BROWN CREEPER
BROWN CREEPER – (Certhia americana) – (See images below)
DESCRIPTION: The Brown Creeper is brown on its top parts with lighter spots and is white on its underside. The bill is rather long relative to the body size and slightly curved downward. The bill, legs and feet are dark grey. Sexes are similar. The bird is about 12 cm (5 inches) long. There are many subspecies.
VOICE: https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Certhia-americana
NAME: The brown creeper is also named ‘American Tree Creeper because there are other species of birds named ‘Brown Creeper’ – one in New Zealand, and one in Australia.
HABITAT: Mature forests.
DIET: Climbs up deciduous tree trunks and large branches in search of insects and arthropods.
NESTING: The nest is built in a tree cavity and around four to six white eggs are laid, which are incubated by the female. Chicks are fed by both parents.
DISTRIBUTION: Its breeding territory is Canada from the mid-latitudes down to the mainland USA. Part of this bird’s population will migrate in the more southern range of its breeding territory. There is a year-round group in the northeast part of the USA.
DISTRIBUTION MAP: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_creeper#/media/File:Certhia_americana_map.svg
ON PEI: Breeds on Prince Edward Island, uncommon in the fall and winter.
CONSERVATION: The brown creeper population appears relatively stable and is not currently considered at risk.
NOTES: The recurved bill allows the bird to search food in trunk crevices. The tail is also specialized, like that of woodpeckers, having spines at the feather tips for a good grip. The brown plumage is a good case of mimicry that protects the bird from predators. As opposed to the Nuthatches, which climb down tree trunks in search for food, the brown creeper can only climb up due to its specialized anatomy.
SIMILAR SPECIES: Red-breasted nuthatch, Brown-headed nuthatch
REFERENCES: https://www.borealbirds.org/bird/brown-creeper
https://www.mba-aom.ca/jsp/toc.jsp (Maritimes Breeding Bird Atlas)
American Bird Conservancy (Brown Creeper)
https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/brown-creeper
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Brown_Creeper/id
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_creepe
http://www.oiseaux-birds.com/card-brown-creeper.html
https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/brown-creeper (Missouri Department of Conservation)
DESCRIPTION: The Brown Creeper is brown on its top parts with lighter spots and is white on its underside. The bill is rather long relative to the body size and slightly curved downward. The bill, legs and feet are dark grey. Sexes are similar. The bird is about 12 cm (5 inches) long. There are many subspecies.
VOICE: https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Certhia-americana
NAME: The brown creeper is also named ‘American Tree Creeper because there are other species of birds named ‘Brown Creeper’ – one in New Zealand, and one in Australia.
HABITAT: Mature forests.
DIET: Climbs up deciduous tree trunks and large branches in search of insects and arthropods.
NESTING: The nest is built in a tree cavity and around four to six white eggs are laid, which are incubated by the female. Chicks are fed by both parents.
DISTRIBUTION: Its breeding territory is Canada from the mid-latitudes down to the mainland USA. Part of this bird’s population will migrate in the more southern range of its breeding territory. There is a year-round group in the northeast part of the USA.
DISTRIBUTION MAP: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_creeper#/media/File:Certhia_americana_map.svg
ON PEI: Breeds on Prince Edward Island, uncommon in the fall and winter.
CONSERVATION: The brown creeper population appears relatively stable and is not currently considered at risk.
NOTES: The recurved bill allows the bird to search food in trunk crevices. The tail is also specialized, like that of woodpeckers, having spines at the feather tips for a good grip. The brown plumage is a good case of mimicry that protects the bird from predators. As opposed to the Nuthatches, which climb down tree trunks in search for food, the brown creeper can only climb up due to its specialized anatomy.
SIMILAR SPECIES: Red-breasted nuthatch, Brown-headed nuthatch
REFERENCES: https://www.borealbirds.org/bird/brown-creeper
https://www.mba-aom.ca/jsp/toc.jsp (Maritimes Breeding Bird Atlas)
American Bird Conservancy (Brown Creeper)
https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/brown-creeper
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Brown_Creeper/id
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_creepe
http://www.oiseaux-birds.com/card-brown-creeper.html
https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/brown-creeper (Missouri Department of Conservation)
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| Brown creeper, PEI, by Sandra Meade |
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| Brown creeper, by Mdf |