Cotman watercolours tubes, Faber Castel Pastel pencils on Saunders Waterford 300gsm 310×230 Cotton Satiné High White paper

This lovely bird is a Eurasian nuthatch or wood nuthatch (Sitta europaea). You can see it going upwards, but also downwards along and around tree trunks. Being able to go down along the tree trunk makes it unique and distinguishes it from woodpeckers and treecreepers, which can only go up. Also, the nuthatch does not rest on its tail, as woodpeckers do.

The nuthatch is beautifully colored, with a gray-blue top and orange brown (Isabel-colored) bottom and a beautiful dark eye stripe. The males and females look pretty much the same, with the males the rear flank more sharply marked. In the mating season, the male is extra beautifully colored. There are local variants, for example the Scandinavian subspecies is much lighter on the abdomen.

In winter there are few insects, and they are forced to switch to seeds. This means that you can also find them at feeding tables in gardens.

📸: Piet van de Wiel via Pixabay