Latin name - Sitta europaea

You can see Nuthatches clinging to the sides of tree trunks and branches amongst mature woodland searching for their diet of nuts, acorns, seed and insects. The Nuthatch is unique amongst British birds in being able to climb head down as well as up. Both sexes are similar in appearance: blue-grey upper-parts, orangey under-parts with chestnut colouration on its sides and under the tail. They have short-tails, white throats, long black eyestripes and short legs with powerful toes. Their long black, pointed bills are very powerful which they use to hammer open nuts sounding like woodpeckers as they do so. The young are similar to adults except they have less chestnut colouration underneath.