Habitat: Bridled titmice prefer chaparral and pinyon-juniper in the Southwest at elevations from 5,000 to 7,000 feet. This titmouse also uses areas along streams where cottonwoods are present (Phillips et al. 1964).
Nest: Almost all nest locations have been recorded in natural cavities of dead and living oak trees from 4 to 28 feet above the ground (Bent 1946).
Food: No published information was found, but the diet is probably similar to that of other members of this genus. All live in similar habitats and spend much of their time foraging in crevices in the bark, on the trunks, and on branches, presumably hunting for adults, larvae, and eggs of insects (Bent 1946).
White-breasted nuthatch
Sitta carolinensis
L 5″
Habitat: White-breasted nuthatches are non-migratory in most forest types in the United States. They show a preference for deciduous woodlands. In the Rocky Mountains, they occur most commonly below 9,500 feet elevation (Bailey and Niedrach 1965).
Nest: White-breasted nuthatches nest almost exclusively in natural cavities within living trees of mature forests. When natural cavities are unavailable, they may use an abandoned woodpecker hole (Kilham 1968b). In the West, nests have been found in dead aspens and dead portions (lightning strikes) of live ponderosa pines (Bailey and Niedrach 1965, Scott and Patton 1975). Nests are lined with hair and feathers and are often used for more than 1 year.