Red-Breasted Nuthatch at my suet feeder

Oh, yeah, shelled peanuts are a huge hit. I just never use them because they're too expensive.

BTW, Don....Jim uses 1/2" hardware cloth to make his peanut cages.

It's amazing what birds are attracted to the peanuts, Jacki. :) Jim has a window feeder he puts a few handfuls of shelled peanuts in every day--the birds love it. The cardinals will even fly up, grab a peanut and fly off. We also have the cages with unshelled peanuts and they have become quite popular with all you've mentioned. It's such fun to watch them!

Suzy and Don: Several years ago my daughter gave me one of those feeders with a suction cup to attach to a window. I was sure it would soon fall off, but it's now been there about 5 years and still holding firm. At first I just put seeds in it and had a variety of small birds eating from it. (but not much in the way of nuthatches). Then I discovered peanuts. I'd thrown peanuts on the deck. Squirrels loved them, but so did tufted titmice and several other birds including bluejays. I tried those in the suction cup feeder. It holds about 4 handfuls nicely. Mostly we have bluejays and tufted titmice coming to grab a peanut and fly off. There's now a constant parade of Jays, woodpeckers, and tufted titmice flying in, grabbing one and going off to feast on them. But I don't think I've ever seen a nuthatch on it, and definitely no red-breasted ones. (Probably they don't like the competition.)

Jim made them out of some sort of small fencing. They are small enough to keep the unshelled peanuts in and large enough for the birds to get the peanuts out.

I tried peanuts in the other side of the suet feeder, but they worked out. I have to find (or make) a real peanut feeder to try again.

Jim read an article years ago (maybe written by Ward Stone?) in which it was recommended to put up peanut feeders to attract the rose breasted nuthatch. Jim made some peanut cages, hung them up and VOILA!!! Rose breasted nuthatches arrived! An added bonus was that the woodpeckers LOVE the peanuts!

Nice shot!

He is a Cutie. The Chickadee is Our MA State Bird as of 1941.

I used to see the white-breasted regularly, but the red-breasted was quite rare. That changed this past winter. When I put out sunflower seeds, first the chickadees would flock in, then both nuthatches - I think at least 4 of the RBs. At the new place I've seen both, but so far the RB is a more frequent visitor, and I haven't seen the WB at the suet feeder yet.

This one went from the suet feeder to the porch floor a few feet away from me. My "porch" is a roofed concrete slab which extends 32' along the back of the garage, 8' deep. I believe the previous owners used it as a woodshed, and I suspect these nuthatches used to hunt among the firewood for insects, and although there's no more firewood there, they're used to investigating the area.

Thank you Don. Great shot! We have had a few of these in the past, but not for a couple of years now. The white breasted are here daily. Nice to see one again.

Naughty little one and pretty. Glad the birds in your new place are finding you. Thanks.