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Feathers and Fuzz

one woman's cure for the empty-nester blues

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White-breasted Nuthatch

Bird Size: Georgia’s Smaller Winter Residents

February 4, 2018 by MoJo

Napoleon and Mourning Dove

White-breasted Nuthatch (Left) - Mourning Dove (Right)

Sometimes we don't get a feel for a bird's size when we see them pictured solo.  When you see Napoleon (White-breasted Nuthatch) pictured with a Mourning Dove (above), Napoleon's small size is striking.  Napoleon's smaller  cousin, the Brown-headed Nuthatch, is resident in Georgia year-round, but I rarely see him except in winter.  He is pictured side-by-side with Napoleon, below.  If you hear what sounds like a dog's squeaky toy high up in the trees -- it's probably the Brown-headed.  

Brown-headed Nuthatch on Cup

Brown-headed Nuthatch

White-breasted Nuthatch on Cup

White-breasted Nuthatch

Smaller-still is the Ruby-crowned Kinglet.  He's about the size of Georgia's Ruby-throated Hummingbird when they are at their heaviest just before heading south in the fall.  The Kinglets are only here for the winter -- darting around from suet-feeder to suet-feeder.  I remember when I first met the Kinglet.  He was in the tree nearest the feeder -- giving me major grief for getting in the way of his meal.  When he came at me, I knew we hadn't met before -- me and this Chihuahua of the bird kingdom.  

The male Kinglet's red head feathers are shown in the picture (right).  If excited, he will actually raise these feathers into a "crown" -- a picture I may get one day.  The last two pictures show a size comparison between a Carolina Chickadee and the Kinglet.

Kinglet - Red Head
Chickadee on Suet

Carolina Chickadee

Kinglet on Suet

Ruby-Crowned Kinglet

Summing it all up:

  Length, In Weight, Oz
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 3-3.75 0.1 - 0.2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 4.25 0.2
Brown-headed Nuthatch 4-5 0.4
Carolina Chickadee 4-5 0.4
White-breasted Nuthatch 5-6 0.7
Carolina Wren 5-6 0.7
Mourning Dove 12 4-6

Filed Under: All the Others, Feathers Tagged With: Bird Size, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Carolina Chickadee, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Small Birds, White-breasted Nuthatch

White-breasted Nuthatch Defeats Finch Army

January 24, 2018 by MoJo

If you’ve been following this blog for a while, I’m sure you remember “Napoleon”.  He was featured in White-Breasted Nuthatch Exhibits Napoleon Complex and in White-breasted Nuthatch vs Camera .  In past escapades our cute, little Napoleon tried SO hard, but frightened no one.  His luck changed in January of 2018.  Not only did he take on an entire army of House Finches — he won!

He wasn’t so lucky intimidating the larger, male Cardinal … not for lack of trying! … but in the end the Cardinal moved on.  Napoleon proudly retrieved the spoils of war — the single sunflower seed he’d fought so mightily for.

As the video starts, you’ll find Napoleon (perched upside-down) on the left.

https://www.feathersandfuzz.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Finch-Army-Video.mp4

Filed Under: All the Others, Feathers Tagged With: Bird War, White-breasted Nuthatch

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