Tit's try to match the hatching of there chicks to coincide with the abundance of caterpillars in spring on oak tree's, willows, alder, hornbeam and beech. If you want to help the Tits this summer, then put out mealworms, which will be of great help to the birds, and you will enjoy watching them as they take the heads off and de-gut them before feeding to the chicks.

Obtain a small quantity of worms from a pet shop "often found in the refrigerator section" from where they are used to feed various types of animals, should cost about a pound or two, ensure you clean them well to get rid of any mite eggs. Depending on how old your mealworms are they should turn into pupa "looks like a small alien" in about five weeks. The pupa which do not eat or drink are usually found on the surface of the feed and stay this way for about two to three weeks, they will then hatch into a beetle, a light brown colour at first and then turning darker as they mature, these beetles cannot fly even though they look like they can. The beetles will lay eggs which in turn will grow into larva moulting several times until they are the size for feeding to your birds. This may sound complicated but once you start, as long as you keep them in a warm room they pretty well look after themselves, just replace the potato before it goes mouldy and refresh the food supply once a year, as it will eventually turn into a dust as it gets consumed.