White-breasted Nuthatch

Photo by MI_Phil
Wexford County, Michigan, USA

Sitta carolinensis

Identification

Length 13-15 cm

• Blue-grey above
• White underparts and face
• Black crown

Variation

Three forms should be distinguishable in the field: slender-billed (Pacific), Rocky Mountain, and Carolina (Eastern half of the continent). See post 58 in this Birdforum thread^[4].

Distribution

Largely resident from British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia south to southern California, Arizona, Gulf Coast, and central Florida. Absent from most of Great Plains.

Taxonomy

Subspecies^[1]

Nine subspecies are recognized:

• S. c. carolinensis - North-eastern North America to Dakotas, Kansas, Oklahoma and eastern Texas
• S. c. nelsoni - Rocky Mountains of western US to northern Mexico (Sonora and northern Chihuahua)
• S. c. oberholseri - South-western Texas (Chisos Mountains) to eastern Mexico (northern Sierra Madre Oriental)
• S. c. mexicana - Mountains of western Mexico (Sierra Madre Occidental)
• S. c. kinneari - Mountains of western Mexico (Guerrero and Oaxaca)
• S. c. tenuissima -British Columbia and Cascades to Sierra Nevada of northern California
• S. c. aculeata -Western Washington to Oregon, California and northern Baja (Sierra Juárez)
• S. c. alexandrae -Mountains of northern Baja California (San Pedro Mártir)
• S. c. lagunae Mountains of southern Baja California (Sierra de la Laguna)

Three additional subspecies, atkinsi, umbrosa and cookei^[2], are not recognised by all authorities.

A recent paper proposes that the White-breasted Nuthatch should be split into 4 species corresponding to the areas The Pacific, The East, ESNNR [Eastern Sierra Nevada and Northern Rockies] and RGM [Rocky Mountain, Great Basin and Mexico]^[4].

Habitat

Deciduous and mixed forests, also coniferous.

Behaviour

Usually seen creeping on tree trunks, head downward

Breeding

Five to six white eggs, lightly speckled with red-brown, are laid in a cup of twigs and grass lined with feathers and hair. The nest site is in a natural cavity, bird box, or hole excavated by the birds.

Diet

They have a varied diet of insects, seeds, acorns and nuts and are known to stores food behind loose bark for use during the winter. Commonly seen at bird feeders.

Vocalisation

Call: A nasal yank-yank.
Song: A series of low whistled notes.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. eNature
3. Wikipedia
4. Birdforum thread (especially from post29) discussing taxonomy of this species

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) White-breasted Nuthatch. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 5 February 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/White-breasted_Nuthatch

External Links

Search for photos of White-breasted Nuthatch in the gallery

Search for videos of White-breasted Nuthatch on BirdForum TV