How to find bugs on a frozen day.

Overland Park, KS:   Today I was watching our feeders and birds in the yard foraging for food in a mini icestorm.  It wasn't too long before I noticed one of our regular visiters this winter, a Brown Creeper.  It was hopping up the tree poking around for bugs; when it would reach a certain height it would then head back down the tree.  Brown Creepers always remind me of little leaves fluttering as they fall but they don't hit the ground like a leaf.  Instead, it appears as if they have a magnetism for tree bark and adhere back on the tree.  They are so amazing to watch that I could probably spend an entire afternoon just watching them be little busy bodies.  On a bird walk a couple of years ago I had over 17 foraging on 3 or 4 different trees. 
     Being stuck in the house today, I decided to do a little research about Brown Creepers and to share it with you.  The Latin name of the Brown Creeper is Certhia americana, and it is the only member of that family in North America.  There are other species nearly identical to this one in Europe and Asia, and the greatest diversity of creepers is in the Himalayas.  Eating mostly bugs and other invertebrates, they also add seed and nuts to their diet in winter.  Woodpeckers and creepers are very similar in their feeding style in that they scour trees probing crevices with a curved bill and gleening bugs and spiders from the surface.  Creepers always feed as they head up the trees and then swirl back down around the tree to land on a lower spot, ready to head upwards again.  Even though a creepers call is soft and fairly high pitched it is still considered a songbird.  Unlike other songbirds, the creeper is the only one that molts its tail feathers.  This is a must since their tail is used for climbing and stability just like woodpeckers'. 
      I am glad that I get to enjoy this fun bird, nicknamed LBJ, or little brown jobie by man birders, in our own yard and it is always one of the things I look forward to in the winter.  Keep a watchful eye on your trees- you never know when you might see a little bark colored bird feeding about.  Good birding this week and if you are in a cold place remember that migration is right around the corner!