Jordan Lake. The brown-headed nuthatch is only about 3 to 4 inches in length. Makes it much smaller than the woodpeckers in the Jordan Lake Neighborhood. However, it certainly holds its own when it comes to drilling underneath the bark looking for bugs and spiders to eat. The occasional high pitched chittering that you hear throughout the clip is this nuthatch’s mate who is further up the tree also drilling for insects. Hope you enjoy the determination that this little bird shows.
brown-headed nuthatch
TagFirst Nest Snippet 2024/02/15
Jordan Lake First Nest Neighborhood. Every once in a while … and it’s been a long while at this point … since I put together a series of small little clips of an outing at Jordan Lake. All of these are from this morning. There are five different species of birds. Hope you enjoy each and every one of them.
Cold Weather at First Nest
First Nest update… Nope the photo is not of one of the eagles! Yesterday the lake level was still so high that I could not see the nest but I did manage to glimpse one of the parents dashing across the cove and into the tree with the nest and that is good news especially in this cold cold weather. The photo is a little brown-headed nuthatch that was looking at me like “well Doc what are you going to about this cold weather? I have to fluff my feathers all up and you have to bundle all up.” Frigid air indeed.

Cold!
Jordan Lake. The 28°F weather this morning caused the normally very sleek little brown-headed nuthatch to get all puffed up as his feathers trapped heat against his body. That did not slow down his hunting. He’s got an insect of some sort for his breakfast.


Doc Ellen’s Snippet August 5, 2023
Jordan Lake. Introducing Doc Ellen’s Snippets. I am planning these videos as a way to share with you a collection of several brief video moments that occur during a single outing in the Jordan Lake Neighborhood. Enjoy!
JL Neighborhood 6 photos July 31, 2017
Big birds, little birds, plain brown or black birds and one of startling color!
4-year-old bald eagle with a small fish for a pre-brunch appetizer!

The tiny brown-headed nuthatch has snagged one of her favorite sources of protein:
a spider from the web below her.

This brilliantly yellow bird is a prothonotary warbler.
They come for the summer nesting season.

A northern rough-winged swallow:
a tiny speed demon that loves to consume flying insects such as mosquitos.

There is WAY more branch here than osprey!
I would have loved to have been able to see him get it into his nest.

Closeup of a beautiful black vulture.
I really appreciate their contributions to the cleanup around the lake.

