With its trees, shrubs and gardens, our estate is home to a variety of wildlife. It was sad to lose so many mature trees earlier this month. However, we can still appreciate the ones that are left and the wildlife that visits and lives in them. This post is about an elegant bird – the Nuthatch.
Image source: http://www.gardenbirdwatching.com/nuthatch.html (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
The Nuthatch has distinctive colourings: it is blue-grey on top and rust-coloured below and it has a black stripe running across its eye to the back of its head.
Its name comes from its habit of wedging nuts or seeds in crevices in the bark and hammering them open with its bill.
Nuthatches have been spotted on several occasions, including this week, on the oak tree outside Chalner House. Perhaps you’ve seen them on other trees on the estate too?
Watch out for the Nuthatch’s unusual way of moving down trunks: it’s the only British bird species which goes down headfirst!
You can learn more about Nuthatches on The Wildlife Trusts, RSPB and British Trust for Ornithology websites.
This post is part of an ongoing series about nature and wildlife on Palace Road Estate. Do get in touch if you’ve spotted any other interesting birds, or other types of wildlife, which we could cover in future posts (email: contact@prera.org.uk).