OTHER NAMES: N/A
Latin Etymology: Sitta (bird mentioned by Aristotle) neumayer (for Franz Neumayer, an Austrian collector)
Adult Western Rock Nuthatch (Sitta neumayer) in mountains near Side, Antalya, Turkey - March 2025
Featured Subspecies: Sitta neumayer syriaca
Weight: 24-37g / Length: 13.5cm / Wingspan: 25cm
NO UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Least Concern
As the name suggests, the Western Rock Nuthatch takes a more rocky lifestyle than the other species I'd seen to date, being present on exposed mountainsides where they nest and feed among the rocks looking for insects and spiders. A fairly recent split of "Rock Nuthatch" with the other being the Western Rock Nuthatch which is found from Eastern Turkey to Kyrgzstan. Pliny the Elder apparently credited this species as being the one that inspired humanity to build homes of earth in immitation of it's nest.
Related Species:
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Sittidae
Genus: Sitta
SUBSPECIES: S. n. neumayer, S. n. tschitscherini, S. b. plumbea, S. n. syriaca, S. n. rupicola
- Sighting Locations -
TURKEY - Turkish:Kaya sıvacı kuşu ("Rock plasterer bird")
- ANTALYA 2025 TRIP - Common in mountains near Side
Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto
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