The white-browed nuthatch, also known as the Victoria nuthatch, is a species of bird in the family Sittidae. It is a small nuthatch, measuring 11.5 cm (4.5 in) in length and without sexual dimorphism. Like many other nuthatches, the upperparts are gray-blue, contrasting with white underparts on the throat, cheeks, and breast and orange on the flanks, belly, and lower abdomen. Its white supercilium makes it easy to distinguish it from the white-tailed nuthatch, which is a close species in the systematic and geographical sense. Little is known about its ecology, but it feeds on small insects found among bark and lichens, and breeding occurs around April.
Region
Chin Hills, western Myanmar
Typical Environment
The species is restricted to high-elevation, mossy broadleaf and mixed forests on and around Mount Victoria. It favors mature oak–rhododendron forest with heavy lichen growth and occasionally uses adjacent pine patches and stunted summit scrub. Birds forage on trunks and large branches and along moss- and lichen-covered limbs. It is typically encountered in undisturbed or lightly disturbed forest but may use edges where large trees persist.
Altitude Range
2400–3050 m
Climate Zone
Highland
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Also called the Victoria nuthatch, it is confined to a tiny range around Mount Victoria (Nat Ma Taung) in western Myanmar. It forages nuthatch-style by creeping along trunks and larger branches, often in mixed-species flocks. Its crisp white eyebrow and contrasting white-and-rufous underparts separate it from similar nuthatches. Habitat loss and degradation at high elevations have made it of significant conservation concern.
Comparison of the tail of the white-tailed nuthatch (S. himalayensis), left, and the white-browed nuthatch (S. victoriae), right.
White-browed nuthatch at the branch of tree.
Rhododendron arboreum can be visited by the nuthatch, both for food and for nesting.
Temperament
active and somewhat shy
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually seen singly, in pairs, or small family parties, and frequently joins mixed-species foraging flocks. Nests in natural tree cavities, lining the interior with plant fibers and bark; breeding reported around April. Pairs maintain small territories within suitable high-montane forest.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Gives thin, high-pitched whistles and sharp tsee notes while foraging. Song is a soft series of high, slightly descending calls, interspersed with rapid contact notes.
