Pygmy Nuthatch

(Pygmy Nuthatch)

Did anyone ever ask you to guess the number of gumballs in a jar? Asking you how many Pygmy Nuthatches just arrived in a nearby tree may leave you equally befuddled. Pygmy Nuthatches often travel in little gangs and never sit still, chatter constantly, and tickle your fancy every moment they are with you. Actually, a group of nuthatches is called a “jar.” Who comes up with these things?

They are common around our Oregon house. When I think of our many pleasurable encounters, it strikes me that I most often see them on small branches among dense needles or leaves. That’s in contrast to their larger and every bit as delightful cousin, the White-breasted Nuthatch. You’ll most often see this larger species watching you from an upside down posture clinging to the side of a tree trunk, which it may run up or down with ease.