A practical guide to bird watching in Sonoma County, California

(Unless otherwise indicated, all phone numbers are in the 707 area code)

 

A fairly common resident of wooded areas throughout the county. Prefers oaks and mixed broadleaf forest. Mostly absent at the coast and in the lightly wooded or treeless southern parts of the county. Present year-round, but becomes more common in the winter months in my experience, yet, interestingly, the Breeding Bird Atlas says quite the opposite. Not uncommon in suburban areas with adequate stands of trees. Usually seen crawling along branches, looking for insects, or crawling upside down along branches or upside down on tree trunks doing the same. Although mostly an insectivore, fond of seeds and often seen at feeders taking seed, especially in the winter. Cavity nester, mostly using abandoned woodpecker excavations. Breeds widely in the county, wherever there is suitable habitat and nesting spots are available. Distinctive vocalization (a nasal eenk!) is often the first clue to the presence of a White-breasted Nuthatch.


Plump, short-tailed, and as likely as not to be upside down, a nuthatch is fairly distinctive. A clean white face makes the White-breasted Nuthatch’s dark eye stand out. Bluish-grey above but the crown and nape are a darker hue. White underparts but with a rusty patch at the vent--an often-overlooked field mark. Long, pointed bill is slightly upturned, which can give the bird a mildly jovial look. Distinguished from its close relative Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) by its larger size, different coloration, and different vocalizations (compare below). Red-breasted Nuthatch, as the name suggests, is extensively rufous on the breast and belly. Red-breasted Nuthatch is more likely to be found on conifers than White-breasted Nuthatch. Pygmy Nuthatch (Sitta pygmaea), our other nuthatch species, is a smaller bird than either of the other two and less commonly encountered in Sonoma County. Perhaps the most obvious feature differentiating the three is the patterning on the head and face. White-breasted Nuthatch has a clean, white face with a dark cap. Pygmy Nuthatch has a grey-brown crown that extends all the way down to a dark eyestripe; the face is thus dark at and above the eye, white below. Red-breasted Nuthatch combines a strong white “eyebrow” with a dark eyeline so that the face appears striped.   


Trivia: Nuthatches get their name from their habit of wedging food items (such as nuts) into crevices and then chopping at them with their bills.


Further reading:

Bolander and Parmeter, Birds of Sonoma County California, rev. ed., 2000, p. 92

Brinkley, National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Birds of North America, 2007, p. 342

Burridge, ed., Sonoma County Breeding Bird Atlas, 1995, p. 120

Dunn and Alderfer, eds., National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, 5th ed., 2006, p. 340

Dunn and Alderfer, eds., National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, 6th ed., 2011, p. 380

Dunne, Pete Dunne’s Essential Field Guide Companion, 2006, p. 473

Ehrlich, Dobkin, and Wheye, The Birder's Handbook, paperback edition, 1988, p. 434

Fix and Bezener, Birds of Northern California, 2000, p. 283

Floyd, Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North America, 2008, p. 339

Kaufman, Field Guide to Birds of North America, 2000, p. 286

Kaufman, Field Guide to Advanced Birding, 2011, pp. 13, 97

Lukas, Bay Area Birds: From Sonoma County to Monterey Bay, 2012, pp. 209-210

Parmeter and Wight, Birds of Sonoma County California, Update (2000-2010), 2012, p. 55

Peterson, Birds of Eastern and Central North America, 5th ed., 2002, p. 238

Peterson, Field Guide to Birds of Western North America, 4th ed., 2010, p. 278

Peterson, Western Birds, 3rd ed., 1990,  p. 262

Sibley, Field Guide to Birds of Western North America,1st ed., 2003, p. 324

Stokes, Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America, 1st ed., 2010, p. 531

Vuilleumier, American Museum of Natural History, Birds of North America: Western Region, 2011, p. 313


Voice: Cornell Lab of Ornithology: All About Birds--White-breasted Nuthatch

Voice: Cornell Lab of Ornithology: All About Birds--Red-breasted Nuthatch

Voice: Cornell Lab of Ornithology: All About Birds--Pygmy Nuthatch


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© Colin Talcroft, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013

Unless noted, all photos by the author. If you would like to use one of my images, please ask for permission for non-commercial use with proper credit or commercial use with proper compensation.

ctalcroft@yahoo.com

White-breasted Nuthatch, Spring Lake, Santa Rosa, December 16, 2012

Note the patch of color at the vent

White-breasted Nuthatch, Spring Lake, Santa Rosa, December 16, 2012

White-breasted Nuthatch

Sitta carolinensis

1990-2013 Sonoma County data. Graph provided by eBird (www.ebird.org), generated September 21, 2013

EBird reported occurrence in Sonoma County

For comparison: Red-breasted Nuthatch (male)

Point Reyes (Marin County), September 12, 2012

Pygmy Nuthatch, Barnett Valley Road

Sebastopol, December 27, 2015

Note the two-toned face