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The characters of the Sittinæ are expressed with sufficient detail on page 86. The section is represented in America by a single genus, confined mainly to the northern portion.

Genus SITTA, Linnæus

Sitta, Linnæus, Syst. Nat. 1735. (Agassiz.)

Sitta carolinensis.

1761 ♀

Gen. Char. Bill subulate, acutely pointed, compressed, about as long as the head; culmen and commissure nearly straight; gonys convex and ascending; nostrils covered by a tuft of bristles directed forward. Tarsi stout, scutellate, about equal to the middle toe, much shorter than the hinder, the claw of which is half the total length. Outer lateral toe much longer than inner, and nearly equal to the middle. Tail very short, broad, and nearly even; the feathers soft and truncate. Wings reaching nearly to the end of the tail, long and acute, the first primary one third of (or less) the third, or longest. Iris brown. Nest in holes of trees. Eggs white, spotted with reddish.

The North American species may be arranged as follows:—

A. Crown black.

S. carolinensis. Belly white; no black stripe through eye.

Bill, .70 long, .17 deep. Black spots on tertials sharply defined. Hab. Eastern Province North America … var. carolinensis.

Bill, .80 long, .14 deep. Black spots on tertials obsolete. Hab. Middle and Western Province United States, south to Cordova, Mexico … var. aculeata.

S. canadensis. Belly brownish-rusty. A black stripe through eye. Hab. Whole of North America.

B. Crown not black.

S. pusilla. Crown light hair-brown; hind toe much longer than the middle one. Hab. South Atlantic and Gulf States.

S. pygmæa. Crown greenish-plumbeous; hind toe about equal to middle one. Hab. Western and Middle Province United States, south to Xalapa.

Sitta carolinensis, var. carolinensis, Lath

WHITE-BELLIED NUTHATCH

Sitta europæa, var. γ, carolinensis, Gm. S. N. I, 1788, 440. Sitta carolinensis, Lath. Ind. Orn. I, 1790, 262; also of all other American writers.—Reichenbach, Handbuch, Abh. II,, 1853, 153, tab. dxiii, figs. 3563, 3564.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 374, pl. xxxiii, fig. 4; Review, 86.—Max. Cab. Jour. VI, 1858, 106. Sitta melanocephala, Vieill. Gal. I, 1834, 171, pl. clxxi.

Other figures: Wilson, Am. Orn. I, pl. ii, fig. 3.—Aud. Orn. Biog. II, pl. clii.—Ib. B. A. IV, pl. ccxlvii.

PLATE VIII.

1. Sitta carolinensis, Gm. ♂ Pa., 59324.

2. Sitta carolinensis, Gm.  ♀

3. Salpinctes obsoletus, Say. Cal., 7157.

4. Catherpes mexicanus, Sw., var. Mex., 53425.

5. Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus, Lafr. ♂ Cal., 7149

6. Campylorhynchus affinis, Xantus. ♂ Cape St. Lucas, 12965

7. Sitta canadensis, Linn. ♂ Pa., 818

8. Sitta canadensis, Linn. ♀ Pa., 2073.

9. Sitta pusilla, Lath. Ga., 1925.

10. Sitta pygmæa, Vig. Cal., 3342.

11. Certhia americana, Bon. ♂ Pa., 827.

Sp. Char. Above ashy-blue. Top of head and neck black. Under parts and sides of head to a short distance above the eye white. Under tail-coverts and tibial feathers brown; concealed primaries white. Bill stout. Female with black of head glossed with ashy. Length about 6 inches; wing about 3.75.

Hab. United States and British Provinces; west to the Valley of the Missouri.

Sitta aculeata.

Habits. The common White-bellied Nuthatch has an extended distribution throughout nearly the whole of Eastern North America, from the Atlantic to the Rocky Mountains. West of the great central plains it is replaced by the var. aculeata. It has not been met with, so far as I am aware, farther north than Nova Scotia. It is a resident of Eastern Maine, and is quite common in the southern and western portions of the same State. In Massachusetts it is rather common than abundant, and more plentiful in the western than in the eastern portions of that State.

The habits of this and the other species of Nuthatches partake somewhat of those of the smaller Woodpeckers and of the Titmice. Without the noisy and restless activity of the latter, they seek their food in a similar manner, and not unfrequently do so in their company, moving up or down the trunks and over or under the branches of trees, searching every crack and crevice of the bark for insects, larvæ, or eggs. Like the Woodpeckers, they dig industriously into decayed branches for the hidden grub, and like both Woodpeckers and Chickadees they industriously excavate for themselves a place for their nests in the decayed trunks of forest trees. Their nest, however, is usually at a greater elevation, often some twenty or thirty feet from the ground. The European Nuthatch is said to plaster up the entrance to its nest, to contract its opening and lessen the dangers of unfriendly intrusion. This habit has never been observed in any of the American species.

All our ornithological writers have noticed the assiduities of the male bird to his sitting mate, and the attention with which he supplies her with food. He keeps ever in the vicinity of the nest, calls her from time to time to come to the mouth of the hole to take her food, or else to receive his endearments and caresses, and at the approach of danger fearlessly intervenes to warn her of it. When feeding together, the male bird keeps up his peculiar nasal cry of hŏnk-hŏnk, repeating it from time to time, as he moves around the trunk or over the branches.

Their favorite food is insects, in every condition. With this, when abundant, they seem content, and rarely wander from their accustomed woods in summer. In winter, when snow or ice covers the branches or closes against them the trunks of trees, they seek the dwellings and out-houses for their necessary food, and will even alight on the ground in quest of seeds. In searching for food among the trees, they move as readily with their heads downward as in any other position. Their motion is a uniform and steady progression, somewhat in the manner of a mouse, but never, like the Woodpecker, by occasional hops.

The European species collect and store away the fruit of the hazel and other nut-bearing trees. Our bird has been supposed to do the same thing, but this is by no means an indisputable fact.

In some parts of the country absurd prejudices prevail against these interesting little birds. They are indiscriminately confounded with the smaller Woodpeckers, called, with them, Sap-Suckers, and because in the spring and fall they frequent old orchards are most unwisely, as well as unjustly, persecuted. They are among the most active and serviceable of the fruit-grower’s benefactors. His worst enemies are their favorite food. It is to be hoped that soon a better-informed public opinion will prevail, cherishing and protecting, rather than seeking to destroy, this useful, affectionate, and attractive species.

Interesting accounts are given in English works of the confiding tameness of the European species. When kindly treated, it will come regularly for its food, approaching within a foot or two of the hand of its benefactor, and catching with its bill the food thrown to it before it can reach the ground.

The pair work together in constructing the perforation in which they make their nest. When the excavation has been well begun, they relieve each other at the task. The one not engaged in cutting attends upon its mate, and carries out the chips as they are made. These nesting-places are often quite deep, not unfrequently from fifteen to twenty inches. Audubon states that they build no nest, but this does not correspond with my observations. In all the instances that have come to my knowledge, warm and soft nests were found, composed of down, fur, hair, or feathers loosely thrown together, and, though not large in bulk, yet sufficient for a lining for the enlarged cavity that completes their excavation. Soon after they are hatched, the young climb to the opening of the nest to receive their food, and, before they are ready to fly, venture out upon the trunk to try their legs and claws before their wings are prepared for use, retiring at night to their nest. In the Southern States they are said to have two broods in a season.

The eggs of this Nuthatch measure .80 by .62 of an inch. Their ground-color is white, but when the egg is fresh it has a beautiful roseate tinge, and generally receives an apparently reddish hue from the very general distribution of the spots and blotches of rusty-brown and purplish with which the eggs are so closely covered. These markings vary greatly in size, from fine dots to well-marked blotches. Their color is usually a reddish-brown; occasionally the markings are largely intermixed with purple.

Sitta carolinensis, var. aculeata, Cass

SLENDER-BILLED NUTHATCH

Sitta aculeata, Cassin, Pr. A. N. Sc. VIII, Oct. 1856, 254.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 375, pl. xxxiii, fig. 3; Review, 86.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 54. ? Sitta carolinensis, Sclater, P. Z. S. 1856, 293 (Cordova); 1858, 300 (Oaxaca); 1859, 363 (Xalapa), 373 (Oaxaca).

Sp. Char. Very similar to carolinensis; but upper secondaries with only obscure blackish blotches, instead of sharply defined longitudinal spots of clear black. Bill slenderer and more attenuated.

Hab. Western and Middle Provinces of the United States, south to Cordova, Mex. Orizaba (Alpine regions), Sumich.

The characters given above express the essential differences between this and the Eastern race of S. carolinensis. In the present form, the depth of the bill opposite its base is .14, the width .17, and .80 or more in length from the forehead; while these same measurements in var. carolinensis are .17, .22, and .70. The obsolete character of the black spots on the secondaries is a persistent feature in the var. aculeata.

Habits. This bird chiefly differs from its eastern congener in its more slender bill. There appears to be no difference in regard to their habits, at least none have been noticed, and it is probable there is none other than trivial changes caused by its opportunities of procuring food, and the kinds upon which it subsists. It is supposed to be distributed throughout Western North America, from the British Possessions to Mexico, though Dr. Cooper thinks that it is not a common bird south of San Francisco, and only to be seen there in the colder months. It has been met with at San Diego in February. He did not observe any in the Coast Mountains, near Santa Cruz, but northward they are numerous in the summer, frequenting chiefly the groves of the deciduous oaks, creeping constantly about their trunks and branches in search of insects, which they also occasionally seek on the roofs and walls of houses. Their habits are similar to those of S. canadensis, but their movements are said to be slower, and their note is a single harsh call, uttered occasionally, and responded to by their comrades. Dr. Cooper found them quite common in Washington Territory and at Puget Sound. Dr. Suckley also mentions their great abundance.

Dr. Kennerly met with this species a hundred miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and quite abundant among the pines of the Sierra Madre. He speaks of its note as being peculiar.

Mr. J. K. Lord states that this species remained about Colville during the winter, when the thermometer was 30° below zero. He also mentions that he found them nesting, in June, in the branches of the tallest pine-trees, so high up as to render the obtaining their eggs almost an impossibility.

Mr. Ridgway found the Slender-billed Nuthatch abundant, throughout the year, in the vicinity of Carson City, among the pines on the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He noted its great similarity in manners to the carolinensis; at the same time the well-marked difference in the notes did not escape his attention. These notes are much weaker, and are uttered in a finer tone, and some of them are said to be entirely different.

Sitta canadensis, Linn

RED-BELLIED NUTHATCH

Sitta canadensis, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 177.—Aud. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, pl. cviii.—Ib. Birds Am. IV, pl. ccxlviii.—Reich. Handb. Abh. II, 1853, 152, tab. dxiii, figs. 3561, 3562.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 376; Review, 87.—Sclater, Catal. 1861, 15, No. 91.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 54. Sitta varia, Wils. Am. Orn. I, 1808, 40, pl. ii.

Sp. Char. Above ashy-blue. Top of head black; a white line above and a black one through the eye. Chin white; rest of under parts brownish-rusty. Length about 4.50 inches; wing, 2.66. Female with the black of head mixed with ashy; beneath paler, more of a muddy-white.

Hab. Whole United States and British Provinces. North to Lake Winnipeg.

Habits. The common Red-bellied Nuthatch, though nowhere a very abundant species, is found throughout the whole of North America, from Florida to high northern regions, and from ocean to ocean. The Smithsonian Institution possesses specimens from Georgia, Selkirk Settlement, California, and Washington Territory. Mr. Gambel found them quite common in the mountains in the interior of California, in October, roving in company with busy flocks of the Parus montanus.

Dr. Cooper met with them abundantly in Washington Territory, where they preferred the oaks and other deciduous trees, and never frequented the interior of the dense forest. He observed this bird and the Slender-billed Nuthatch, along the 49th parallel, east of the Cascade Mountains, as late as the middle of October. Dr. Suckley also met both birds west of the same mountains.

This Nuthatch was observed by Mr. Ridgway among the aspen groves bordering the streams that flow from the East Humboldt Mountains. In that locality it was common through the month of September, though not abundant. It was again seen in June among the pine-woods of the Wahsatch Mountains, but it was not common.

While a few of these birds are resident of the Northern States, they are, to a considerable extent, of migratory habits. Wilson observed them leaving in large numbers for the Southern States in October, and returning again in April. On the 20th of May, 1867, the writer observed a small flock in Eastern Massachusetts, evidently just arrived from the South. They were apparently fatigued and hungry, and paid no attention to the near presence of workmen engaged in setting bean-poles. They visited and carefully examined each pole, and bored holes into several in search of hidden larvæ, often within a few feet of persons at work.

While on the Pacific coast they are said to prefer the forests of deciduous trees, and to be rarely found in the dark evergreen forests, in the Eastern States they seem to be particularly fond of the seeds of pine-trees, and in the winter are seldom found in the woods of deciduous trees.

They feed in pairs and climb about in all directions, usually in company with the white-breasted species, Chickadees, and the smaller Woodpeckers. They are restless and rapid in their motions, and have a voice at least an octave higher than any other of this family. The note is a monotone, and is unmusical. Mr. Nuttall represents their cry as consisting of three syllables, represented by dāy-dāy-dāit, and compares it to the sound of a child’s trumpet.

Those wintering at the North occasionally visit farm-yards and orchards, and examine the eaves of outbuildings for food.

Audubon found this species more plentiful in the woods of Maine and Nova Scotia than anywhere else. He never met any south of Maryland, saw none in Newfoundland, and only met with one in Labrador. At Eastport he found a pair breeding as early as the 19th of April, before the Bluebirds had made their appearance, and while ice was still remaining on the northern exposures. An excavation had been made in a low dead stump, less than four feet from the ground, both male and female birds working by turns until they had reached the depth of fourteen inches. The eggs, four in number, were of a white ground-color, tinged with a deep blush when fresh, and sprinkled with reddish dots. They raise but a single brood in a season.

C. S. Paine, of East Bethel, Vt., found a nest of this species about the middle of May, in a small beech-tree, the excavation having been made at the height of twelve feet from the ground. The hole was about as large as that made by the Downy Woodpecker. When first noticed, the bird was looking out of the hole. Having been started out, she flew to a limb close by and watched the party some time. When she flew back, she buzzed before the hole in the manner of a Humming-Bird, and then darted in. While Mr. Paine was looking on, the male came several times to feed his mate, who would meet him at the opening with a clamorous noise, to receive his bounty. The nest contained five eggs.

In Western Massachusetts, Mr. Allen speaks of this species as chiefly a winter resident, appearing the first week in October, and leaving the last of April.

The eggs of this species measure .62 by .48 of an inch, and are of an oblong-oval shape. Their ground-color is a clear crystal white, marked principally about the larger end with a wreath of purple and roseate markings.

Sitta pygmæa, Vig

PIGMY NUTHATCH

Sitta pygmæa, Vigors, Zoöl. Beechey’s Voy. 1839, 25, pl. iv.—Aud. Orn. Biog. V, 1839, pl. ccccxv.—Ib. Birds Am. IV, pl. ccl.—Reich. Handb. 1853, 153, tab. dxiv, figs. 3365, 3366.—Newberry, P. R. R. Rep. VI, IV, 1857, 79.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 378; Review, 88.—Sclater, P. Z. S. 1859, 363 (Xalapa).—Ib. Catal. 1861, 15, No. 93.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 55.

Sp. Char. Above ashy-blue; head and upper part of neck greenish ashy-brown, its lower border passing a little below the eye, where it is darker; nape with an obscure whitish spot. Chin and throat whitish; rest of lower parts brownish-white; the sides and behind like the back, but paler. Middle tail-feather like the back; its basal half with a long white spot; its outer web edged with black at the base. Length about 4 inches; wing, 2.40.

Hab. Western and Middle Provinces of United States; south to Xalapa.

This species is closely related to Sitta pusilla of the Southern States. The brown of the head has, however, an olivaceous-green tinge not seen in the other; the white spot on the nape less distinct. The middle tail-feather has its basal half white and the outer web edged with black at the base. This black edging is never seen in the other, and the white patch is reduced to a faint trace, only visible in very highly plumaged specimens.

Habits. This diminutive species of Nuthatch is found throughout our Pacific coast and on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains, from Washington Territory to Southern California. It is also to be found in New Mexico, and specimens have been procured from Mexico.

Dr. Kennerly found them quite abundant in the Sierra Madre and San Francisco Mountains, even as high up as the snow-line, seeking their insect food among the tops of the lofty pines. Dr. Newberry frequently met with these Nuthatches in the most wooded places on his route, where water was near and any considerable amount of animal life visible. He, however, never met with them in the forests of yellow pines. Dr. Gambel mentions their almost extraordinary abundance, in the winter months, in Upper California. Around Monterey, at times, the trees appeared almost alive with them, as they ran up and down and around the branches and trunks, uttering their monotonous and querulous cries. Their note he describes as a repeated whistling wit-wit. When one utters this cry, the rest join in. They also have a whistling trill while they are busily searching the tree in every part, and they never leave till they have pretty thoroughly searched every crack.

Dr. Cooper only met with this Nuthatch in the open pine-forests about Fort Colville, near the 49th parallel. They were associated in small flocks about the 20th of October, when there were heavy frosts at night. The chirping noise they made resembled the cries of young chickens. Their habits were very similar to those of the Psaltriparus minimus.

Mr. J. K. Lord found this Nuthatch an abundant bird along the entire length of the boundary line from the coast to the Rocky Mountains. It was also common on Vancouver Island. They were seen in large flocks in company with the Chickadees, except during the nesting-time, which is in June. A few were winter residents at Colville, but the greater number left in November. He describes it as a very active bird, always on the move. After nesting they congregate in large flocks and move about from tree to tree, twittering a low sweet note as if singing to themselves, now climbing back downwards along the under sides of the topmost branches of tall pines, searching into every crevice for insects, or, descending to the ground, clinging to the slender flower-stalks for other insects. They nest in June, make a hole in the dead branch of a pine, and deposit their eggs on the bare chips of the wood. This account does not agree with the experience of California ornithologists, who have found a loose nest within the excavation.

Mr. Ridgway found this Nuthatch abundant among the pines of the Sierra Nevada, in the vicinity of Carson City. They were found generally in pairs. Its note is said to greatly resemble the vociferous peeping of some of the small Sandpipers, being sharp, loud, and distinct, and vigorously and continuously uttered, whether climbing or flying. He found it exceedingly hard to discover this bird among the branches, or even when flying, owing to the swiftness and irregularity of its flight. When the female of a pair had been killed, the male bird was extremely loud in his lamentations. Diminutive as this bird is, Mr. Ridgway states that it is also the noisiest of all the feathered inhabitants of the pines, though it is less active in the pursuit of insects than the larger species.

Nests of this bird obtained near Monterey appear to be as well made as those of any of this genus, lining the cavity in which they are placed and conforming to it in size and shape, the materials sufficiently interwoven to permit removal and preservation, and warmly constructed of feathers, wool, vegetable down, hair, and the silky efflorescence of seeds.

Their eggs, seven in number, resemble those of the S. canadensis, but are of smaller size and a little more pointed at one end. Their ground-color is crystalline-white. This is covered more or less thickly with red spots, most numerous at the larger end. Their measure varies from .65 by .50 to .60 by .47 of an inch. The first eggs of this bird brought to the notice of naturalists were procured at Fort Crook on the Upper Sacramento of California, and not far from Mount Shasta, by Sergeant John Feilner, U. S. A., forming part of a very extensive collection of birds and eggs transmitted by him to the Smithsonian Institution. Promoted to a lieutenancy for gallant conduct, this gentleman finally attained the rank of captain of cavalry, and was killed by the Sioux during an exploring expedition into Dacotah under General Sully.

Sitta pusilla, Lath

BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH

Sitta pusilla, Lath. Ind. Orn. I, 1790, 263.—Wils. Am. Orn. II, 1810, 105, pl. XV.—Aud. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, pl. cxxv.—Ib. Birds Am. IV, pl. ccxlix.—Reich. Handb. 1853, 153, tab. dxiv, figs. 3567, 3568.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 377; Review, 88.—Sclater, Catal. 1861, 15.

Sp. Char. Above ashy-blue; top of head and upper part of neck rather light hair-brown, divided on the nape by white. Eye involved in the brown, which is deeper on the lower border. Beneath muddy-whitish; sides and behind paler than the back. Middle tail-feathers almost entirely like the back. Length of female, 4 inches; wing, 2.50.

Hab. South Atlantic and Gulf States. Ohio! Kirtland.

Habits. The Brown-headed Nuthatch has a much more restricted distribution than the other members of this family in this country. The specimens in the Smithsonian Museum are chiefly from Georgia. Wilson met with it in Virginia, and states that it is found in the other Southern States. I have received its eggs from Cheraw, S. C., and from Florida.

Wilson’s description of its habits makes them almost identical with those of Sitta canadensis, while its notes are more shrill and chirping. Like that bird, it is very fond of the seeds of the pines. Wherever found, it is a constant resident, and does not migrate.

Audubon states that this bird never goes farther north than Maryland, and that it is the most abundant in Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. In Louisiana it is rare, and it is not found in Kentucky. Its notes, he states, are several octaves higher than those of the carolinensis, and more shrill, and at least an octave and a half higher than those of the canadensis.

Although apparently preferring pines and pine barrens, it by no means confines itself to them, but is not unfrequently seen on low trees and fences, mounting, descending, and turning in every direction, and with so much quickness of motion as to render it difficult to shoot it. It examines every hole and every crevice in the bark of trees, as well as their leaves and twigs, among which it finds abundance of food at all seasons. During the breeding-season they go about in pairs and are very noisy. Their only note is a monotonous cry, described as resembling dĕnd, dĕnd. Mr. Audubon further states that when the first brood leaves the nest, the young birds keep together, moving from tree to tree with all the activity of their parents, who join them when the second brood is able to keep them company. In Florida they pair in the beginning of February, having eggs as early as the middle of that month. In South Carolina they breed one month later. Their nest is usually excavated by the birds themselves in the dead portion of a low stump or sapling, sometimes only a few feet from the ground, but not unfrequently at the height of thirty or forty feet. Both birds are said to work in concert with great earnestness for several days, until the hole, which is round, and not larger at the entrance than the body of the bird, is dug ten or twelve inches deep, widening at the bottom. The eggs, according to Mr. Audubon, are laid on the bare wood. This, however, is probably not their constant habit. The eggs, from four to six in number, and not much larger than those of the Humming-Bird, have a white ground, thickly sprinkled with fine reddish-brown dots. They are said to raise two, and even three, broods in a season. According to the observations of the late Dr. Gerhardt of Northern Georgia, the Brown-headed Nuthatch breeds in that part of the country about the 19th of April.

The eggs of this Nuthatch are of a rounded oval shape, measuring .60 by .50 of an inch. Their white ground-color is so completely overlaid by a profusion of fine dottings of a dark purplish-brown as to be entirely concealed, and the egg appears almost as if a uniform chocolate or brown color.