Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1924-12-17
THE NUTHATCH.
Topsy Turvy Acrobat of Birdland is
Good Friend of Man.

calvin M. Peterson in Our Dumb
Animals
Three outstanding characteristics
of the white breasted nuthatch are his
confiding disposition, his ability to
make his way up and down tree
trunks and around and around
trunks and branches, and his neat
ness His coat is always sleek and
clean and he always makes a good
appearance When he is busy on the
trunk of a tree, one can often get
very near him. Then he may stop
working long enough to look you
over and greet you with his How
do you do" moment later off he
starts head first down the tree until
he reaches the ground, when he flies
well up another tree and then makes
his way in turn down it. If he
chances to fly to a branch, he makes
his way along the underside as easily
as along the upper with perhaps
few twists, turns. or other gymnas-
tic exercises for good measure,
The white-breasted nuthatch is
white underneath, has a white breast
as his name implies, the white ex-
tending up on the throat and cheeks,
and has a black crown and nape. His
black crown makes him in this
respect like his cousin, the chicka-
dee, though his white cheeks make
him look quite different. His upper
parts are gray, the wings being
marked with black and the tail with
black and white. The bill is long and
sharp, we'll adapted to the work of
dislodging insects and other pests
from crevices in the bark of trees.
The toes'are long and equipped with
long, sharp claws, which enable this
little acrobat to hang to the under
sides of branches as easily as a fly
hangs to the walls or ceilings of our
homes.
The notes of this bird are so un-
usual that they at once tell you when
one is about. "Ank, ank, ank, ank,
he calls in grunting tones as he
makes his way down a tree. His lit
tie throat swells at each syllable,
though the bill may be held entirely
still He can sing, too, perhaps not
as wonderfully as many birds, but
for all that pleasing enough. When
singing, he usually sits quite still,
we'll up tree "Kwee, kwee, kwee,
kwee, kwee," is what he seems to
say He talks a little in low 'twits"
when in the company of other birds
or near other birds about food
tray. Likely as not one of the other
birds is his mate whom he has
brought there for the feast.
The nuthatch, like the chickadee,
nests in holes and cavities in trees.
The hole or cavity is usually enlarged
or changed by the birds and then
lined with feathers, fur, and other
soft materials. From five to eight
eggs spotted with brown are laid,
The young birds when nearly grown
make interesting subjects for photo
graphic purposes and many are the
interesting pictures which have been
secured of whole families of young
sters by nature photographers.
The white-breast stays with us all
year, as do the downy and hairy
woodpeckers, junco, blue jay and
chickadee. Make a food tray or a
suet stick for the yard if you want
him for a winter neighbor and want
him to visit you when other bird
neighbors are scarce. Suet makes
good food for this little fellow, as
does oatmeal. When he visits your
food tray, be sure to notice how he
seems to skate in hops over the bot
tom of the tray Notice, too, how
little he fears you and how near you
can get to him.
This energetic and cheerful bird
feeds on all sorts of pests found
along the trees and branches of trees.
He finds many insects, their eggs and
larvae overlooked by the creepers
and woodpeckers, since he travels
down trees and finds those along the
upper sides of pieces of bark. He
stores food in times of plenty and in
this he is like that Independent and
thrifty woodpecker, the redhead.