In Pennsylvania, pairs begin building nests in late March and early April. Breeding territories average 10 acres. The female lays five or six eggs, which are white with dark speckles, and incubates them for two weeks. The young fledge about 18 days after hatching. Sometimes yearling birds stay on in their natal territory and help their parents rear the next year's brood.
Nuthatches inhabit deciduous forests throughout Pennsylvania and the East.
They climb around in trees, walking in a herky-jerky manner up and down and around the trunks, along branches and the undersides of limbs. Both sexes sound a nasal ank ank call. Pairs live in home territories of 20 to 35 acres. White-breasted nuthatches feed on insects and spiders in summer and on nuts and seeds in winter. They relish suet at feeding stations and carry away sunflower seeds for caching.