A bird in the hand is worth many in the bush

This photo from my archives was taken on 10 November 2013, when I was out for a walk with a small group of friends. It was a cold day, and I had to push myself really hard to leave the warmth of home, but only a few fine snowflakes were seen. I can't remember whose hand this was, but it's always breathtaking and humbling when a wild bird - this time, a female White-breasted Nuthatch - flies down to ones hand. The little Black-capped Chickadees are the most usual birds to do this, but also White-breasted and Red-breasted Nuthatches, sometimes a Downy Woodpecker or a Boreal Chickadee.

We started off in Fish Creek Park at the Bow Valley Ranche, and then we walked over to Burnsmead. Surprisingly, we were unable to find either of the two Great Horned Owls that day. However, we saw a couple of distant juvenile Bald Eagles who seemed to be fighting over a fish that one had caught. We warmed up afterwards over hot coffee at Tim Horton's - always most enjoyable.

"A common feeder bird with clean black, gray, and white markings, White-breasted Nuthatches are active, agile little birds with an appetite for insects and large, meaty seeds. They get their common name from their habit of jamming large nuts and acorns into tree bark, then whacking them with their sharp bill to “hatch” out the seed from the inside. White-breasted Nuthatches may be small but their voices are loud, and often their insistent nasal yammering will lead you right to them." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-breasted_Nuthatch/id