Full Pupp Presents: The Greatest Tits, Vol. 1

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The great tit was unsuccessfully introduced into the United States; birds were set free near Cincinnati, Ohio between 1872 and 1874 but failed to become established. Suggestions that they were an excellent control measure for codling moths nearly led to their introduction to some new areas particularly in the United States of America, however this plan was not implemented. [23] A small population is present in the upper Midwest, believed to be the descendants of birds liberated in Chicago in 2002 along with European goldfinches, Eurasian jays, common chaffinches, European greenfinches, saffron finches, blue tits and Eurasian linnets, although sightings of some of these species pre-date the supposed introduction date. [24] Birds were introduced to the Almaty Province in what is now Kazakhstan in 1960–61 and became established, although their present status is unclear. [25] Behaviour Diet and feeding Like other tits, great tits transport food with their beak, and then transfer it to their feet, where it is held while they eat Estók, Péter; Zsebők, Sándor; Siemers, Björn M (2010). "Great tits search for, capture, kill and eat hibernating bats". Biology Letters. 6 (1): 59–62. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2009.0611. PMC 2817260. PMID 19740892. The great tit is a popular garden bird due to its acrobatic performances when feeding on nuts or seed. Its willingness to move into nest boxes has made it a valuable study subject in ornithology; it has been particularly useful as a model for the study of the evolution of various life-history traits, particularly clutch size. [54] A study of a literature database search found 1,349 articles relating to Parus major for the period between 1969 and 2002. [6] Strohbach, Sabine; Curio, Eberhard; Bathen, Andrea; Epplen, Jorg; Lubjuhn, Thomas (1998). "Extrapair paternity in the great tit ( Parus major): a test of the "good genes" hypothesis". Behavioral Ecology. 9 (4): 388–396. doi: 10.1093/beheco/9.4.388.

A study published in 2005 confirmed that the major group was distinct from the cinereus and minor groups and that along with P.m. bokharensis it diverged from these two groups around 1.5 million years ago. The divergence between the bokharensis and major groups was estimated to have been about half a million years ago. The study also examined hybrids between representatives of the major and minor groups in the Amur Valley where the two meet. Hybrids were rare, suggesting that there were some reproductive barriers between the two groups. The study recommended that the two eastern groups be split out as new species, the cinereous tit ( Parus cinereus), and the Japanese tit ( Parus minor), but that the Turkestan tit be lumped in with the great tit. [8] This taxonomy has been followed by some authorities, for example the IOC World Bird List. [9] The Handbook of the Birds of the World volume treating the Parus species went for the more traditional classification, treating the Turkestan tit as a separate species but retaining the Japanese and cinereous tits with the great tit, [10] a move that has not been without criticism. [11] P. m. kapustini, was described by Portenko in 1954, and is found in north west China (north west Xinjiang) to Mongolia and Siberia. [14]P. m. turkestanicus, was described by Zarudny & Loudon in 1905, and ranges from east Kazakhstan to extreme north west China and west Mongolia. Pigeault, Romain; Cozzarolo, Camille-Sophie; Glaizot, Olivier; Christe, Philippe (2020). "Effect of age, haemosporidian infection and body condition on pair composition and reproductive success in Great Tits Parus major" (PDF). Ibis. 162 (3): 613–626. doi: 10.1111/ibi.12774. ISSN 1474-919X. S2CID 202013338. The great tit ( Parus major) is a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. It is a widespread and common species throughout Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and east across the Palearctic to the Amur River, south to parts of North Africa where it is generally resident in any sort of woodland; most great tits do not migrate except in extremely harsh winters. Until 2005 this species was lumped with numerous other subspecies. DNA studies have shown these other subspecies to be distinct from the great tit and these have now been separated as two distinct species, the cinereous tit ( Parus cinereus) of southern Asia, and the Japanese tit ( Parus minor) of East Asia. The great tit remains the most widespread species in the genus Parus. One explanation for the great tit's wide repertoire is the Beau Geste hypothesis. The eponymous hero of the novel propped dead soldiers against the battlements to give the impression that his fort was better defended than was really the case. Similarly, the multiplicity of calls gives the impression that the tit's territory is more densely occupied than it actually is. Whether the theory is correct or not, those birds with large vocabularies are socially dominant and breed more successfully. [21] Distribution, movements and habitat Mixed forests are one of the habitats great tits use in Europe A nest box in Altenbeken, Germany P. m. aphrodite, described by Madarász in 1901, is found in southern Italy, southern Greece, Cyprus and the Aegean Islands.

Mols, C; Visser, M; Jones, Peter (2007). Jones, Peter (ed.). "Great Tits ( Parus major) Reduce Caterpillar Damage in Commercial Apple Orchards". PLOS ONE. 2 (2): e202. Bibcode: 2007PLoSO...2..202M. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0000202. PMC 1784073. PMID 17285148. a b Kvist, Laura; Martens, Jochen; Higuchi, Hiroyoshi; Nazarenko, Alexander A; Valchuk, Olga P.; Orell, Markku (2003). "Evolution and genetic structure of the great tit ( Parus major) complex". Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 270 (1523): 1447–1454. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2002.2321. PMC 1691391. PMID 12965008. There are currently 15 recognised subspecies of great tit: [10] At Kew Gardens, London. The British subspecies P. m. newtoni has a wider mid-line ventral stripe on the lower belly than the nominate race Laczi, Miklós; Hegyi, Gergely; Nagy, Gergely; Pongrácz, Rita; Török, János (2020). "Yellow plumage colour of Great Tits Parus major correlates with changing temperature and precipitation". Ibis. 162 (1): 232–237. doi: 10.1111/ibi.12761. hdl: 10831/46350. ISSN 1474-919X.Balat, F (1981). "New Species of Biting Lice (Mallophaga) of the genera Penenirmus and Rostrinirmus" (PDF). Folia Parasitologica. 28: 161–68. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 October 2008 . Retrieved 12 February 2010. Szulkin M, Sheldon BC (2008). "Dispersal as a means of inbreeding avoidance in a wild bird population". Proc. Biol. Sci. 275 (1635): 703–11. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2007.0989. PMC 2596843. PMID 18211876. Fitze, PS; Kölliker M; Heinz Richner (2003). "Effects of Common Origin and Common Environment on Nestling Plumage Coloration in the Great Tit ( Parus major)". Evolution. 57 (1): 144–150. doi: 10.1111/j.0014-3820.2003.tb00222.x. PMID 12643574. S2CID 24748894.

Wiggins, David A.; Moller, Anders P.; Sorensen, Martin; Brand, L. Arriana (1998). "Island Biogeography and the reproductive ecology of great tits Parus major". Oecologia. 115 (4): 478–482. Bibcode: 1998Oecol.115..478W. doi: 10.1007/s004420050544. PMID 28308267. S2CID 10078007. Fuller RA, Tratalos J, Gaston KJ (2009). "How many birds are there in a city of half a million people?". Diversity and Distributions. 15 (2): 328–337. doi: 10.1111/j.1472-4642.2008.00537.x.Harvey, Paul H; Greenwood, Paul J; Perrins, Christopher M (1979). "Breeding area fidelity of Great Tits ( Parus major)". Journal of Animal Ecology. 48 (1): 305–313. doi: 10.2307/4115. JSTOR 4115. Galván, Ismael; Amo, Luisa; Sanz, Juan J. (2008). "Ultraviolet-blue reflectance of some nestling plumage patches mediates parental favouritism in great tits Parus major". Journal of Avian Biology. 39 (3): 277–82. doi: 10.1111/j.0908-8857.2008.04273.x. Jarvine, Antero (1991). "A meta-analytic study of the effects of female age on laying-date and clutch-size in the Great Tit Parus major and the Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca". Ibis. 133 (1): 62–67. doi: 10.1111/j.1474-919X.1991.tb04811.x.