Country diary: it clung like a stilt walker to its wavering perches

Farlington Marshes, Hampshire Gazing into the reedbeds, scanning for bearded tits, felt a lot like looking at a magic eye puzzle

Spotting reedbed-dwelling birds is tricky at the best of times, but more so in winter as only one songbird is resident year-round - the bearded tit (Panurus biarmicus). Their common name is somewhat of a misnomer as they are neither bearded nor tits, though with their "ping pong ball on a lolly stick" body shape, they do bear a passing resemblance to long-tailed tits. They are also referred to as bearded parrotbills or bearded reedlings - given that they are entirely dependent on reedbed habitat for their survival, the latter seems most fitting.

At this time of year "beardies" tend to feed out of sight, fossicking through the soil in search of fallen seeds. Their tonal plumage makes it difficult to pick them out as they flit through the bleached stands of Phragmites australis, but eventually I caught sight of a flutter of movement deep in the vegetation. I raised my binoculars for a closer view, but the dense reed monoculture lacked any prominent features to use as a visual point of reference, so I immediately lost sight of my quarry.