THE BIRD-LIFE OF LONDON 



perhaps not at all suitable to its requirements, where 

 it will linger for a time. Parks full of old timber are 



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the favourite haunt of the Nuthatch ; orchards and less 

 frequently large gardens are others. Although the tail- 

 feathers are normal and soft the bird climbs about the 

 trunks and larger limbs with perfect ease, and like the 

 Woodpeckers taps the bark, and can break into a nut 

 skilfully with its powerful, chisel -like bill. In two 

 respects the Nuthatch is somewhat of an anomaly : he 

 climbs with a soft tail, and has a bill like a Woodpecker, 

 the latter structura^ peculiarity being no indication of 

 affinity with that bird, but only the result of similarity in 

 obtaining food. Although an expert climber, the Nut- 

 hatch by no means confines itself to the trunks and 

 larger branches, where it creeps about in every possible 

 manner ; it also frequents the slenderer boughs and twigs, 

 and I have seen it clinging to the extremities of drooping 

 ones, swinging like a pendulum whilst twisting off the 

 fat farinaceous buds. The food of this species consists of 

 insects, and larvae also, as well as nuts which are usually 

 placed in some chink and chipped open with the bill and 

 various kinds of berries. It is somewhat solitary in habit, 

 although paired for life, and frequently breeds in one spot 

 for years. It has no song, but often betrays its presence by 

 its vigorous tapping, and its call is a loud, musical whit. 

 The Nuthatch probably rears more than one brood in the 

 year, as eggs may be found as early as April and as late as 

 July. The usual site for the nest is in a hole in the timber, 

 less frequently in a wall or a haystack. The hole, which 

 varies in depth from a few inches to a foot or more, is 

 sometimes enlarged by the bird itself, and the entrance is 

 invariably plastered up with clay, leaving an aperture 

 just large enough for ingress, the amount of this material 

 varying according to the size of the hole selected. At the 

 bottom a slight nest of dry leaves and flakes of bark, 

 sometimes a little dry grass, is formed, and here the six 

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