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, 

 larvae, etc., hidden there; yet somehow, between mouthfuls, 

 managing to call out his cheery qiiank ! qitank ! hank ! 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 

 fiocks, 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 4.7s 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-^'^Q,vtva\)tx. April. Winter resident. 



The brighter coloring of this tiny, hardy bird distinguishes 

 it from the other and larger nuthatch, with whom it is usually 



85 



