Word Acts: The Nuthatch, White-Breasted
Lawrence Willson spotlights an acrobatic bird.
Bluish-gray, white-faced, white breast,
rusty sides, lower belly
crown of black, short white-tipped tail
long pointed beak but short - statured
at 13-15 cm (and yet longest alabama nuthatch)
Singing a fine dual-pitched
waah - waah - waah - waah - waah, whi - whi - whi - whi - whi
it’s more noted for nasal
yank calls, varied: you might hear
a single yank here, a double yank there
or a rapid yank - yank - yank, all way home
(who knows: excitement, or fear) ―
while this bird yank yanks, if one goes eenk eenk,
that’ll be the true yankee, red breasted
Nests 4-6 white eggs with red-brown marks;
feeds on tree fruit, some grain, insects galore,
on the deck, sunflower seeds & peanuts
This creeper on the feeder
creeps
up
side
down
acrobatically ―
no trouble being employed
by the bird world’s
Le Cirque du Soleil
