feather facts

the Brown-headed Nuthatch: 

I began feeding birds several years ago, and it quickly became my favorite hobby.  I’m not that great at photography, and I use a point-and-shoot camera, but I do get lucky sometimes and get a great, focused shot.

I recently stopped by one of my favorite stores, Wild Birds Unlimited.  (http://.wbu.com/)  I love to browse, look at all kinds of neat stuff, and if I’m lucky, I get to rub the store cat.  The slogan of Wild Birds Unlimited is ‘Saving the World One Bird at a Time’.  I like to think I do my part.

Anyway, I talked with one of the owners of WBU about a new, first time ever, perky little bird that has hung around my backyard.  It has a squeaky song that sounds like a rubber duck toy.  I ended up buying a nesting box (birdhouse) specifically for these little Brown-headed Nuthatches.  I nailed it on our fence, in a quiet corner, that I can see from our bedroom window.  As it turns out, my new, first time ever, visitor is in need of kind, human hands. 

*A message from the Audubon Society:

Brown-headed Nuthatches are losing the pinewoods and dead trees they need for food and nest cavities due to urbanization and deforestation. This loss of habitat has caused the Brown-headed Nuthatch to decline in the Piedmont region. The North Carolina Audubon Society is asking for our help to put up 10,000 new Brown-headed Nuthatch homes in North Carolina by 2015.

*(http://nc.audubon.org/make-little-room-brown-headed-nuthatch)