5.75 inches long. The White-breasted Nuthatch is a small gray and white bird that crawls up and down the trunk and branches of trees. The upperparts are blue-gray and the underparts are white. It has a white face. The crown and nape are black in males and grayish in females. The gray bill is chisel-shaped. The undertail is rusty. The tail is short with white corners visible in flight.
The White-breasted Nuthatch is a common year round breeding resident of the Forest.
The White-breasted Nuthatch usually starts out high in a tree and walks downward on large branches and trunks while it searches for seed and insect prey. It also uses crevices to hold large seeds and nuts while it opens them with its bill. The name “nuthatch” is presumably derived from this behavior. They will hoard food and regularly come to feeders in the winter. The call is a low pitched “yank, yank”.
Disclaimer: The content of NatureSearch is provided by dedicated volunteer Naturalists of Fontenelle Forest who strive to provide the most accurate information available. Contributors of the images retain their copyrights. The point of contact for this page is: Phil Swanson.