Pied Wagtail Feeding in a Silver Birch Tree

In our front garden we have a weeping silver birch Betula pendula, which stands about 4m tall. The crown of the tree is a matted tangle of branches and twigs, which by early November was mostly devoid of leaves while the ‘weeping’ branches still retained many.

Remembrance Sunday 2012 was a fine autumnal day, starting frosty with clear blue skies and almost no wind. At 09:10, by which time the frost had mostly melted, I noticed a winter plumaged Pied Wagtail Motacilla alba yarrellii walking about on the crown of the silver birch. It stopped often to peck at branches and more frequently at the remaining leaves, sometimes pecking five or six times at a single leaf. BWP categorises this type of foraging as ‘picking’ (Cramp 1988). The Pied Wagtail foraged in the tree for more than five minutes, only leaving when two juveniles flew over, calling. The adult bird followed them to a nearby flat roof where they stood, each calling. After a brief while the juveniles flew off and the adult returned to the crown of the silver birch and resumed foraging. At this point I went to get a camera, but when I returned the Pied Wagtail had disappeared. Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus and Great Tits Parus major were present in the silver birch at the same time, moving through and apparently feeding from the ‘weeping’ branches.

I was away from home on 12-14 November 2012. Subsequently, a Pied Wagtail was noted foraging in the crown of the silver birch on two further occasions. On 15 November, it was first observed, already in the tree, at 13:30 and stayed for about 30 minutes. During this time it briefly flew off and returned three times. Once it was accompanied by a second, winter-plumaged Pied Wagtail but this bird did not stay long and did not forage. On 17 November it was first observed at 11:57, again already in the tree and it remained until 12:24 when it was disturbed by a car passing by. For six minutes, between 12:03 and 12:09, it perched on a branch at the top of the tree. During this time it was mostly still, not even wagging its tail. For the remainder it was actively foraging on the crown of the silver birch.

Photographs were taken of the wagtail on both 15 and 17 November. Comparison of the images suggests it is the same bird foraging on the crown of the silver birch.

Although less than 10m from where I was watching with 10x binoculars, I could not see what the Pied Wagtails were feeding on. Nor could I find any obvious prey items on closer inspection of the leaves.

I had previously recorded both Pied Wagtails and Yellow Wagtails Motacilla flava flavissima perching in the silver birch but this is the first time I have noticed foraging activity. Various other species have been recorded foraging in the tree, e.g. Blue Tit, Great Tit and Goldcrest Regulus regulus but these were usually on the ‘weeping’ branches. Starlings Sturnus vulgaris are the only other species noted foraging on the crown, when in the summer months, they feed on aphids.

BWP records Pied Wagtails foraging on the ground, floating vegetation and on the backs of pigs but does not record them foraging in trees (Cramp 1988).

Cramp, S. (ed.). 1988. The Birds of the Western Palaearctic. Vol 5.

Originally published in The Hobby 126: 17-18