what kind of bird is that?...

as some of you know by now i have taken an interest in birds...i have three feeders that are currently hanging, plus one in my house that is full of niger (or thistle) seed that i want to hang up but realized after i filled it that i don't really have a good place to hang it right now...

anyways, i'm used to seeing the chickadees and jays and hairy & downy woodpeckers at my feeders...they're there and i'm glad...

the other day, however, a new bird showed up...one that i didn't ever recall seeing in real life with my own eyes...

what struck me about this new bird was that it had black on it's head similar to a chickadee, but it also had on it's head some white striping...

i knew it wasn't a chickadee, but i was baffled as to what this new (to me) bird might be...i watched it for a moment and then noticed it seemed to prefer being upside down...

"ahhh...i know nuthatches are quite fond of being upside down..." i thought and quickly turned to my field guide...sure enough this new visitor was a nuthatch...more specifically, a red breasted nuthatch...

i was very happy to see it at my feeder...it came back the next day as well, although i haven't seen it today....

red breasted nuthatches nest anywhere from 5 to 40 feet of the ground although in rare instances they nest higher, as far as 120 feet above ground...they lay anywhere from 4 to 7 eggs at a time and the incubation period is 12 days....they breed and nest in coniferous and mixed deciduous forests, but seem to have a preference for the coniferous forests...they eat seeds and insects mostly and are known to stay in their breeding area during winter if there is adequate food...

so now you all know a bit more about the red breasted nuthatch...(and so do i!...) the information above was taken and paraphrased from "the birder's handbook a field guide to the natural history of north american birds" by paul ehrlich, david dobkin and darryl wheye...

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i suppouse that's about all for now...

i'm glad that the birds are around, they certainly do brighten up a cold winter day!!...

take care everyone...

until next time,

-ramona anne