Great Tit - Parus major

The largest UK tit - green and yellow with a striking glossy black head with white cheeks and a distinctive two-syllable song that often sounds like a squeaky saw. The male has a more defined central black band (which broadens out between its legs) on its underparts than the female.

Woodlands, parks and gardens across the UK. Absent only from the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland.

All year round

It is a woodland bird, which has readily adapted to man-made habitats to become a familiar garden visitor. It can be quite aggressive at a bird table, fighting off smaller tits. In winter it joins with Blue Tits and others to form roaming flocks, which scour gardens and countryside for food.

Common and widespread in Britain

Abundant as a breeding bird in Leicestershire and Rutland