Dusky, Gray, and Slate-colored 
With more artless inquisitiveness than fear, this lively little 
acrobat stops his hammering or hatcheting at your approach, and 
stretching himself out from the tree until it would seem he must 
fall off, he peers down at you, head downward, straight into 
your upturned “opera-glasses. If there is too much snow on the 
upper side of a branch, watch how he runs along underneath it 
like a fly, busily tapping the bark, or adroitly breaking the de- 
cayed bits with his bill, as he searches for the spider’s eggs, 
larve, etc., hidden there; yet somehow, between mouthfuls, 
managing to call out his cheery quank ! quank ! bank ! hank ! 
Titmice and nuthatches, which have many similar charac- 
teristics, are often seen in the most friendly hunting parties on 
the same tree. A pine woods is their dearest delight. There, as 
the mercury goes down, their spirits only seem to go up higher. 
In the spring they have been thought by many to migrate in 
flocks, whereas they are only retreating with their relations away 
from the haunts of men to the deep, cool woods, where they 
nest. With infinite patience the nuthatch excavates a hole in a ~ 
tree, lining it with feathers and moss, and often depositing as 
many as ten white eggs (speckled with red and lilac) for a single 
brood. 
Red-breasted Nuthatch 
(Sitta canadensis) Nuthatch family 
Called also: CANADA NUTHATCH 
Length—4 to 4.75 inches. One-third smaller than the English 
sparrow. 
Male—Lead-colored above; brownish on wings and tail. Head, 
neck, and stripe passing through eye to shoulder, black. 
Frontlet, chin, and shoulders white; also a white stripe over 
eye, meeting on brow. Under parts light, rusty red. Tail 
feathers barred with white near end, and tipped with pale 
brown. 
Female—Has crown of brownish black, and is lighter beneath 
than male. 
Range—Northern parts of North America. Not often seen south 
of the most northerly States. 
Migrations—November. April. Winter resident. 
The brighter coloring of this tiny, hardy bird distinguishes 
it from the other and larger nuthatch, with whom it is usually 
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