White-breasted Nuthatch    Sitta carolinensis

Conservation Status

General Status in Canada : Secure

COSEWIC Status : Not assessed

Breeding Bird Surveys indicate that North American populations have changed little between 1966 and 2007. No populations are likely to be threatened in the near future, although local declines occur when land is cleared for agriculture, urban or industrial use. White-breasted Nuthatches are secondary cavity users, dependent mainly on woodpeckers to provide suitable nest sites. Aesthetic values and safety concerns in recent years have led to extensive removal of older trees and dead branches in urban parks and residential areas, much to the detriment of cavity nesters like White-breasted Nuthatches. In rural areas, the salvaging of dead standing deciduous trees for firewood negatively affects nesting habitat. Salvage logging in general, but particularly in burned areas, also impacts nesting habitat by removing potential nest cavity trees.

Reference(s)

Grubb, Jr., T. C. and V. V. Pravosudov. 2008. White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis), 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/054