Red-breasted Nuthatch
Sitta canadensis

Migratory Status: Resident

PIF Population Estimate: 18 000 000

Percent of western hemisphere population breeding in boreal forest: <25%

BAM Effective Detection Radius (m) : 77.94

PIF Maximum Detection Distance (m) : 125

Canadian BBS Population trend: 1.8 (1.0 to 2.6)

Life History

A common resident and a frequent visitor at bird feeders in the winter make the Red-breasted Nuthatch, formerly known as the Canada Nuthatch, a well-known bird throughout its range. Their familiar nasal “yank yank” call, which they use year-round, and their ability to move spritely up and down the trunks of trees are distinguishing characteristics that make the species readily identifiable.

Males in breeding plumage have bluish-gray upperparts, cinnamon underparts, and black on top of the head, from the forehead down to the back of the neck. Their facial pattern, a white eyebrow and black eye-stripe, helps distinguish the Red-breasted Nuthatch from other species. Females are similar to males in appearance, with paler underparts and gray-blue colouration on the head.

Found most commonly in mature coniferous and mixed-coniferous forests, from sea-level to high-elevation montane forests, this species breeds throughout forested regions from the Pacific Coast of British Columbia and Alaska, eastward to Newfoundland and Labrador. In the United States, the Red-breasted Nuthatch breeds west of the Great Basin through the mountains to the Pacific coast and southward to California and Mexico. In the east, they are found around the Great Lakes and at higher elevations in the Appalachian Mountains.

The winter range of the Red-breasted Nuthatch is similar to its breeding range, with the exception that high-elevation montane and northern populations are considered partial migrants. Individuals in these populations move irruptively (i.e., en masse) in years when food supplies are scarce or when winter weather is particularly harsh. Pronounced irruptions (mass movements of populations), also occur every 2 to 4 years, often coinciding with poor cone crop production on the breeding grounds. In these cases, the Red-breasted Nuthatch invades untraditional wintering areas throughout the continental United States due to a shortage of food. Populations may remain territorial year-round, or form single and multi-species flocks in the winter.

During the breeding season, Red-breasted Nuthatches feed on insects found on or in the bark of conifer trunks and branches. They rarely forage on the ground. In the winter, conifer seeds become a staple of their diet, which they will start storing (i.e., cache) in crevices and holes in the fall to provide a continuous food source over the winter. In areas of Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) outbreaks, overwintering larvae become an important food source. Red-breasted Nuthatches can become locally abundant in these areas to take advantage of this highly abundant food source, even if few trees with suitable cavity nests are available.

Reference(s)

Ghalambor, C. K., and T. E. Martin. 1999. Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis), The Birds of North America Online, . A. Poole, Ed. Ithaca: Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology; Retrieved from The Birds of North America Online database: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/459

Norris, A. R., and K. Martin. 2008. Mountain pine beetle presence affects nest patch choice of Red-breasted Nuthatches, Journal of Wildlife Management, 73(3):733-737.