Bird Magic: Wisdom of the Ancient Goddess for Pagans & Wiccans - Sandra Kynes 2016
Nuthatch: Red-Breasted Nuthatch, White-Breasted Nuthatch
The Profiles
White-Breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)
At first glance you may think that a nuthatch is a little woodpecker circling its way down a tree trunk. However, the giveaway is that this bird goes headfirst down the tree, which is something a woodpecker does not do. Nuthatches even hang upside down on branches to get insects and often roost upside down like bats. They can do these daring acrobatics because they have an unusually long back toe.
The name nuthatch is derived from the Anglo-Saxon hakken or hacken, meaning “to break.” 99 This describes how they feed, by wedging nuts and hard seeds into crevices and then hacking them open with their sharp bills. The noise they make when doing this can be heard up to two hundred yards away.100 This activity has earned the nuthatch the nicknames of woodcracker and jar bird. The nuthatch has also been called topsy-turvy bird and tree mouse. However, in Texas, these birds had the nickname devil-down-head because they were thought to hang upside down so they could face the devil.
According to Norse myth, the nuthatch was regarded as a bird of wisdom. One of the poems in the Poetic Edda tells how nuthatches directed the hero Sigurd to Gudrun, the woman who would become his wife. They also warned Sigurd about the betrayal by his foster father.
Magical Workings
This little climbing bird shows us the importance of adaptability, keeping faith in our abilities, and maintaining courage no matter how precarious our situations may seem at times. Ask nuthatch for help when connecting with nature spirits. Also, call on this bird for help in bringing abundance into your life. It is a bird of the mind that encourages us to manifest our ideas but also reminds us to stay grounded no matter how high we fly.
Follow this little bird’s direction for sharpening your intuition. It can also serve as a guide for deepening spirituality, especially when seeking inner truth and higher wisdom. Perhaps like Odin, you may receive something profound. Nuthatch brings us a different perspective of the world and our lives. Most importantly, we can discover that we can move in any direction our path calls.
Make Connection
To connect with nuthatch energy, lie on your couch with your feet and legs up on the back and your head dangling over the edge of the seat so you are basically upside down. As an alternative, lie on your back across your bed with your head over the edge. If neither position is comfortable or safe for you, simply lie on your back. Close your eyes and visualize nuthatch guiding you carefully headfirst down a tree. Feel its energy keeping your feet steady and secure. As you follow, it leads you around the tree trunk and then back up to the branches where you hang upside down together. Listen carefully for any message it may send you.
Associations
Element(s): Air
Trees: Hickory, maple, oak, pine, spruce
Flower: Sunflower
Bird Identification
Red-Breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)
Size: 4 to 5 inches
Wingspan: 7 to 8 inches
Comparative size: Sparrow
Description: Stocky body; very short neck; short tail; long bill; short, broad wings
Male: Black cap and eye line; white eyebrows; blue-gray back with rusty underparts
Female: Head and markings duller colors; lighter underparts
Range: From the southeastern Alaskan coast, across Canada, and throughout the United States
Habitat: Mainly coniferous forests and mountains
Eggs: White, creamy, or pinkish white and speckled with reddish brown
White-Breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)
Size: 5 to 6 inches
Wingspan: 8 to 10 inches
Comparative size: Sparrow
Description: Small body; large head; very short neck; short tail; long, narrow bill; gray-blue back; white face, throat, and chest; chestnut-brown lower belly and under tail
Male: Dark crown and nape; reddish-brown rump and flanks
Female: Gray or dull black crown and nape
Range: Parts of southern Canada, throughout most of the United States, and into parts of Mexico and Central America
Habitat: Deciduous and mixed forests, woodland edges, and residential areas
Eggs: Creamy white to pinkish-white speckled with reddish brown, gray, or purple
Collective noun(s): A jar of nuthatches
99. Wells, 100 Birds and How They Got Their Names, 154.
100. W. Swaysland, Familiar Wild Birds, Volume 4 (New York: Cassell and Company, 1901), 29—30.