The Sichuan treecreeper is a rare species of bird in the treecreeper family, Certhiidae.
Region
Mountains of central and western China
Typical Environment
Occurs in mature coniferous and mixed montane forests, especially stands of fir, spruce, and hemlock with abundant moss- and lichen-covered trunks. Prefers structurally complex, old-growth habitats with plenty of crevices and peeling bark for foraging and nesting. Typically found on steep forested slopes and ridgelines, occasionally moving to slightly lower elevations in winter. Its range is patchy, following suitable high-elevation forest tracts.
Altitude Range
2000–3600 m
Climate Zone
Highland
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The Sichuan treecreeper is a little-known member of the treecreeper family restricted to montane forests of central China. It forages by spiraling up trunks, bracing with a stiff tail while probing bark for hidden invertebrates. Its cryptic plumage makes it hard to detect, and it can join mixed-species flocks outside the breeding season.
Temperament
secretive and methodical
Flight Pattern
short undulating flights between trunks
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or in pairs during the breeding season, maintaining small territories centered on mature trees. Nests in crevices behind loose bark or in natural cavities lined with soft materials. In the non-breeding season it may join mixed-species foraging flocks with tits and other small passerines.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A thin, high-pitched series of tinkling notes that rise and fall, interspersed with delicate trills. Calls are soft, sibilant seee or tsee notes given while foraging on trunks.
Plumage
Cryptic, finely mottled brown upperparts with pale buff streaking; underparts whitish to pale buff with warmer wash on the flanks. Feathers are tight and smooth, aiding a sleek, bark-hugging profile.
Diet
Primarily consumes small arthropods such as beetles, spiders, caterpillars, and their eggs and pupae gleaned from bark. Probes into fissures and under loose bark using its decurved bill, often prying with subtle side-to-side motions. In harsher seasons it may take some seeds or other plant material opportunistically.
Preferred Environment
Feeds almost exclusively on tree trunks and larger branches, especially of mature conifers with rough, licheny bark. Often forages from the lower trunk upward in a spiral, using its stiff tail as a prop.
