I had the privilege of watching this nuthatch again for a couple of hours last time I was at the bird hide, the inspiration behind some of my Christmas collection this year.
Nuthatches rarely travel far from the wood they were born in so this could well be one from the same pair I photographed in June. It was these pictures I worked my initial sketches from which became two bauble designs and also my nuthatch Christmas card and gift tag.
I added some elderberries in to the card design as I liked the colour combination of the wine berries against the blue and peach nuthatch although I think they prefer to feed on nuts and seeds, wedging them into the tree bark and then pounding them open with its beak hence the name: nuthatch. I think they're a very striking bird with their unusual colours and black eye stripe and I love watching them scale down the tree trunks in their distinctive head first way!
It’s because of their nut eating habit I associate them with Autumn and Winter walks in the woods. Although they’re present all year round, they’re easier to spot in their deciduous woodland habitat once the leaves have mostly left the trees to crunch underneath our feet. It’s also at this point that if you live near some mature trees and hang up some peanut feeders in your garden you may be lucky enough to have them visit you closer to home.
Visit here to browse and shop my Christmas collection.
