White-breasted Nuthatch

(Sitta carolinensis)

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A Field Guide to Eastern Birds. by Roger Tory Peterson.

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White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)

Identification: Length from tip of bill to tip of tail 5 to 6 inches. Male and female similar. Legs and tail short, head relatively large. Crown of head black, sides of head white, without a black stripe through the eye (although a vague, thin, gray line may be present. Back blue-gray. Neck, flanks, breast, and abdomen white. Tail with white stripes.

Similar Species:  The neck, flanks, breast, and abdomen of the Red-breasted Nuthatch are orange-brown, not white. The Red-breasted-Nuthatch is a slightly smaller bird and has a prominent black stripe running through the eye to the base of the wing. The crown of the Brown-headed Nuthatch is brown, not black.

Breeding Range (see map below): The White-breasted Nuthatch breeds in the forested areas of the United States and southern Canada.

Overwintering Range: Same as the breeding range.

Habitat: The White-breasted Nuthatch is found in deciduous and mixed forest.

Food: During the summer, spring, and fall White-breasted Nuthatchs glean small insects from the bark of tree trunks and limbs. During the winter they switch to tree and other plant seeds.

Behavior: Nuthatches live on the trunks and limbs of trees, climbing upward or downward headfirst. The birds are agile on the trees, but their flight is irregular. The call is similar to that of the Red-breasted Nuthatch, a yank-yank, but is louder and less nasal.

Reproduction: A clutch consists of 5 to 6 white eggs, speckled with red-brown. The nest is a cup of twigs and grass lined with feathers and hair. The nest is placed in a tree cavity or bird box.

Notes:  White-breasted Nuthatches commonly found at bird feeders during the wing, much more commonly than their Red-breasted brethern.