#Sitta canadensis

[na-bird-of-the-day]

BOTD: Red-breasted Nuthatch

Photo: Becky Matsubara

"With its quiet calls and dense coniferous forest habitat, this nuthatch may be overlooked until it wanders down a tree toward the ground. It often shows little fear of humans, and may come very close to a person standing quietly in a conifer grove. Red-breasted Nuthatches nest farther north and higher in the mountains than their relatives; when winter food crops fail in these boreal forests, they may migrate hundreds of miles to the south."

- Audubon Field Guide

[birdblues]

Red-breasted Nuthatch

[herpsandbirds]

Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis), family Sittidae, order Passeriformes, northern U.S.

photograph by Kathy Webb

[anam2s]

i just recently discovered your artwork and it is absolutely gorgeous!! could i request a red-breasted nuthatch? if not, no worries, i hope you are having a good day [:

Hope you have a good day as well!

Red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)

You can watch the speedpaint on my youtube here!

[rebeccathenaturalist]

This may not seem like a very impressive photo, but it's very exciting for me! I just set up my bird feeders in Portland a few weeks ago, and unsurprisingly no one showed up immediately. The scrub jays found the endless plate of peanuts after a few days because they're just smart that way, but since the two old cherry trees in front of the apartment building got cut down last month the most convenient shelter for smaller birds to retreat to after visiting the feeder is gone.

Imagine my joy this morning when I got up and saw not one but TWO red-breasted nuthatches (Sitta canadensis) visiting the black oil sunflower seed feeder! One female (pictured here) and one male, likely a mated pair, have been flitting back and forth, making their little chittering sounds back and forth (as opposed to the territorial "beeping" more commonly heard earlier in the year.) Hopefully their activity will signal to other songbirds that there's food, and the local woodpeckers will discover the suet feeder.

I know bird feeders have become increasingly controversial in recent years, due in part to the risk for disease transmission. This is why it's so important to clean them regularly, not just removing old food but spraying them down with a 1:9 bleach:water solution and then scrubbing thoroughly with hot soapy water. I've only ever had one house finch with conjunctivitis show up, and I was quick to bring the feeders in and leave them in for a few weeks before cleaning and putting them back out.

And yes, I agree that a yard full of native plants that provide year-round food opportunities for birds and other wildlife is ideal. However, I don't have a yard. I have a 3x8 balcony, and I live in one of the older neighborhoods in Portland that, but for a few yards, is pretty scarce on native plants and pretty heavy on non-native ornamentals, so natural food sources are thin on the ground for those birds and other wildlife that are tolerant of urban living.

I'll get some natives in pots next spring for pollinators, but apartment management says I have to remove any dead vegetable matter in the fall, which means getting rid of seeds birds would normally eat over winter. I won't be able to create an appreciable amount of food for birds in this space, so feeders are the next best option, giving them something to eat without further reducing their fear of humans. (Let's be clear: any wild animal that lives in this neighborhood has got to be pretty tolerant of us, but that doesn't mean we should be encouraging them to be even less wary.)

Plus, quite honestly, they're good for my mental health; while I don't regret my move back to Portland, I do miss the easy access to a wide range of native biodiversity right outside the door. Being able to once again look out my window and see birds visiting is really good for me, and helps me get through those days when I am stuck at the computer for far too long.

[riverwindphotography]

A shy red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) in morning light

(c) riverwindphotography

[dailybaileyphotography]

Red-breasted Nuthatch; Sitta canadensis

[aborbaday]

Red-Breasted nuthatch

Sitta canadensis

[birdingblog]

[ID: A photo of a red-breasted nuthatch perched near the end of a branch of a cedar tree. End ID]

Red-breasted nuthatch (sitta canadensis)

September 9th, 2024

Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory, Duluth, Minnesota

[proton-wobbler]

Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)

Chadron State Park - Fall 2023

These's guys are just the light of my world. While Pygmy Nuthatch are my faves of the bunch, theyre only present in the Western portion of the US and the family group around my station hasn't been seen much so far this year.

Red-breasted Nuthatch, on the other hand, have a range spanning the entire US in the winter, and in several regions they can be seen year round. The tiny squeaks they make while foraging gave them the nickname "Tiny Tooter" in my birding group, since they sound like little toy trumpets. The squeaks get even cuter when the parents and young are chattering together.

All banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey's BBL. Permission to share images was granted by Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (BCR).

[fischotterkunst]

Red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)! They’re rarer around here than their white-breasted cousins so seeing one is always a treat :)

5/2/23

[myrachidh]

Red-breasted Nuthatch ~ Sitta canadensis ~ Sittelle à poitrine rousse ~ My yard in Sparta, NJ

#Nuthatch #Red_breastedNuthatch #Sitta #Sittacanadensis #Sittelle #SitelleÀPoitrineRousse #Trepador #TrepadorCanadiense #Sparta #NewJersey #NJ #Birds #Oiseaux #birdsofinstagram #wildlifephotography #Wildlife #closeup #closeupphotography #oiseauxmigrateurs #oiseauxerrants #livebirds #Ornithology ~ https://www.flickr.com/photos/rachidh/albums

[birdblues]

Red-breasted Nuthatch

[herpsandbirds]

Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) eat a tasty seed, family Sittidae, order Passeriformes, Cow Pond Brook, Groton, MA, USA

photograph by Tom Murray

[mcyt-as-birds]

Cub: red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)

Evil Jellie: Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus)

remembered that evil jellie existed day made

[flintslockwood]

Hello everybody! This week I’ll be telling you a few facts about the:

Red-Breasted NutHatch!

[ID: A photo of a male Red-Breasted Nuthatch standing on a branch. He is showing his side-profile to the camera.]

The Red-Breasted Nuthatch, or Sitta canadensis are common in Northern and Western coniferous forests around the United States and Canada. You can find these guys moving upside down on spruce and fir branches in these forests!

These birds are majorly white and have a black cap and a stripe that goes down from it’s eye to it’s lower back. The back itself is grey-feathered. It has a tan to orange belly, males have the more orange variety, and cute beady black eyes.

Red-Breasted Nuthatches eat insects and seeds, relying more on seeds during the winter, which they usually migrate south for.

Here’s a video of this silly guy, featuring it’s amusing trill :)