[TN-Bird] Re: White-breasted Nuthatch display


----- Original Message -----
From: David & Gloria Patterson
Sent: Thursday, February 27, 2003 4:56 PM
To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [TN-Bird] White-breasted Nuthatch display

February 27, 2003
Houston Lane, 35.02 N, 85.08 W, Chattanooga, TN

A White-breasted Nuthatch presented a threat display for about 10 minutes this 
afternoon.
It hung upside down from a short stub on a drilled branch suet feeder, with its 
wings fully  
extended like a fan open 200+ degrees, and its tail spread wide, very 
impressive.  It turned
its belly toward whatever bird approached the suet, mainly Downy Woodpeckers, 
but also
Pine Warblers; they seemed impressed, and they did very little feeding while 
the Nuthatch
was there.  The Nuthatch did no feeding.

We have plenty of Nuthatches all year, but I have never seen a display like 
this, just a bit
of tail spreading in courtship.  Bent doesn't mention threat displays.


You know, I saw a WB Nuthatch doing the same sort of flashy display this past 
weekend. This bird employed the display to disperse any bird on the suet when 
it approached and then to keep interlopers away from the suet for maybe 5 
minutes. Titmice, chickadees, downy woodpeckers, the wintering YB sapsucker and 
even the resident mocker respected this display and kept their distance. This 
nuthatch did feed, but spent at least as much time displaying as feeding. It 
would sway back and forth with fanned wings and tail and then turn to face an 
approaching bird, who would retreat.  
Marty DeHart
Bon Aqua, TNGet more from the Web.  FREE MSN Explorer download : 
http://explorer.msn.com

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