Bearded reedling

The bearded reedling was scientifically described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in his 10th edition of Systema Naturae. He placed it with the tits in the genus Parus and coined the binomial name Parus biarmicus. Linnaeus based his entry on the "beardmanica or bearded tit-mouse" that had been described and illustrated in 1731 by the English naturalist Eleazar Albin and the "least butcher-bird" that had been described and illustrated in 1747 by George Edwards. The bearded reedling was later moved from the tit family and placed with the parrotbills in the family Paradoxornithidae. Subsequent authors variously classified the species as a member of Muscicapidae (Old World flycatchers), Sylviidae (typical warblers) or Timaliidae (Old World babbler). Molecular phylogenetic studies show that it is a unique passerine, not part of any of these families. The bearded reedling is now placed in the monotypic family Panuridae that was introduced in 1860 (as the subfamily Panurinae) by Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet Des Murs. The current genus name, Panurus, was introduced by Carl Ludwig Koch in 1816. It is from Ancient Greek panu, "exceedingly", and ουρά, "tail". The specific biarmicus is from "Biarmia", a Latinised form of Bjarmaland, today part of Russia's Arkhangelsk Oblast and Kola Peninsula (a result of confusion when the species was first described; the bearded reedling does not range into these areas). Subspecies Three subspecies are generally recognised: • P. b. biarmicus (Linnaeus, 1758) – medium-dark in colour and found in northern, western and southern Europe, also ranging into Turkey and Azerbaijan • P. b. russicus (Brehm, CL, 1831) – pale and found in eastern Europe, through southern Russia and Central Asia to Mongolia and northern China • P. b. kosswigi Kumerloeve, 1959 – dark and found in Hatay Province of southern Turkey and most likely in adjacent Syria In some parts of central and eastern Europe, it is not entirely certain if P. b. biarmicus, P. b. russicus or intermediates are present. The three subspecies are quite similar; some authorities have suggested that the species should be considered monotypic (i.e. no distinct subspecies) because of the amount of individual variation and overall cline in the variation. == Distribution and habitat ==

The bearded reedling is native to temperate Europe and Asia, ranging from Spain, France and the British Isles to the Manchurian region, but its distribution tends to be quite spotty because of its habitat preference. In Europe, it used to be limited to mid and low latitudes, also including Great Britain, but in the second half of the 20th century it has expanded north into Scandinavia, Finland and the northern Baltics. It is an occasional non-breeding visitor to Cyprus and Iran, and it has rarely been recorded as a vagrant to the west, south and east of its normal distribution in Portugal, North Africa, Israel, Kuwait, Pakistan, Japan and Korea. Both adults and young may make eruptive dispersals outside the breeding season and in periods with limited food or cold weather bearded reedlings may perform other, most often local movements. but in other times it may wander more freely. Although typically found perched or climbing on reeds and similar types of vegetation, it readily hops on the ground, especially in swampy places or at water's edge. It has a wide altitudinal range, mostly being found from sea level to medium altitudes, but has been recorded up to above sea level in China. ==Appearance and voice==

This is a small bird, in length, with a long tail and an undulating flight. Whereas these streaks/spots vary from absent to strong in the west of the species' range, they are absent to faint in the east. The adult female's bill is often somewhat duller that the adult male's bright orange-yellow bill. This sex-related difference in juvenile bill colour is already evident at the late nestling stage. Because of their well-camouflaged plumage and dense reed bed habitat, they are easily overlooked, but their presence is often revealed by their characteristic metallic "ping" call, which is used by bearded reedlings to maintain contact with each other. The male's song has been described as a tuneful "tschin-schik-schra". During flight, their short wings give a whirring sound. ==Behavior==

Life cycle , France The bearded reedling is social and during the non-breeding season it is usually seen in groups of up to a few tens of birds, exceptionally up to two hundred. During the breeding season, it is most commonly seen in pairs, family groups or groups of independent young. The length of a male's black "moustaches" is an honest signal indicating his dominance (in competitions for food between males the one with the longest "moustaches" usually wins) and females prefer males where it is longer. In captivity where not limited by the same conditions as in the wild, they may already begin to breed in late February and exceptionally there can be attempts of up to seven broods in a season, although it is doubtful that this many can be raised successfully. Mating is very frequent and to increase the chance of fathering a clutch the male bearded reedling has a relatively large and muscular cloacal protuberance that functions as a copulatory organ, which is unique among passerines. Feeding In the summer, the bearded reedling mostly eats adult insects, their larvae and pupae, and other small invertebrates (springtails, spiders, snails, etc), typically taking rather slow-moving species. This is also the food a pair provides to their nestlings and fledglings. Significant changes happen in its digestive system to cope with the very different summer and winter diets. ==Conservation status==

Overall the bearded reedling is widespread with a large population and it is not considered threatened. In Europe alone it is estimated that there are around 500,000 or more adults and the vast majority of the species' range is in Asia, meaning that the total adult population is presumed to be at least 3,000,000. This was part of an overall expansion in northwestern Europe during the 1960s, which appears to mainly have been driven by eruptive dispersals from the large population in the Netherlands. Up to the early 20th century, the bearded reedling had experienced a period of decline due to habitat loss and persecution. After a series of hard winters in the 1930s and 40s, the remaining population had crashed with a small number of birds surviving in a few locations in southeastern England. In the last of these, the severe 1946–47 winter, the species was almost exterminated and in the following summer there were at most around half a dozen pairs in Norfolk and Suffolk. Since then the British population has significantly increased in both range and numbers, but it remains overall uncommon and quite local. As of 2019, the vast majority of the United Kingdom's almost 100 known breeding sites are in England, which is home to more than 500 pairs. These are mainly confined to southern and eastern parts of England, but there are also a few sites in the North West. After having again disappeared from Wales as a breeding bird in the early 1980s, it was first confirmed to have returned in 2005 in Gwent and this remains the only place where it is known to breed. In Ireland, the bearded reedling has historically been considered a rare accidental visitor, but in recent decades there have been confirmed cases of breeding in coastal southeastern parts of the island. There has been a very small breeding population in County Wexford since 2011 (where not known to have bred earlier) and likely in County Wicklow since 2017 (first known Irish breeding was in this county in 1976 and bred again in 1982–85). File:Pictures of bird life - on woodland meadow, mountain and marsh (1903) (14747918254).jpg|Nest with eggs from Pictures of Bird Life. Published in 1903, author R.B. Lodge noted the species' decline in the UK. File:Panurus biarmicus -Oare Marshes, Kent, England -female-8 (2).jpg|Adult female in Oare Marshes, Kent, England ==References==