Red-breasted Nuthatches

These are cool birds. They're frequent visitors to my house, especially in winter when they hang around my feeders with black-capped chickadees and Downy woodpeckers. They're tiny birds, only about 4-inches in size. They're fun to watch because they climb down tree trunks headfirst. Even when they land on my canister feeder, they're usually upside down. They build their nests in tree cavities using grass, bark strips, and pine needles. They line the nest with fur, feathers, fine grass, and shredded bark. Another unique fact is that they line the entrance to their nest with pine resin to keep out predators. The males apply it to the outside and the females put the sap on the inside. They avoid the sap by diving directly into the hole. Another unique fact is that they are the only North American nuthatch with an eyestripe on their head. When they visit my feeder, they only stop long enough to pick up a seed and fly away. They take it to a tree where they stick the seed into the bark and open it. Black-capped chickadees must do the same thing because they only stop at the feeder long enough to grab a seed and fly off. Dark-eyed juncos are another winter visitor, but they like to sit in the feeder and eat. I've just started seeing them again and yesterday I watched one fat little junco eat for the longest time. The chickadees and nuthatches zoomed back and forth like it was Grand Central Station, but the little junco just sat there enjoying her meal. We recently got another foot of snow, so my bird feeders have been really active lately. Even the woodpeckers are eating the seeds, rather than just tossing them onto the ground. If you know me, you know I have a thing for bird feeders.

I live in the mountains, so we get a lot of wildlife here. We've seen all sorts of birds, from little house finches all the way to bald eagles flying overhead. We also have squirrels, black bears, deer, moose, coyotes, wolves, and so forth. We've heard grizzlies have been known to frequent the area when food supplies are low, but we haven't seen any since living here. The same goes for mountain lions. Right now it's the winter birds and squirrels making their appearance the most. Once the snow melts and the bears come out, I'll have to start putting my bird feeders inside again, since the bears have been known to come right up to the house. Then again, I don't know what's worse -- the bears or the dogs that run around the neighborhood. I might have to keep feeding the bears just to keep the darn dogs out of the yard.

So -- what type of birds visit your house?