There has been a flurry of activity at the nuthatch nest. It is quite obvious that the eggs have hatched, both parents have been bringing lots of food to the nest.Brown-headed nuthatches lay 3-7 eggs. The eggs are incubated for 2 weeks. Once hatched, the parents bring the nestlings a variety of small soft-bodied grubs, spiders, and caterpillars.
In this video I made this morning, you will see just what the nuthatches are feeding their young.
Once the nestlings get a little older, the parent will begin feeding them hard bodied insects such as cockroaches; they will also feed them pine seeds (which are a large part of the adult diet). The nestlings will fledge the nest 18 days after hatching and will continue to rely on the parents for food over the next 2–4 weeks. Family groups remain together throughout summer, so we look forward to seeing the nuthatches grow up.
References:
Withgott, J. H., and K. G. Smith. 1998. Brown-headed Nuthatch (Sitta pusilla). In The Birds of North America, No. 349 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.
