  
The White-breasted Nuthatch is a
year-round resident throughout most of the United States and
parts of Canada and Mexico. White-breasted Nuthatches inhabit
mature deciduous and mixed deciduous-coniferous forests.
Nuthatches prefer to nest near open areas and forest edges. The
nest is often located near water, roads, orchards or fields.
White-breasted Nuthatches nest in natural tree cavities,
abandoned woodpecker holes, holes they excavate themselves or
nest boxes. The female begins nestbuilding in early April. During
this time, the pair stays in close association, frequently giving
contact calls to one another. The male occasionally feeds the
female and continues to do so throughout egg-laying and
incubation.
Red-breasted Nuthatches inhabit northern and subalpine habitats.
They are found in the southern half of Canada and in the western
and northeastern regions of the United States. Ideal breeding
habitat consists of mature, partly open coniferous or mixed
coniferous-deciduous forests. Red-breasted Nuthatches nest in
aspen, birch, oak, cottonwood, and poplar trees, as well as in
spruce and other cone-bearing trees. The breeding season begins
in late April or early May. Both adults work to excavate a nest
cavity, most commonly in a rotten stub or branch of a dead tree.
Nest boxes are occasionally used.
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