- Lifespan
- 8–11 years in the wild
- Size & Weight
- 23–26 cm, wingspan 32–35 cm; 70–98 g
- Habitat
- Woodland, parks, gardens, and areas with mature trees, favouring deciduous and mixed forests with dead wood for foraging and nesting.
- UK Distribution
- Resident throughout most of England, Wales, and southern Scotland; absent from far northern Scotland and Ireland. Populations have expanded significantly northwards since the 1970s.
- Diet
- Primarily insects and larvae extracted from tree bark and wood, including beetles, woodwasps, and ant pupae; also seeds from pine cones and sunflower hearts, especially in winter.
- Prey
- Beetle larvae, woodwasps, bark lice, spiders, and ant pupae
- Predators
- Sparrowhawks, goshawks, and occasionally smaller raptors; eggs and chicks taken by grey squirrels and jay
- Mating Season
- March to June
- Breeding
- Clutch of 4–6 white eggs; incubation period 10–12 days; fledging at 20–24 days; typically one brood per year, though a second brood may be attempted if the first fails.
- Behaviour
- Highly acrobatic climbers that drum rapidly on tree bark as territorial and communication behaviour, producing a distinctive machine-gun-like sound. Generally solitary or in pairs; males have red undertail-coverts whilst females lack this marking. Often visit bird feeders in winter.