Nuthatch
(picture courtesy of Royal Society for the Protection of Birds)
It is
over twenty years since I saw a Nuthatch in my garden, and that was in the
other house. Because the pigeons made such a mess on the patio we moved the bird
feeders further down the garden but located where we could still see the birds coming
to feed. Occasionally we see a rare bird but that doesn’t happen often.
Recently
I saw a bird tucked right inside the caged feeder but couldn’t identify it. I
saw the breast colour once, which told me it was neither a chaffinch nor a
robin. I couldn’t make out the rest of the plumage because he kept his body
behind the feeder tube, but his shape was familiar and the name ‘Nuthatch’ kept
springing to mind.
After a
few days the bird got braver and showed himself in full. It was indeed a Nuthatch and I almost screamed
with delight. I do hope he sticks around.
Obviously
the wild patch is coming into its own. Since the area was left to ‘go wild’ we
have seen an increase in the variety of birds but not enough. Having the
feeders down there, one of them almost hidden by branches of the apple tree,
seems to be an added attraction. It’s costing us a bit more in birdseed but
what the heck ... with the rapid decline in birdlife they need all the help
they can get.
I don’t
expect to see the Treecreeper but one never knows!
and finally
The lovely Jay has cottoned on to the squirrel's hoarding pattern. Whenever shelled peanuts are put out (for the birds) the squirrel buries a lot of them in the lawn. I guess he saves them for those days when I don't include peanuts in the daily diet. The other day I watched the Jay hunting round the lawn to find the peanuts ... and succeeding. I have to smile at our wildlife inhabitants.
Awwwww.....yours have that cute little stripe going in. Ours don't, but they're just so fun to watch! Pulling out seed and hiding it in the bark of the trees around the yard. LOL I'll have sunflowers showing up in odd places if he forgets!
ReplyDeleteI love the birdies that frequent here--even the hairy woodpecker that occasionally raps on the roof of the house. LOL
ha...pretty funny on the jay swiping the squirrels hoardings...you might want to watch them...the squirrel may try to get him back....smiles.
ReplyDeleteOh, what a cutie! I'd not heard of a Nuthatch before?!?
ReplyDelete"The other day I watched the Jay hunting round the lawn to find the peanuts ... and succeeding. I have to smile at our wildlife inhabitants."
You GO, Jay!
I read somewhere that squirrels don't remember WHERE they buried the nuts they've collected, so it's good to hear that the jay's succeeded!
Lovely post, dear lady! Happy Saturday to you!
X
I love watching the nuthatch as it climbs UPSIDE DOWN the tree. Have you noticed that? It also makes a very quite noise when it's searching for bugs in the tree (with that long beak).
ReplyDeleteHi Mel, I didn't know that about the seed. I hope I get a few sunflowers, I rely on the birds to help my wild patch along.
ReplyDeleteBrian, I get some a kick out of watching the animals, wonder if I'll ever see a hit-back...smiles.
Good afternoon, Ron. Hey, I hadn't heard that about the squirrels. What poor memories they must have. Heehee I'll watch out for further developments.
Yes, Pat, I've often thought the nuthatch thinks he's a treecreepter. Perhaps he had lessons :O)I wish I was nearer so I could hear the noise he makes.
It's so exciting when you spot a rare bird in the garden isn't it? :)
ReplyDeleteIt sure is, Pearl. I'm like a kid with a new toy when a new bird comes :0)
ReplyDeleteWe have been feeding all summer and hope to see all of our favorite cardinals when the snows come. We saw a bright yellow bird like a canary only bigger and are looking for him in our book of Missouri birds.
ReplyDeleteI only tend to feed the birds in the winter, but they come and help themselves to the hens layers pellets all year round. I bet they lay beautiful healthy eggs as a result.
ReplyDeleteHow kind of you Valerie to put a link to my blog in your sidebar. Thank you.
We rarely see nuthatches here in Iowa during the summer time. In the winter they show up once in a while at the feeders. It is fun to see new birds at the feeders.
ReplyDeleteI have viewed more varieties of birds since we moved to So Cal, the neighbor adds unshelled peanuts to her feeder and there is one bird that looks like a mockingbird that is forever bringing them over to our yard and burying them underneath our hedges, I do enjoy watching them.
ReplyDeleteJimmy, if the mockingbird brings the right kind of seeds you might get some very nice flowers under the hedges in the spring.
ReplyDeleteI have never seen a Nuthatch... it would
ReplyDeletebe nice to have one visit... but just the usual Cardinals, Finches and Mourning Doves around here......
How cute it is to have those birds to watch in your garden! Sadly, I'm not good in identifying birds. I had a professor who's currently studying ornithology in Oxford. He can name the bird up to the species level just by listening to the sound that it makes. Me... I even get confused how a common one is called.
ReplyDeleteI can imagine Lee (of Feline Capers) describing those birds.. and the squirrel, too! :)
Lea, identifying birds by sound was something I put into practice whenever I walked the dog in the woods. Most times the trees were too high and too thick to see the actual birds. It was a most enjoyable hobby.
ReplyDelete