Red-breasted Nuthatch
Sitta canadensis
Small, cute, energetic nuthatch. Distinctive with bold black-and-white head pattern, blue-gray upperparts, and orangey belly. Males are brighter than females. Typically found in coniferous or mixed forests, often in mixed flocks with other songbirds. Creeps along tree trunks and branches, often upside-down. Nomadic; they sometimes move south in large numbers in fall and winter. Visits feeders. Listen for nasal calls.
Identification
The red-breasted nuthatch is a small passerine, measuring 4.5 in (11 cm) in length, with a wingspan of 8.5 in (22 cm) and a weight of 9.9 g (0.35 oz). Its back and uppertail are bluish, and its underparts rust-colored. It has a black cap and eye line and a white supercilium (eyebrow). Sexes are similarly plumaged, though females and youngsters have duller heads and paler underparts.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the red-breasted nuthatch in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected in Canada. He used the French name Le torchepot de Canada and the Latin Sitta Canadensis. Although Brisson coined Latin names for the species, these usually do not conform to the binomial system and none of them are recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the red-breasted nuthatch. Linnaeus included a brief description and used Brisson's name Sitta canadensis as his binomial name.<p>Like all nuthatches, the red-breasted nuthatch is assigned to the genus Sitta (Linnaeus, 1758), a name derived from sittē (σίττη), the Ancient Greek word for the Eurasian nuthatch. The specific epithet canadensis is Neo-Latin for "belonging to Canada". "Nuthatch" is a linguistic corruption of "nuthack", referring to the bird's habit of wedging nuts into cracks in tree bark and hacking at them until they break open. "Red-breasted" is a reference to the rusty colour of the male's underparts.<p>In the past, the red-breasted nuthatch and four other species — the Corsican nuthatch, the Chinese nuthatch, the Algerian nuthatch and the Krüper's nuthatch — were thought to be a single species. These five make up a well-defined species group known as the "Sitta canadensis group", and are sometimes considered to be a superspecies. Within the species group, DNA studies have shown that the red-breasted nuthatch, the Corsican nuthatch and the Chinese nuthatch make up one clade and the Algerian nuthatch and Krüper's nuthatch make up a sister clade. The red-breasted nuthatch is monotypic across its extensive range.
- Scientific name
- Sitta canadensis
- Authority
- Linnaeus, 1766
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Sittidae
- Genus
- Sitta
Range and habitat
Though it is primarily a full-time resident of northern and subalpine conifer forests, the red-breasted nuthatch regularly migrates irruptively, with both the number migrating and the wintering locations varying from year to year. They sometimes reach northern Mexico, where they are rare winter visitors to Nuevo León, Baja California Norte and south along the Pacific slope as far as Sinaloa. In the eastern United States, its range is expanding southwards. Though formerly resident on Isla Guadalupe, an island off the western coast of Mexico, it appears to have been extirpated there, with the last known record of the species on the island dating from 1971. There is a single vagrant record for Mexico's Isla Socorro. It is an extremely rare vagrant to Europe, with two records in the western Palearctic; one bird successfully overwintered in eastern England.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: rising.
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Brown Creeper
Certhia americana
Tiny, cryptic woodland songbird, unique in North America. White below and streaked brown-and-buff above; blends into tree bark very easily. Also note narrow, decurved bill and long tail. In flight, shows a bold buffy wing stripe. When foraging, often starts near the base of a tree trunk, hitches upward in short, jerky motions until it nears the top, then flies to the base of a nearby tree to begin the process again. Found in mature woodland, especially with conifers. Often joins mixed flocks with other songbirds, especially in winter. Listen for high, thin calls and sweet cascading song.
Golden Pipit
Tmetothylacus tenellus
An unusual pipit of dry country. Breeding males are spectacular, with yellow underparts, a black chest band, and yellow wings with black tips. Non-breeding males and females are much duller, though they still have a yellow wash to the underparts and along the edges of the wing and outer tail feathers. Found in dry savanna. Wanders widely, and most likely to be seen after rains. Feeds on the ground, but often perches in bushes. Breeding male recalls a longclaw, but is easily separated by the yellow wing. Females and non-breeding males can be confused with other pipits and longclaws, but are smaller, and can still be distinguished by yellow in the wing and tail. The song consists of scratchy whistles.
Chestnut-eared Aracari
Pteroglossus castanotis
Medium-sized toucan of tropical rainforest. Distinguished from other aracaris by blue patch of skin around a light eye and a single red band on its yellow belly. Prefers forest edges and young forest; often found around gardens and human dwellings. Frequently encountered in pairs or small groups, especially in fruiting trees.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.