Treecreeper

Treecreeper
Treecreepers are tiny, secretive birds which spend almost their entire life in trees. They are actually very common and are active during the day; they’re just hard to spot. 
Treecreepers are sometimes called tree mice which describes their behaviour – they scurry up trees looking for insects in the bark and have fast, twitchy movements. They also look like mice: they are a mottled brown colour with white underparts. This helps them camouflage onto the bark that they live on. 
Their long sharp beaks help them pick insects such as earwigs out of crevices in the bark. The work their way up the tree and once they’ve reached the top of the trunk, they fly down to the base of another and repeat. Treecreepers always climb up trees, never down. They also feed on seeds during the winter months when invertebrates are scarce.
For treecreepers to thrive, they need mature trees with fissured bark where insects live. Memorial Park is perfect habitat for treecreepers as some of the trees, especially those in Round Wood, were planted over 170 years ago. Most of the trees in the parkland area date from when the park was created in the 1920s. 
Research has shown that during wet winters, fewer treecreepers survive, suggesting that their population numbers are likely to decline as our winters become warmer and wetter as a result of climate change. 

Did you know?
The collective noun for treecreepers is a ‘spiral’. This is because they spiral up trees looking for food.
Did you know?
Adult treecreepers weigh 8.8g, which is almost the same as a £1 coin!
Connect to nature: 
Take time to slow down and look out for birds on your walk and notice how they inhabit different spaces. Blackbirds, thrushes and robins may hop along the ground, treecreepers and woodpeckers are best seen on tree trunks, and smaller birds such as coal tits and goldfinches fly between branches. 
Kids activity:
Treecreepers spend all their time in trees and get to know them really well. In fact, some spend their whole lives on only one tree! Get to know a tree by playing ‘meet a tree’ with a friend. Put on a blindfold or close your eyes. Your friend will guide you to a tree for you to ‘meet’. Feel around the tree. How big is the trunk? What does the bark feel like? Can you feel any branches? Are there any big roots? What does it smell like? When you’re done your friend leads you away and you can remove your blindfold. Try to find the tree you met! 
To find out more and listen to a treecreeper call, go to: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/animals/birds/treecreeper/ 
More info at: https://www.bto.org/understanding-birds/birdfacts/treecreeper