Birding Notes

It was close to noon as I came up the last hill into our cul de sac on this warm, sunny first day of March. Even with the beautiful spring-like weather, birds had been few and far between on a walk through the neighborhood. But tiny bluets, yellow dandelions and pale purple henbit speckled our own front yard and a few grassy stretches along the roadside. Lenten roses bloomed in shady spots, and bright daffodils shined here and there. Maple trees are beginning to blush red, and Bradford pear trees have burst out in exuberant white, dusty bloom almost overnight.  

As I came up the hill, I heard a high, thin yank-yank call that was unmistakable, but I could hardly believe it. The call came two or three more times – enough for me to confirm it with the Merlin bird app, and then follow it to a large old red cedar on the edge of the road. And there, among the branches of the cedar not very high and only a few feet away, was a Red-breasted Nuthatch – a small, compact bird with a blue-gray back, a striking black-and-white striped face and a long, sharp bill. Its underside was mottled with soft tawny-orange and touches of white, orange even under the very short, blunt tail. A Red-breasted Nuthatch is not often found here in this part of Georgia, so this was a rare opportunity – and an unusually close and clear view. 

It was working on a thin branch of the old cedar, digging a deep gash into it with its sharp bill and seeming to find some prey there, maybe insects or mites. It continued to work intently on this one spot for several minutes, carving out shreds of wood and making the ragged gash deeper. From time to time it uttered very soft, short calls with a plaintive, intimate sound. 

Red-breasted Nuthatches live mainly in the far northern forests of North America and in winter migrate only short distances. In some years, however, they move south in large numbers, apparently driven by a shortage of winter food on their breeding grounds. During these irruptive years, they may be found as far south as the Gulf Coast. While I have not seen many reports of Red-breasted Nuthatches in Georgia this season, I may well have missed them, and there were early predictions that this might be an irruptive year. 

After several minutes, this little bird flew up a little higher in the cedar and began to explore branches there, but when a Tufted Titmouse popped into the spot where it had been working, the nuthatch quickly flew back down and dived at the Titmouse – chasing it away. Then it stayed to work more on the same branch. Red-breasted Nuthatches are known to be feisty, sometimes dominating even larger birds.

I watched it for at least 10 minutes – and I think probably more like 15-20 minutes. It was hard to hold up the binoculars for so long, but I didn’t want to walk away as long as it was in view. I had the time to watch the vigorous, energetic way the nuthatch moved and worked, and to study the brilliant black and white pattern of the face, the taupe coloring mixed with gray on top of the tail, and the shadings and textures of the orange and white feathers on its underside, orange the color of early twilight clouds. 

Finally, abruptly, it flew further up into the cedar and then flew away and out of sight.