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That Nest in Birdhouses70birds
That Nest in BirdhousesPygmy Nuthatch
Sitta pygmaea
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Sittidae
Genus: Sitta
Species: pygmaea
La. passer sparrow, small bird
La. forma form, kind, species
Gr. sitte woodpecker like bird
mentioned by Aristotle
Gr. pugmaios dwarfish
La. pygmaea pygmy
Smallest of the nuthatches, about four inches long. Brown crown, blue-gray or gray-brown back and wings lined with black and sometimes white.
White throat, cheeks, underparts, and small nape patch. Very short tail. Western equivalent of the Brown-headed Nuthatch.
Pygmy nuthatches inhabit mixed and coniferous forests from southern British Columbia, Idaho and western Montana to southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico.
Small flocks of pygmy nuthatches dart throughout pine trees often with chickadees, woodpeckers and other birds on trunks, limbs and needles. They forage for beetles, ants, wasps, spiders, caterpillars various other insects, their larva and eggs in tree bark and on pinecone seeds.
Nuthatch feeding helps control tree parasites and the diseases spread by insects.
They have straight bills with sharp tips for foraging in crevices and under loose bark, cracking nut shells apart and boring out nesting cavities. They pound seeds into bark crevices to be retrieved.
They rarely feed from backyard feeders. Still one can make available typical chickadee, nuthatch feed: suet and suet mixes, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, various nuts, nut meats, bread crumbs and mealworms. They might be inclined to visit feeders when other bird species which they flock with also feed at feeders.
Attract nuthatches. Plant long needle pines and other conifer trees and shrubs that attract the insects on which they feed.
Females lay five to eight, more or less, white speckled eggs. Young hatch after about two weeks incubation and leave the nest in about another three weeks.
Pygmy nuthatches build nests of feathers, leaves and other foliage in natural or abandoned cavities, preferably in long-needle pine trees. Sometimes they excavate their own cavities, the whole family participating. Sometimes they nest in the right sized birdhouses in the right places.
The Pygmy Nuthatch Birdhouse is the same as for brown-headed nuthatch and chestnut-backed and Siberian chickadees.
It has a 4″ by 4″ floor and a 9″ inside floor to ceiling height. The entrance hole is 1 1/8″ diameter and is located 7″ above the floor.
Ventilation openings are cut into the floor and under the roof. A hinged roof is secured with shutter hooks.
Assemble with corrosion resistant screws in pre-drilled countersunk pilot holes.
Cover the surface of this nest box with pine tree bark and mount in a coniferous tree between eye level and just out of reach. Place a few chips on the nest box floor.
Remove the nest and clean the box well after the brood rearing season is past.
Chickadees, titmice, and other nuthatches may use this box.
If you mount a winter bird warmer and occasionally lift the lid in cold weather, you may see several cuddling nuthatches and possibly with chickadees and titmice.
Pygmy Nuthatch
Sitta pygmaea
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Sittidae
Genus: Sitta
Species: pygmaea
La. passer sparrow, small bird
La. forma form, kind, species
Gr. sitte woodpecker like bird
mentioned by Aristotle
Gr. pugmaios dwarfish
La. pygmaea pygmy
Smallest of the nuthatches, about four inches long. Brown crown, blue-gray or gray-brown back and wings lined with black and sometimes white.
White throat, cheeks, underparts, and small nape patch. Very short tail. Western equivalent of the Brown-headed Nuthatch.
Pygmy nuthatches inhabit coniferous and mixed forests, preferably older undisturbed forests from southern British Columbia, Idaho and western Montana to southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico.
Small flocks of pygmy nuthatches dart throughout pine trees often with chickadees, woodpeckers and other birds on trunks, limbs and needles. They forage for beetles, ants, wasps, spiders, caterpillars various other insects, their larva and eggs in tree bark and on pinecone seeds.
They have straight bills with sharp tips for foraging in crevices and under loose bark, cracking nut shells apart and boring out nesting cavities. They pound seeds into bark crevices to be retrieved.
Nuthatch feeding helps control tree parasites and the diseases spread by insects.
They rarely feed from backyard feeders. Still one can make available typical chickadee, nuthatch feed: suet and suet mixes, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, various nuts, nut meats, bread crumbs and mealworms. They might be inclined to visit feeders when other bird species which they flock with also feed at feeders.
Attract nuthatches. Plant long needle pines and other conifer trees and shrubs that attract the insects on which they feed.
Females lay five to eight, more or less, white speckled eggs. Young hatch after about two weeks incubation and leave the nest in about another three weeks.
Pygmy nuthatches build nests of feathers, leaves and other foliage in natural or abandoned cavities, preferably in long-needle pine trees. Sometimes they excavate their own cavities, the whole family participating. Sometimes they nest in the right sized birdhouses in the right places.
The Pygmy Nuthatch Birdhouse is the same as for brown-headed nuthatches and chestnut-backed and Siberian chickadees.
It has a 4″ by 4″ floor and a 9″ inside floor to ceiling height. The entrance hole is 1 1/8″ diameter and is located 7″ above the floor.
Ventilation openings are cut into the floor and under the roof. A hinged roof is secured with shutter hooks.
Assemble with corrosion resistant screws in pre-drilled countersunk pilot holes.
Cover the surface of this nest box with pine tree bark and mount in a coniferous tree between eye level and just out of reach. Place a few chips on the nest box floor.
Remove the nest and clean the box well after the brood rearing season is past.
Chickadees, titmice, and other nuthatches may use this box.
If you mount a winter bird warmer and occasionally lift the lid in cold weather, you may see several cuddling nuthatches and possibly with chickadees and titmice.
Pygmy Nuthatch
Birds | Birdhouses | Plans | Home
Sitta pygmaea
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Sittidae
Genus: Sitta
Species: pygmaea
La. passer sparrow, small bird
La. forma form, kind, species
Gr. sitte woodpecker like bird
mentioned by Aristotle
Gr. pugmaios dwarfish
La. pygmaea pygmy
Smallest of the nuthatches, about four inches long. Brown crown, blue-gray or gray-brown back and wings lined with black and sometimes white.
White throat, cheeks, underparts, and small nape patch. Very short tail. Western equivalent of the Brown-headed Nuthatch.
Pygmy nuthatches inhabit coniferous and mixed forests, preferably older undisturbed forests from southern British Columbia, Idaho and western Montana to southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico.
Small flocks of pygmy nuthatches dart throughout pine trees often with chickadees, woodpeckers and other birds on trunks, limbs and needles. They forage for beetles, ants, wasps, spiders, caterpillars various other insects, their larva and eggs in tree bark and on pinecone seeds.
They have straight bills with sharp tips for foraging in crevices and under loose bark, cracking nut shells apart and boring out nesting cavities. They pound seeds into bark crevices to be retrieved.
Nuthatch feeding helps control tree parasites and the diseases spread by insects.
They rarely feed from backyard feeders. Still one can make available typical chickadee, nuthatch feed: suet and suet mixes, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, various nuts, nut meats, bread crumbs and mealworms. They might be inclined to visit feeders when other bird species which they flock with also feed at feeders.
Attract nuthatches. Plant long needle pines and other conifer trees and shrubs that attract the insects on which they feed.
Females lay five to eight, more or less, white speckled eggs. Young hatch after about two weeks incubation and leave the nest in about another three weeks.
Pygmy nuthatches build nests of feathers, leaves and other foliage in natural or abandoned cavities, preferably in long-needle pine trees. Sometimes they excavate their own cavities, the whole family participating. Sometimes they nest in the right sized birdhouses in the right places.
Pygmy Nuthatch Birdhouse
The Pygmy Nuthatch Birdhouse is the same as for brown-headed nuthatches and chestnut-backed and Siberian chickadees.
It has a 4″ by 4″ floor and a 9″ inside floor to ceiling height. The entrance hole is 1 1/8″ diameter and is located 7″ above the floor.
Ventilation openings are cut into the floor and under the roof. A hinged roof is secured with shutter hooks.
Pygmy Nuthatch Birdhouse Plans
Assemble with corrosion resistant screws in pre-drilled countersunk pilot holes.
Cover the surface of this nest box with pine tree bark and mount in a coniferous tree between eye level and just out of reach. Place a few chips on the nest box floor.
Remove the nest and clean the box well after the brood rearing season is past.
Winter Bird Warmer
If you mount a winter bird warmer and occasionally lift the lid in cold weather, you may see several cuddling nuthatches and possibly with chickadees and titmice.
Chickadees, titmice, and other nuthatches may use these boxes.
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