Pub goers asked to butt out after blue tits lay eggs in ashtray

By Jack Fifield

A pair of blue tits have sparked a flap at a pub after shacking up inside a wall-mounted ashtray.

The surprise nest was discovered by the general manager of the Mulberry Tree pub and Premier Inn in Essex on Saturday, April 11, while she was emptying the wall-mounted ashtrays.

Quick-thinking staff looked up what to do online and quickly taped off the ashtray with a warning sign to help the birds out.

It wasn't until three days later that restaurant manager Sam Warner, 40, saw the blue tits "flying around and chirping" before entering the ashtray.

Staff noticed the pair of birds would chirp at them when they got close to the nest — and they've since managed to capture video of them flying into the ashtray.

And they have had to clean up piles of cigarette butts from under the nest as the birds, which grow to around 12 cm (4.7 inches) in size and weigh just 11 grams, empty their home of its rubbish.

A trail cam set up by Warner failed to capture any sign of the birds — instead capturing interested onlookers attempting to peer inside the bird's home.

But the camera caught its first sighting on Saturday, May 2, after the nest was fenced off to protect the birds.

More from this section

India's Modi faces key test as vote count underway

Rahm says player concessions needed to save LIV Golf

Pulitzers honor damning coverage of Trump and his policies

Sam, who has worked at the pub and hotel for 19 years, said he'd never seen birds nesting in their ashtray before.

He said: "They are really lovely to watch, occasionally you'll see them if you are there long enough.

"With the nature cam I've got up, I haven't seen any of the blue tits on there, all I've seen is people trying to look at the blue tits.

"They're all interested, but now we've fenced it off to stop them getting disturbed."

The birds have a busy month ahead as they transition from the April nesting season to the early May laying season — with female blue tits laying up to 16 eggs at once, according to the RSPB.

According to the British Trust for Ornithology, eggs hatch in late May, and each chick is able to eat 100 caterpillars a day.

Sam added: "If you go out there now you can hear one of the birds tweeting away in the box.

"Some of the locals keep an eye out for them whilst they are out there smoking and find it fascinating to watch them flutter about and are still amazed how they fit in the small hole of the ashtray."