Forest Mists - Red-breasted Nuthatch
Ronald W. Schlorff©
Original is sold; Limited Edition Print (12 x 9) - $95.00; Laser Print (11 x 8.5) - $10.00
The red-breasted nuthatch is a common resident of coniferous forests where its primary diet consists
of insects, especially the beetles that infest the bark of many tree species. These small birds are
members of a great forest-dwelling ecological guild that, together with woodpeckers, chickadees,
and the brown creeper, are indicators of intact and viable forest ecosystems wherever the bird
species maintain abundant populations. The red-breasted nuthatch excavates a cavity-nest in a dead
or dying tree or it may use a hole that was made by a woodpecker - such is the interdependent nature
of many species of wildlife. The nuthatch's distinctive "yank, yank, yank, yank" call is persistent,
even nagging, and it carries for a great distance in the crystal clear mountain air. Once you learn
to identify this call you'll never mistake it for any other species.
In this painting I've tried to capture the mood just after dawn, while the mist still hangs over the
forest canopy. High above the nearest ridge a nuthatch has found a dead and lichen-encrusted tree
limb that promises to harbor lots of insect food for the bird's breakfast.
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