Abstract:

Flocking behaviour of Great Tit Parus major, Blue Tit P. caeruleus, Marsh Tit P. palustris, and such associated species as woodpeckers Dendrocopos spp., Nuthatch Sitta europaea, and Tree- creeper Certhia sp. was studied from September to January in an oak forest and in a locust forest in Hungary. The size of both single-species flocks and multi-species flocks was larger in locust forest than in oak forest.ne larger flocks of locust forest were mostly due to an increased number of Blue Tits, although such flocks also contained more Great Tits and Great Spotted Woodpeck- ers D. major. In both forests more birds were observed in multi-species flocks than either in single-species flocks or while solitary. Size of both single-species and multi-species flocks in- creased from September to January in the locust forest, but not in the oak wood. The difference between social behaviour in the two forests may have been related to the lack of territories in the locust forest.