Order II. PASSERES. 



Tribe II. Tentjirostres. 



Family V. CERTHiDiE. 



The fifth Subfamily, 



SITTINiE, or Nuthatches, 



have the Toes long and slender, with the outer toe shorter than the middle one, and united at the base 

 to the first joint ; the inner toe shorter than the outer one, and united slightly at the base. 



Sttta Linn.* 



Bill moderate, slender, straight, and the sides compressed, with the cuhnen slightly curved to the tip, 

 which is cuneate and entire, and the gonys long and advancing upwards ; the nostrils basal, lateral, 

 rounded, sunk in a broad groove, partly closed by a membrane, and generally covered by the 

 projecting frontal plumes and short bristles. Wings reaching nearly to the end of the tail, with the 

 first quill very short, and the second shorter than the third and fourth, which are the longest. 

 Tail short, broad, and nearly even. Tarsi shorter than the middle toe, and strong. Toes long, with 

 the outer toe longer than the inner, and united to the first joint, the inner slightly united at the base ; 

 the hind toe longer than the middle one, and all armed with an acute, long, and curved claw. 



These birds are scattered throughout Europe and North America, and some species have been found in various 

 parts of India and its archipelago. They prefer the forests or the dense woods, where they are often observed moving 

 rapidly about on the trunks of trees, running both upwards and downwards in spiral circles, or turning round the 

 small branches with equal facility, probing into the various cracks of the bark, and occasionally removing pieces, in 

 search of spiders and other insects. In severe weather they sometimes approach the habitation of man, when they do 

 not refuse to feed on grains. The seeds of the pine cone, and the kernels of filberts and hazel nuts, also form a portion 

 of their subsistence ; these latter they break by placing one in a chink, and turning it on all sides to strike with their 

 bill until they have made a sufficient hole in it to obtain the kernel. When roosting, these birds are stated to sleep 

 with the head and back downwards. The hole of a tree, or the deserted nest of a woodpecker, is selected by the 

 female as a place to deposit her eggs. The nest is entirely composed of dead leaves, especially those of the oak. 



1. S. europasa Linn. PI. enl. 623. f. 1., Gould, B. of Eur. 

 pi. 234. — Sitta cfesia Wolf Sj Meyer. 



2. S. syriaca Ehrenb. Symb. Phys. — Sitta rupestris Temm. 

 Gould, B. of Eur. pi. 235. ; S. Neumeyeri Michad. ; S. saxatilis 

 Schinz. 



3. S. uralensis Licht. in Glog. Handb. p. 377- — Sitta asiatica 

 'Temm. Gould, B. of Eur. pi. 236. ; S. europa?a var. sibirica Pal!. 



4. S. carolinensis Lath. Wils. Amer. Orn. pi. 2. f. 3., Aud. 



B. of Amer. pi. 152. — Sitta melanocephala Vieill. Gal. des Ois. 

 t. 171. 



5. S. canadensis Lath. PL enl. 623. f. 2. — Sitta varia Wils. 

 Amer. Orn. pi. 2. f. 4., Aud. B. of Amer. pi. 105. 



6. S. pusilla Lath. Wils. Amer. Orn. pi. 15. f. 2., Audub. B. 

 of Amer. pi. 125. — Sitta carolinensis minor Briss. 



7. S. pygnuea Vigors, Zool. Beechey's Voy. p. 25. pi. 4. f. 2., 

 Aud. B. of Amer. pi. 419. 



* Established by Linnaeus in 175 

 drophila (1837) of Mr. Swainson. 



(Systema Naturce). It embraces Orlhorhynchus of Dr. Horsfield, which is coequal with Den- 



