Yank! Yank!

Nature Sketch by Earl Plato

Red-breasted nuthatch
White versus red! On the Sherkston farm we were visited regularly by the White-breasted Nuthatches. They are delightful birds to watch as they travel up and head down the pine trunks. They land on the suet ball and have a feed. Chickadees are usually around too. Not a bad combination to have at your feeder. Open your door and you hear the “Hank! Hank! Hank! of the nuthatches and the “Chick-adee-dee of the chickadees. However, this little piece is about another nuthatch, the Red-breasted.
I can truthfully say that my sketch was posed for time after time the bird came to the suet feeder. The owner had taken a dead branch of a maple and fastened it to the house. He used it as a perching place. There was the bird just on the other side of the patio glass. I drew and I was able to complete the sketch in a short time.
Where was I? I was at Emmaus House on the southwest shores of the Lake of Bays nestled in a pine forest. The House is an Anglican sanctuary for the tired and ill. It’s a beautiful concept that the church supports and we enjoyed our restful week there as guests of a friend.
We slid the patio door back one afternoon and heard and now an almost familiar call. “Yank! Yank! Yank!” The Red-breasted seemed to be scolding us. ( Is that an American “Yank?” ) I say its call is a little higher pitched than his southern neighbour. This spring of 2008 keep watching out for our songbirds. It’s a great hobby.