Bird
of the month
White-breasted
Nuthatch, other birds could use your help this winter
By
Lorraine
McFarland
As
the leaves on the trees start to turn and purple asters dot the
landscape, the bird population in my neighborhood also changes. It is
time to start thinking about how I can help my feathered buddies who
will be around this winter – both the year-round residents and the
visitors.
Among
the birds who will visit my feeders this winter will be the handsome
White-breasted Nuthatch (WBNU), Sitta
carolinensis. They are easy to identify by their habit
of creeping head down on the trunks or branches of trees. This is how
they glean many of the insects and grubs that make up much of their
diet, probing under bark layers with their long, narrow, pointed bill.
They will also readily feed on seed and suet from your feeder.
White-breasted Nuthatches are about 5.75 inches from tail tip to bill
tip. The have a white breast (surprise!) and a blue-grey back and wings.
Males and females are similar but the cap on the male is generally
darker. Dark eyes on a white face make this bird quite striking and,
unlike the stubbier Red-breasted winter visitor, the bird has an overall
streamlined look about it. Their call is a soft, nasal “ank-ank-ank-ank”.
Listen to it on line at www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/White-breasted_Nuthatch.html#sound.
WBNU’s
are monogamous. The male courts the female by bringing her food. As he
presents his gift, he puffs up his head feathers, spreads his tail, and
bows and sings. Now that’s what I call a good date! The pair will
cooperatively build a nest in an abandoned woodpecker hole or other
natural cavity, lining it with hair, feathers and pliable bark.
A clutch usually consists of 5-8 white to pinkish eggs, which are
splotched with reddish-brown, especially at the larger end. The female
incubates the eggs for 12 days and the young leave the nest 14 days
after hatch. Both the male and female tend to the fledglings.
As
I filled my sunflower feeder today I thought I heard a Red-breasted
Nuthatch, Sitta Canadensis. I did not spot
it, but I am on the lookout now. Red-breasted Nuthatches are very much
like our resident WBNU, but they breed north of here so we see them only
in the non-breeding season. The
two species are easy to distinguish from each other, so pour the
sunflower seeds and hang up the suet and you just might be rewarded with
a look at one of these colorful winter visitors as well as the
always-entertaining white-breasted version.
Lorraine
McFarland is president of Ozark Rivers Chapter of the National
Audubon Society.
From
the birder's notebook:
January:
Keep an eye open for Red-tailed Hawks
February: Are you a fan of the Cardinals?
March:
Identify Goldfinches by sight and sound
April:
Bewick's Wrens nest in unusual places
May:
Big bird of the Ozarks: Pileated Woodpecker
May
bonus: Robins urge us to "cheer up" for spring, summer
June:
Rose-breasted Grosbeak is colorful, elusive
July:
Drama in the backyard: Brown thrashers vs. snake
August:
Chuck Will's Widow will keep you awake
September:
Bobwhite population diminishes as habitat disappears
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