The nuthatch likes nuts

By Aaron Horrell

The red-breasted nuthatch is a North American native that summers in the forests across Canada. It raises its babies there. During the winter the red-breasted nuthatch migrates south and can be seen in Southeast Missouri.

This chatty little bird loves eating nut meat and seeds while on vacation in our area. It has trouble cracking into nuts such as hickory nuts and walnuts, but if you smash these nuts, this little bird will gladly come for the meat. The nuthatch in this photo has snatched up a piece of pecan I cracked. They also gladly will take sunflower seeds from your feeder.

The red-breasted nuthatch has a straight, sometimes slightly upturned, black beak and an identifying copper-colored breast. It also has a black stripe on both sides of its head, from beak to back of head. Male and female look and sound alike. This cute little bird is smaller than its cousin, the white-breasted nuthatch, and is often seen climbing upside down on tree limbs looking for a place to stash a morsel of food in the tree bark.