When I’m watching the birds at my recent home in New Jersey it does not take long until I notice the quirky dancing shadows on the oak tree in our backyard.

Accompanied by its nasal call the white-breasted nuthatch moves in entwined turns around the tree trunk.

It is a delight to watch the common small bird climbing the cracks of the tree bark in effortless oblique position or even upside down searching for insects.

This Scratchboard work was juried with an 'Memorial Award' (Scratchboard Master Division) in the 2023 Annual Exhibition of the International Scratchboard Art Society.