Brown Creeper Certhia americana Bonaparte       Field Guide IDs: NG-332; G-234; PE-212; PW-pl 45; AE-pl 355; AW-pl 388; AM(Il)-340 Nest Location Nest Type Eggs & Mating System Dev. & Parental Care Primary & 2ndary Diet.. Foraging Strategy UNDER BARK F I: 14-17 DAYS ALTRICIAL DECIDUOUS TREE 3 feet - 50 feet F-M 5-6 (4-8) MONOG F: 13-16 DAYS MF NUTS SEEDS HAWKS BREEDING: Pine forests (esp ponderosa, yellow, Jeffrey). ? broods. DISPLAYS: Courtship: male display flights, chases, wing fluttering, and courtship feeding; male spirals rapidly around tree trunk in pursuit of female. NEST: Hammocklike cup, usu beneath loose bark, rarely in cavity; of bark, moss, conif needles, silk, on base of twigs which nearly close opening between bark and trunk, lined with shredded bark, feathers. Pair select site. Built in 6-30 days. EGGS: White, sparsely flecked with reddish-browns, often wreathed, occ almost unmarked. 0.6" (15 mm). DIET: Includes spiders, other invertebrates; some acorns, beechnuts. Young may be fed 100% animal food. CONSERVATION: n populations winter s to Nicaragua, remainder within breeding range. Rare cowbird host. NOTES: Use camouflage pattern when pursued: land on tree trunk, flatten, spread wings and remain motionless. Normally feed by ascending trunk in spiral or straight course, then dropping to repeat on another trunk. Male feeds incubating female. Female broods. Young can creep upward as soon as mobile. Fledglings roost in tight circle, heads to center. STANFORD. NOTES: Fairly rare to uncommon migrant and winter resident in a variety of habitats throughout campus. Not known to breed on campus. ESSAYS: Bird Guilds; Mixed-Species Flocking; Communal Roosting; Temperature Regulation; The Color of Birds; Courtship Feeding REFERENCES: Davis, 1978; Franzreb, 1985.