In winter, tallintti makes a difference, it can be seen on the dining table

Last In the summer, the titmouse raised her chicks with one partner, and she will do so next summer, but the partner may have changed in the meantime.

Whether Tintti intends to continue with the same couple or not will be seen already during the winter, the British researchers noticed.

They gathered their observations over three winters and the surrounding summers in the southern English forest of the Oxford region, where warblers have been individually tagged and observed for decades.

In the summer, they listed the nesting pairs in the tit nests of the forest.

To find outwhich of them stayed together even in winter, they registered all their visits with dozens of automatic feeders installed in the forest using radio frequency remote sensing.

In the winter season, the tintis flew in loose flocks, the composition of which varied.

Even from the beginning of winter, the behavior of both females and males in flocks predicts the next spring’s mate selection, the researchers say Proceedings of the Royal Society B – in science.

Pairs staying together were more likely to come to the feeding places in the same flock than those considering separation.

As the winter went on, the signs of separation became more and more obvious, and they were visible even when they had flown to feed as part of the same flock.

Divorced couples preparing for divorce visited the vending machine less often together or in close succession than couples who continue their relationship.

Why the birds end up avoiding their partner from the previous summer?

It is possible that the separated birds had weaker bonds even before they had produced chicks together.