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Close encounter with a nuthatch

post #1 of 23
2/2/11 at 5:16pm
Thread Starter 
Had a close encounter with a red-breasted nuthatch the other day. When I arrived at my condo in the morning, I spotted one of the little birds clinging to the suet box, kinda hanging upside down from the bottom. They do that sometimes. But they always fly away when I approach. This one didn't. As I got closer I said, "Hi little nuthatch." He still didn't move. I was standing right there. He was straddling the bottom of the wire box... a foot on either side. I looked at him and he looked at me. I reached out my hand and....WAS ABLE TO LIGHTLY TOUCH HIS CHEST WITH THE TIP OF MY FINGER! Well that did it....ZIIPPP! GONE! HE TOOK OFF SO HE WAS FINE! WAAAY TOO COOL. BTW - the feathers are very soft!

This is what they look like:
LL
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post #2 of 23
2/2/11 at 5:32pm
Wow, that's so cool! Cute!

Could you recommend any books or websites to really help me with identifying birds? We have lots in the backyard, and I know the house sparrows and house finches, but I don't know some of the others, and even from the few bird books I do have, sometimes it's just really hard to figure out who is who!
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post #3 of 23
2/2/11 at 6:18pm
Aww, I love them. We had a pair nest in one of our bird houses a few years ago. I really enjoyed watching them walk upside down. Well, you know what I mean....
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post #4 of 23
2/2/11 at 6:22pm
Awww, I love watching wild birds! I used to know quite a few of them when I was younger but I agree, trying to identify them while they are flying by is hard. I got bluejays and cardinals down pretty good though I would love to be able to identify them not only by sight but also by their song. I LOVE it here in the spring and summer, but I usually have no idea what I'm listening to.

Too cool that you got to touch it, even briefly. It was probably afraid to leave it's "feast"!
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post #5 of 23
2/2/11 at 6:29pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkMavis View Post
Wow, that's so cool! Cute!

Could you recommend any books or websites to really help me with identifying birds? We have lots in the backyard, and I know the house sparrows and house finches, but I don't know some of the others, and even from the few bird books I do have, sometimes it's just really hard to figure out who is who!
I like whatbird.com as a web site.... putting up feeders helps because they are kind of still and you can get a better look at them.

I am no expert by any means, but I have definitely identified many of the more common backyard birds around here. These guys regularly come to my feeders:
Northern Cardinal
American Goldfinch
House Finch
House Sparrow
Fox Sparrow (I think - my neighbor says he's seen them)
Slate variety Dark-eyed Junco (a kind of sparrow)
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Tufted Titmouse
Downy Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Blue Jay
Mourning Dove (ground feeders)

Others that have stopped by on migration usually:
Red-winged Blackbirds
European Starlings
Common Grackles

There are others but I am drawing a blank. Part of the problem is that the feeders are so far from the window that I would need binoculars to see birds in detail.

A couple of quick pics I was able to snap last summer. I am never prepared.

Black-capped Chickadee


Male Downy Woodpecker (red spot on the back of his head)



Quote:
Originally Posted by calico2222 View Post
Awww, I love watching wild birds! I used to know quite a few of them when I was younger but I agree, trying to identify them while they are flying by is hard. I got bluejays and cardinals down pretty good though I would love to be able to identify them not only by sight but also by their song. I LOVE it here in the spring and summer, but I usually have no idea what I'm listening to.

Too cool that you got to touch it, even briefly. It was probably afraid to leave it's "feast"!
That's probably true... but also I think these birds are regulars. My feeders are in their territory. I have been feeding them since last spring and maybe they are getting a little used to me???? They watch me load the feeders and scold me for not moving fast enough. I had a Chickadee almost land on me... too funny!

Quote:
Originally Posted by nurseangel View Post
Aww, I love them. We had a pair nest in one of our bird houses a few years ago. I really enjoyed watching them walk upside down. Well, you know what I mean....
I DO know what you mean. They skitter up and down the trees with their heads cocked at a right angle to their bodies. They have short tails and specially adapted feet for doing this. They are some of my favorites. They yell at me, too - "Yink,yink! Yink, yink,yink!!"
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post #6 of 23
2/2/11 at 7:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkMavis View Post
Could you recommend any books or websites to really help me with identifying birds? We have lots in the backyard, and I know the house sparrows and house finches, but I don't know some of the others, and even from the few bird books I do have, sometimes it's just really hard to figure out who is who!
I didn't know about whatbird.com, the site AddieBee mentions (I will have to check that out). I personally like the Cornell Lab of Ornithology web site:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/NetComm....aspx?pid=1189

AddieBee, it's very cool that you got so close to the nuthatch!
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post #7 of 23
2/2/11 at 9:19pm
Awww!!! I always loved birdwatching at my Grandparent's house. Still do when I visit! I need to get some feeders up here; but I never see the variety I've always seen where they live. But then my Grandparent's have been feeding the birds for years and have birdhouses scattered through all their gardens and things.

One summer the whole family was there and my Grandpa put a piece of foam over the main bird feeder and my cousin stood in the yard with some seeds in his hand; arm outstretched (eventually using a broom to hold it up) and the birds started eating right out of his hand!! Mostly the Chickadees (my favs). We don't get the Black Capped ones here though. One of my favorite memories!
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post #8 of 23
2/2/11 at 9:44pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by MoochNNoodles View Post
Awww!!! I always loved birdwatching at my Grandparent's house. Still do when I visit! I need to get some feeders up here; but I never see the variety I've always seen where they live. But then my Grandparent's have been feeding the birds for years and have birdhouses scattered through all their gardens and things.

One summer the whole family was there and my Grandpa put a piece of foam over the main bird feeder and my cousin stood in the yard with some seeds in his hand; arm outstretched (eventually using a broom to hold it up) and the birds started eating right out of his hand!! Mostly the Chickadees (my favs). We don't get the Black Capped ones here though. One of my favorite memories!
The Chickadees are bold, hardy little birds. I like them a lot.

Quote:
Originally Posted by motoko9 View Post
I didn't know about whatbird.com, the site AddieBee mentions (I will have to check that out). I personally like the Cornell Lab of Ornithology web site:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/NetComm....aspx?pid=1189

AddieBee, it's very cool that you got so close to the nuthatch!
I have been to that site, too. It is very good!! whatbird has good forums, too.
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post #9 of 23
2/2/11 at 11:30pm
Thanks for the links! I will bookmark them and check them out.

We've got 2 regular feeders hanging from our apple tree and a hummingbird feeder suction-cupped to the kitchen window. We ran out of seed though! I am going to get some tomorrow though, so the birds don't think we're not feeding them anymore. Maybe we should try some suet cages at some point too. Different foods might attract different birds, right?
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post #10 of 23
2/3/11 at 6:26am
Wow, VERY cool!! I've been thinking of getting a feeder or two for outside our front window.
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post #11 of 23
2/3/11 at 10:53am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkMavis View Post
Different foods might attract different birds, right?
Yes. Those sites we mentioned probably have more information on specific species and their preferences. Sunflower seeds are very popular among a variety of birds (and among squirrels, I've noticed!).
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post #12 of 23
2/3/11 at 11:17am
Apparently none of the birds around here like sunflower seeds too much. We got some mix with sunflower seeds and peanuts, the bag says it's for woodpeckers, towhees, grossbeaks, and cardinals, but no one eats it from the feeder, so we must not have any of those birds around. I think we should dump it on the ground for the squirrels. A few months ago we had dead sunflowers, and a squirrel climbed up one of them and was hanging there, feasting on the seeds, right outside the kitchen sink window (I put Genever up there to watch, but she didn't even care!), it was really cool!



Anyway, I'm about to go to Lowe's for some drain stuff, and I will get some of the bird seed they like. It's supposed to be for finches and stuff, but we get mostly sparrows. We'll work on a variety eventually..
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post #13 of 23
2/3/11 at 11:27am
Dont think i get them over here in Australia But thats pretty cute!
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post #14 of 23
2/3/11 at 5:56pm
He's so cute! Glad you got a picture of him!

I had a humming bird land on my hand once, we looked at each other in shock, and he took off. Didn't get a picture of him
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post #15 of 23
2/3/11 at 7:12pm
Oh how cool! At least he was OK and just enjoying the wonderful snack!

We can't put out suet, it attracts bears.

Our list of visitors is very similar to yours. We also get some yellow flickers and just recently we've had a really curious Carolina Wren - poor thing must have got stuck up here somehow this Winter. He likes to sit in our stove vent (when it's open but the fan's not on). Must be soaking up the warmth. The noise he makes getting in and out of there drives the cats nuts.

My "MUST HAVE" guide is the Peterson Field Guide. I have both Eastern Birds and Western Birds versions because of the traveling we did. But it's an actual book, not large, VERY easy to use, great at helping identify WHICH bird when you're looking at similars. I also have several different pairs of binoculars, and I LOVE sitting outside during migration with my book and my binoculars.
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post #16 of 23
2/4/11 at 6:35am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by LDG View Post
Oh how cool! At least he was OK and just enjoying the wonderful snack!

We can't put out suet, it attracts bears.

Our list of visitors is very similar to yours. We also get some yellow flickers and just recently we've had a really curious Carolina Wren - poor thing must have got stuck up here somehow this Winter. He likes to sit in our stove vent (when it's open but the fan's not on). Must be soaking up the warmth. The noise he makes getting in and out of there drives the cats nuts.

My "MUST HAVE" guide is the Peterson Field Guide. I have both Eastern Birds and Western Birds versions because of the traveling we did. But it's an actual book, not large, VERY easy to use, great at helping identify WHICH bird when you're looking at similars. I also have several different pairs of binoculars, and I LOVE sitting outside during migration with my book and my binoculars.
Oh yes... the Peterson Field Guide. Definitely. What's nice about the web sites, tho is you can hear their songs/calls. We have Northern Flickers here,too, but I have never seen one at the feeders. I did find an injured one on my mom's front lawn last summer. I couldn't leave him out there with his back broken. So I captured him with a baby blanket and took him to the local nature center. They determined there was no saving him. At least he didn't die of dehydration, thirst and hunger outdoors... or get ripped apart by a predator.
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post #17 of 23
2/4/11 at 8:40am
Finches like niger seeds - people usually call them thistle seeds. The black sunflower seeds are very popular, not so much the striped ones.

My niger feeder fell down in the snow storm the other night. Can't find it as it is buried in the 3 foot drifts on that side of the house. I feel bad for the finches that were there every day. I threw niger seed out on the snow, and no finches. I would think they could eat off the ground if they had to.

Ariel is the major bird watcher at my house, though all my cats enjoy it. She will be complaining to me about the bird feeder soon, as she does if it is empty. But, I fear it will be many weeks until the snow melts, I can find the feeder, and I can get the big ladder over to that side of the house put it back up under the roof.


Robin (old bird feeder from way back)
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post #18 of 23
2/4/11 at 11:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by AddieBee View Post
Oh yes... the Peterson Field Guide. Definitely. What's nice about the web sites, tho is you can hear their songs/calls.
EXCELLENT POINT, I never thought of that! We have a mystery bird that I call "the telephone ring bird" because the first time I heard it, I thought the phone was ringing - even though it's an older model phone ring LOL. The funny thing is Gary and I were watching Hogan's Heroes at some point - and I heard the same "phone ring" bird! It took me a while, but I finally realized it was taped while they were making the show. So it's a bird that's on the east coast and the west coast LOL.

Quote:
Originally Posted by AddieBee View Post
We have Northern Flickers here,too, but I have never seen one at the feeders. I did find an injured one on my mom's front lawn last summer. I couldn't leave him out there with his back broken. So I captured him with a baby blanket and took him to the local nature center. They determined there was no saving him. At least he didn't die of dehydration, thirst and hunger outdoors... or get ripped apart by a predator.
It's so sad to think about, but of course you had to try to do something.

It must be a hard winter, because I only saw one? at the feeder last year once or twice. And though I don't see him/them daily, I've seen him/them a lot more frequently this year. My understand is that they prefer to be reclusive if possible (though they're easy to find in Central Park - or were, anyway. I guess it's been a really long time since that was my hunting ground LOL).
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post #19 of 23
2/4/11 at 8:40pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by bastetservant View Post
Finches like niger seeds - people usually call them thistle seeds. The black sunflower seeds are very popular, not so much the striped ones.

My niger feeder fell down in the snow storm the other night. Can't find it as it is buried in the 3 foot drifts on that side of the house. I feel bad for the finches that were there every day. I threw niger seed out on the snow, and no finches. I would think they could eat off the ground if they had to.

Ariel is the major bird watcher at my house, though all my cats enjoy it. She will be complaining to me about the bird feeder soon, as she does if it is empty. But, I fear it will be many weeks until the snow melts, I can find the feeder, and I can get the big ladder over to that side of the house put it back up under the roof.


Robin (old bird feeder from way back)
You're in Chicago, right? Yeah.. you might not find it until spring... but try to put up something for the birds b/c it's such a rough winter for them right now.

I use nyjer seed in the summer and black oil in the winter... I love watching the goldfinches feed upside down.
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post #20 of 23
2/5/11 at 10:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by My4LLMA View Post
He's so cute! Glad you got a picture of him!

I had a humming bird land on my hand once, we looked at each other in shock, and he took off. Didn't get a picture of him
This reminds me of one time when I was a teenager. I was laying out in the back yard to get some sun. I had on flowered patterned bathing suit. I heard what sounded like the biggest bee (I HATE bees) and opened my eyes to find a hummingbird hovering over my chest. He kept looking at my chest (bright red flowers) to my face and back again, then finally decided I wasn't edible and zoomed away. The whole encounter was probably 10 seconds but I will never forget that! It was brief but magical.
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post #21 of 23
2/5/11 at 12:02pm
Yes, I'm near Chicago. Saw that it is crows coming for the TOTW. They have to eat, too. I'm a couple blocks from a river with lots of woods. So there is lots of wildlife. No chance of getting a feeder up now. Too much snow.

I think the encounter with the nuthatch was very cool! You're a bird whisperer now.

Long ago, when floating on a raft on the Big Blackfoot River in Montana, a hummingbird landed on my head twice! It was a strange feeling. I was wearing an orange lifevest. People said it was a lucky sign.

Robin
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post #22 of 23
2/5/11 at 12:27pm
Oooooh, how cool!
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post #23 of 23
2/5/11 at 6:17pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by calico2222 View Post
This reminds me of one time when I was a teenager. I was laying out in the back yard to get some sun. I had on flowered patterned bathing suit. I heard what sounded like the biggest bee (I HATE bees) and opened my eyes to find a hummingbird hovering over my chest. He kept looking at my chest (bright red flowers) to my face and back again, then finally decided I wasn't edible and zoomed away. The whole encounter was probably 10 seconds but I will never forget that! It was brief but magical.
They are attracted to the color red... look at hummingbird feeders... they are largely red in color.
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