THE BIRDS OF NEW JERSEY. 303 



The ('ifcpcr ;ii)]ieai's to he tiiori' like a mouse than a l)ir(|, as ]ie 

 iivios sldwly up the li'cc li'unks hy short juni])s, clinginsj chjsc to ihe 

 bark and exaiiiiriing every ci'aek for insects that may be lurking tiiere. 

 T'^pon reaching the \lpper part of the tree, he dives down to the root 

 of the next one, and starling often oidy a few inches from the ground, 

 again begins the ascent. 



His only note, while with us, consists of several thin wiry "seeps." 

 Mis food is wholly insectivorous. Mr. P. B. Philipp has taken 

 nests in the Tamarack Swamp, at Newton^ Sussex county, in May and 

 June, 1906, 1!)()T and 1008, and regards the species as a rare but regu- 

 lar breeder in that Ux-alitA'. 



Family SITTID^. 



The jSi ltthatches. 



Small !»irds allied to the Titmice, but peculiar in their climbing 

 habits, usually progressing downwards along the trunks of trees in- 

 stead of upwards like the Woodpeckers. 



«. Top of head black or gray. 



h. Wing, 3.50 or over. • White-breasted Nuthatch, p. 303 



bh. Wing less than 3. Red-ureasted Nuthatch, p. 304 



aa. Top of head brownish. Brown-headed Nuthatch, p. 30.5 



727 Sitta carol inensis Latham. 

 White-breasted Nuthatch. 



PLATE 79. 



Adult male. — Length, .5.25-6. Wing. 3.00. Above, liluish-gray ; whole top 

 of head and nape, glossy black ; below, inclnding sides of face and neck, grayish- 

 white : thighs and part of under tail-coverts, chestnut ; wing feathers blackish, 

 edged and tipped with blue-gray or white, innermost ones blue-gray with oval 

 black spots and white tips; greater-coverts with white tips forming a bar; 

 middle pair of tail feathers, blue-gray ; others, black, varied with white, form- 

 ing a diagonal band across each half of the tail when spread. 



Adult fonttZp.— -Similar, but black of head veiled with blue-gray, seldom show- 

 ing distinctly except on the nape. 



YoiiiKj in first summer. — Duller, with feathers of tne upper surface edged 

 with dusky. 



Nest in a hole in a tree, conii)ose(I of leaves, feathers, etc. ; eggs, five to eight, 

 white, speckled with rusty and pale purple, .80 x .00. 



