Bearded Tit photographed at Grands Marais/Pr� on 11/3/2017 Photo: © Adrian Bott (visit site)

Scarce migrant and winter visitor. Numbers increased in 1990s.

Bearded Tits are an irruptive visitor to the Bailiwick's marshes and are a scarce migrant and winter visitor. Apart from three Alderney records, the remainder of the Bailiwick records are from Guernsey. A small population (maybe 2+ pairs) breeds in Jersey and it is perhaps surprising that they have not been more regular in the Bailiwick. Suitable habitat is present in Guernsey, but it may be that sites are too small to hold a viable population of this species.

Although Smith writes about 2 birds in the museum's collection, he was doubtful as to their origin and he could not verify a record of a bird being shot at the Vale pond ('Mr de Putron's pond in the Vale'). The first confirmed Bailiwick record is of a male at the Track Marais between 20-24 November 1965. This was followed up seven years later by an irruption. Seven birds were seen at the Vale Pond and 6 at the Marais Nord on 29 October 1972. The latter birds were seen again on the 31st. Later on in the year, a further 14 birds were found at Vingtaine de L'Epine at the end of November and varying numbers (1-12 birds) were seen there throughout the winter until 2 February 1973. Two winters later, another irruption occurred and 4 birds were recorded at La Grande Mare on 26 October and 2 at the St Sampson's Marais on 17 November. Again, birds wintered at Vingtaine de L'Epine where 5 were seen from 15 December 1974 to 19 January 1975.

After a gap of 5 years, there were two spring records from the Vale Marais; a single was seen on 5 April 1980 and 2 on 2 April 1981. Another 5 year gap in records ensued until 10 birds spent the whole of January 1996 at the Grande Pré. These were the last birds recorded during the 1980s but, in the 1990s, records of Bearded Tits have became more frequent. Four were seen in the autumns of 1993 at La Claire Mare, 5 in 1994 at the Grande Pré and La Claire Mare, up to 15 (more likely c.7 birds) in the autumn and winter of 1997/98 at La Claire Mare and the Vale Pond.

Marshes and areas of open water are preferred by this species although there is one record of 7 birds seen at Pleinmont on 31 October 1997.

In this century, the pattern of increased records continued with records in autumn 2000, a number in early 2002, a flurry of records in autumn/winter 2002/2003, all records being from La Claire Mare, but since then there have been no records to the end of 2008.