large black eyes.

Titmice are year-round residents in most of the eastern half of the United States, where they favor swampy or moist woodlands, areas with shade trees in parks and suburban areas.


To learn more about ID, range, breeding, and voice, visit Cornell’s All About Birds

What Tufted Titmouse Need How Can We Help
Food and Water: Caterpillars form about 40 percent of the bird's diet followed by 17 percent insects, with the rest being wild fruit, seeds, and mast from oak or beech trees. They cache food in fall and winter. In winter Titmice may forage with Chickadees and other species in mixed flocks. These flocks often include Titmice parents and offspring from the prior spring.
  • Provide feeding stations stocked with suet and sunflower seeds. Supplemental feeding in winter leaves Titmice in better nutritional condition.
  • Plant oaks and other native shade trees that provide mast (such as acorns) and host native insects.
  • Plant sunflowers and native berry bushes.
  • Avoid applying pesticides that kill insects on trees and shrubs.
  • Provide a birdbath or small pond for drinking and bathing. Empty and refill it often to keep water clean and free of mosquito larvae.
    •
    Shelter: During the breeding season, females sleep in the nesting cavity, while males sleep on nearby sheltered branches in trees, vines, or shrubs. When not breeding, birds sleep individually on sheltered branches or, especially when cold, in tree cavities.
  • Preserve snags of dead trees.
  • Plant large shade trees that provide sheltered roosting sites.
    • Nesting: Titmice prefer nesting in natural tree cavities, such as abandoned woodpecker holes, from three to 90 feet above ground. The cup-shaped nest is completed entirely by the female with animal fur, fibrous bark strips and moss and lined with bark strips, grass and leaves. The female lays four to eight brown-speckled white eggs, and incubates them about two weeks. During that time the male calls the female out of the nest to feed her. She covers the eggs before leaving to eat. Both parents feed the nestlings, who fledge in about 18 days. Young Titmice may stay with their parents after fledging, joining them in mixed foraging flocks the following winter.
  • Declining availability of natural nesting sites means it is helpful to provide boxes in semi-shaded sites. Boxes should have a 4" floor that is 6-7" below the hole in the box. Boxes should be hung on a tree or fencepost 5' to 15' above the ground.
  • Preserve tree snags and cavities where Chickadees can nest.
    • Other Threats: Titmice, especially nestlings and young birds, may fall victim to roaming house cats, black snakes, wrens, hawks, and other predators.
  • As winter residents, Titmice are vulnerable to cold and wind.
  • Keep cats indoors where they are safe from outdoor dangers and won't threaten birds. If you provide a nest box, provide a guard to keep out predators.
  • Plant evergreen trees and preserve snags to provide shelter in winter.
    		•

    Carolina Chickadees and Their Habitat Needs:

    Research by Narango, Tallamy, and Marra shows it takes that much to grow the hundreds of caterpillars and insects needed every day to feed a Chickadee family. Yards where less than 70 percent of the vegetation is native essentially starve the nestlings. Chickadees are less likely to build nests there, and if they do, less likely to successfully rear their young.

    Carolina Chickadees are in decline in our region. You can help by providing the right nest box specifically for them with guidance help from NestWatch

    Check out Carolina Chickadee near you:

    Find sightings using eBird Data: Narrow the view by entering your county in the “DATA FOR:” filter

    View our full lineup of classes, events, bird walks and more on our calendar.