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Bahama nuthatch - BirdForum Opus


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Sitta insularis

Identification

10-11 cm

  • White underparts
  • Brown cap
  • Narrow black eyeline
  • Buff white cheeks, chin, and belly
  • Blue-grey back, nape, wings, and rump
  • White spot on nape of neck
  • Sharp black bill

Similar Species

Similar to Brown-headed Nuthatch, which would be very tricky to distinguish, with voice being the main feature. The white on the throat goes further down the breast and there is higher contrast between black line through the eye and the crown. However, the chance of one of these being found in the range of the other is virtually none, given the sedentary nature of the species and the sea in between.

Distribution

Grand Bahama Island in the Bahamas. Possibly extinct as it was very rare before Hurricane Dorian devastated the island.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species[1].

It was previously included in Brown-headed Nuthatch.

Habitat

Caribbean pine (Pinus caribaea) forests.

Behaviour

Probably similar to Brown-headed Nuthatch.

Vocalisation

Similar in structure to Brown-headed Nuthatch but higher pitched and therefore sounds different.

References

  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Mlodinow, S. G., P. F. D. Boesman, G. L. Slater, J. D. Lloyd, J. H. Withgott, and K. G. Smith (2021). Bahama Nuthatch (Sitta insularis), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (B. K. Keeney, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.bnhnut2.01

Recommended Citation

External Links

GSearch checked for 2020 platform.

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