Velvet-fronted Nuthatch skitters up & down moss-covered trees at Pampadum National Park, in Sri Lanka

From the archive record

Velvet-fronted and Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch Velvet-fronted Nuthatch (Sitta frontalis) skitters up and down moss-covered trees at Pampadum National Park in South India The Velvet-fronted nuthatch (Sitta frontalis) is a small passerine bird found in southern Asia from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka east to south China and Indonesia. It is a member of the nuthatch family Sittidae. The velvet-fronted nuthatch has the typical nuthatch big head, short tail and powerful bill and feet. It is 12.5 cm long. It is violet-blue above, with lavender cheeks, beige underparts and a whitish throat. The bill is red, and there is a black patch on the forehead. The male also has a black supercilium. Females lack the supercilium and have a warmer underpart colour. Juveniles are duller versions of the adult. Th