Short-toed treecreeper

The short-toed treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla) is a small passerine bird found in woodlands through much of the warmer regions of Europe and into north Africa. It has a more southerly distribution than the other European treecreeper species, the common treecreeper, with which it is easily confused where their ranges overlap; the short-toed treecreeper tends to prefer deciduous trees and lower altitudes than its relative in those overlap areas. It is mainly sedentary, though vagrants have occurred outside its breeding range. It is one of a group of four very similar Holarctic treecreepers, including the closely related North American brown creeper, and has five subspecies differing in appearance and song. Like other treecreepers it is plumaged brown above and whitish below, with a curved bill and stiff tail feathers, and is a resident in woodlands throughout its range, nesting in tree crevices or behind bark flakes and laying about six eggs. It feeds mainly on insects picked from the tree trunk as it ascends with short hops.