These old men o' the pines have Nuthatch habits in creeping with horizontal body among the pine limbs. About half their food is pine seeds and the remainder insects which infest conifers. It would seem that they had been appointed by the tree god of Pagâna to watch over his domain. Altho contrastingly colored they are extremely inconspicuous when at rest. Merrill says the numerous stubs on pine trunks are sunlit so as to appear white and the shadow resembles the bird's dark body. In winter, when the snow lodges on these stubs, the resemblance is even greater and I was often misled by this deceptive appearance — either mistaking a stub for a bird or the reverse.
In flight, the white wing patches and head instantly reveal their identity.
Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountains from southern British Columbia south thru Washington and Oregon to southern California. East to Idaho and western Nevada.