Velvet-fronted Nuthatch

The velvet-fronted nuthatch is a small nuthatch, 12–13.5cm long, with a short tail and a powerful bill and feet. It is violet-blue above with lavender cheeks, buffy-grey underparts, a whitish throat, pale yellow eyes and an orange-red to bright red bill, with a black velvet patch on the forehead and lores. Adult males have a black stripe running above the eye towards the nape, which females lack; females are also warmer below. Juveniles are duller with a dark bill and no black forehead (Wikipedia, general species account).

It lives in forest with good tree cover and often joins mixed-species feeding flocks. Like other nuthatches it feeds on insects in bark, and its strongly clawed toes let it climb down trunks and along the undersides of branches. It has a rapid chipping call. It breeds in tree cavities, often holes made by woodpeckers or barbets. In India it is a resident with a moderate range; SoIB 2023 estimates a long-term decline of about 47% and rates it a Moderate conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).