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Sitta canadensis

(Red-breasted Nuthatch)

Overview

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Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Dutch:

Canadese Boomklever, Rosse boomklever

Common Names in English:

Canada Nuthatch, devil-down-head, red-bellied nuthatch, Red-breasted Nuthatch, topsy-turvy bird

Common Names in French:

Sittelle , sittelle à poitrine rousse, sittelle à poitrine rousse

Common Names in German:

Kanadakleiber, Kappenkleiber

Common Names in Italian:

Picchio muratore pettofulvo

Common Names in Japanese:

ムネアカゴジュウカラ

Common Names in Spanish:

Sita canadiense, Trepador canadiense

Common Names in Swedish:

Röbröstad nötväcka

Description

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Physical Description

Adult Female: Head : Crown: dark gray Neck: Nape: dark gray Body: Flanks: rusty buff Underparts: light buff Upperparts: blue-gray Tail: Crissum: rusty buff.Adult Male: Head: Cap: black Face : Cheeks: white Eyebrow Line : white Eyeline: black from beak to back of head Neck: Nape: black Body: Back: blue-gray Rump : blue-gray Underparts: rust Tail: blue-gray Length : short.

Color:

Under parts mostly rust colored ; top of head black; black eye stripe; sides and bottom of head white; back and wings variable charcoal gray. All of the birds in this family are commonly seen climbing up, down , and around tree trunks and branches.

Size/Age/Growth

About 4.5 inches long, with a wingspan of 8 to 8 inches. Adults weigh about 0.4 ounces .

Habitat

Spruce-fir forests are the preferred habitat of this nuthatch, but other coniferous forests may also fill this requirement.

Vegetation: tropical lowland evergreen forest, pine forests • Maximum Elevation: 1,000 meters • Foraging Strata: Canopy • Center of Abundance: Lower subtropical: lowlands, lower than 500 m.; subtropics. • Sensitivity to Disturbance: Medium

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 2,911 meters (0 to 9,551 feet).[1]

Ecology: List of Habitats :

Biology

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Diet

The diet of this nuthatch includes mostly insects and spiders, although during the winter some conifer seeds may be eaten. The food is found by searching the trunks and branches of trees .

Reproduction

The breeding season begins in mid-May and extends to mid-June. Preferred nesting habitat is conifer or mixed conifer forest . The nest is commonly 1.5-12 m (5-40 feet) high. This adaptable species nests in a naturally occurring cavity , excavates its own cavity, uses an abandoned woodpecker cavity, or occasionally uses nest boxes. The female lays 4-7 (usually 5-6) eggs that she incubates for 12 days. The male feeds the incubating female. The young are altricial and fledge 14-21 days after hatching . The juveniles are fed for a short period after leaving the nest.

Migration

Some migrate

The call of this species is a high-pitched, nasal yank.

Taxonomy

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Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001

Similar Species

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White-Breasted Nuthatch

Members of the genus Sitta

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 60 species and subspecies in this genus:

S. arctica (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. azurea (Azure Nuthatch) · S. canadensis (Red-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis (Rocky Mountain Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis aculeata (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis alexandrae (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis carolinensis (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis cookei (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis lagunae (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis mexicana (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis nelsoni (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. carolinensis tenuissima (White-Breasted Nuthatch) · S. cashmirensis (Kashmir Nuthatch) · S. castanea (Chestnut-Bellied Nuthatch) · S. castanea castanea (Chestnut-Bellied Nuthatch) · S. europaea (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea albifrons (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea amurensis (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea asiatica (Asian Wood Nuthatch) · S. europaea bedfordi (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea caesia (European Wood Nuthatch) · S. europaea caucasica (Caucasian Wood Nuthatch) · S. europaea cisalpina (Central European Wood Nuthatch) · S. europaea europaea (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea hispaniensis (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea levantina (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea persica (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea rubiginosa (Caspian Wood Nuthatch) · S. europaea seorsa (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. europaea sinensis (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. formosa (Beautiful Nuthatch) · S. frontalis (Velvet-Fronted Nuthatch) · S. frontalis frontalis (Velvet-Fronted Nuthatch) · S. himalayensis (White-Tailed Nuthatch) · S. krueperi (Krüper's Nuthatch) · S. ledanti (Kabylian Nuthatch) · S. leucopsis (White-Cheeked Nuthatch) · S. leucopsis leucopsis (White-Cheeked Nuthatch) · S. magna (Giant Nuthatch) · S. nagaensis (Chestnut-Vented Nuthatch) · S. nagaensis montium (Eurasian Nuthatch) · S. nagaensis nagaensis (Chestnut-Vented Nuthatch) · S. neumayer (Western Rock Nuthatch) · S. neumayer neumayer (Western Rock-Nuthatch) · S. oenochlamys (Sulphur-Billed Nuthatch) · S. oenochlamys oenochlamys (Sulphur-Billed Nuthatch) · S. pusilla (Brown-Headed Nuthutch) · S. pusilla caniceps (Brown-Headed Nuthatch) · S. pusilla pusilla (Brown-Headed Nuthatch) · S. pygmaea (White-Naped Nuthatch) · S. pygmaea melanotis (Pygmy Nuthatch) · S. pygmaea pygmaea (Pygmy Nuthatch) · S. solangiae (Yellow-Billed Nuthatch) · S. tephronota (Eastern Rock Nuthatch) · S. tephronota tephronota (Eastern Rock-Nuthatch) · S. victoriae (White-Browed Nuthatch) · S. villosa (Black-Headed Nuthatch) · S. villosa villosa (Snowy-Browed Nuthatch) · S. whiteheadi (Corsican Nuthatch) · (Black-Masked Nuthatch)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 04, 2008:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Mean = 28.740 meters (94.291 feet), Standard Deviation = 44.880 based on 138,690 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
Last Revised: 2012-07-18