Birds Posters
Nuthatches
The nuthatches are a genus, Sitta, of small passerine birds belonging to the family Sittidae.
Characterised by large heads, short tails, and powerful bills and feet, nuthatches advertise their territory using loud, simple songs.
Most species exhibit grey or bluish upperparts and a black eye stripe.
Most nuthatches breed in the temperate or montane woodlands of the Northern Hemisphere,
although two species have adapted to rocky habitats in the warmer and drier regions of Eurasia.
However, the greatest diversity is in Southern Asia, and similarities between the species have made it difficult to identify distinct species.
All members of this genus nest in holes or crevices. Most species are non-migratory and live in their habitat year-round,
although the North American Red-breasted Nuthatch migrates to warmer regions during the winter.
A few nuthatch species have restricted ranges and face threats from deforestation.
Nuthatches are omnivorous, eating mostly insects, nuts and seeds. They forage for insects hidden in or under bark by climbing along tree trunks and branches, sometimes upside-down.
They forage within their territories when breeding, but may join mixed feeding flocks at other times.
Their habit of wedging a large food item in a crevice and then hacking at it with their strong bills gives this group its English name.
Nuthatches are compact birds with short legs, compressed wings, and square 12-feathered tails.
They have long, sturdy, pointed bills and strong toes with long claws.
Nuthatches have blue-grey backs (violet-blue in some Asian species, which also have red or yellow bills) and white underparts, which are variably tinted with buff, orange, rufous or lilac.
Although head markings vary between species, a long black eye stripe, with contrasting white supercilium, dark forehead and blackish cap is common.
The sexes look similar, but may differ in underpart colouration, especially on the rear flanks and under the tail.
Juveniles and first-year birds can be almost indistinguishable from adults.
The sizes of nuthatches vary, from the large Giant Nuthatch, at 195 mm (7.75 in) and 36 to 47 g (1.3 to 1.6 oz),
to the small Brown-headed Nuthatch and the Pygmy Nuthatch, both around 100 mm (4 in) in length and about 10 g.
The Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Sitta frontalis, is a small passerine bird found in southern Asia from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka east to south China and Indonesia.
It is a member of the nuthatch family Sittidae.
The bird is a resident breeder of all types of woods, although open evergreen forest is the optimal habitat.
It has the ability, like other nuthatches, to climb down trees, unlike species such as woodpeckers which can only go upwards.
The nuthatche is an active feeder on insects and spiders, and may be found in mixed feeding flocks with other passerines.