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Brown Creeper

Certhia americana

Least Concern · IUCN Red List

LCLeast ConcernInvertebratesForestCavity nestTiny · 8 g
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 1
Photo: Conway Hawn · CC BY 4.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 2
Photo: Conway Hawn · CC BY 4.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 3
Photo: Liam Steele · CC BY 4.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 4
Photo: foxsu · CC BY 4.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 5
Photo: Jeff Bartlett · CC BY 4.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 6
Photo: Jeff Bartlett · CC BY 4.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 7
Photo: Jacob Moyer · CC0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 8
Photo: Jacob Moyer · CC0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 9
Photo: Alan Vernon · CC BY 2.0
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana), photo 10
Photo: lwolfartist · CC BY 2.0

What the Brown Creeper sounds like

Sonogram of the Brown Creeper: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Jonathon Jongsma · Call, flight call · Minnesota Valley NWR, Bass Ponds, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto
Sonogram of the Brown Creeper: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Jonathon Jongsma · Call · Minnesota Valley NWR, Bass Ponds, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto
Sonogram of the Brown Creeper: time runs left to right, pitch bottom to top, and the brighter the mark the louder the sound.
Recorded by Jonathon Jongsma · Call · Powderhorn Park, Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

Adults are brown on the upper parts with light spotting, resembling a piece of tree bark, with white underparts. They have a long thin bill with a slight downward curve and a long stiff tail used for support as the bird creeps upwards. The male creeper has a slightly larger bill than the female. Brown creepers are smaller than white-breasted nuthatches but larger than golden-crowned kinglets. Measurements: Length: 4.7–5.5 in (12–14 cm) Weight: 0.2–0.3 oz (5.7–8.5 g) Wingspan: 6.7–7.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Brown Creeper

One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is April, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Brown Creeper

Regular rangeRare visitor

The map shades 9 countries with regular records, and 1 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

United States Canada Mexico Guatemala Honduras El Salvador St. Pierre & Miquelon Nicaragua Bermuda

Recorded as a rare visitor in France.

About the Brown Creeper

The brown creeper, also known as the American treecreeper, is a small songbird, the only North American member of the treecreeper family Certhiidae.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Short-toed Treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla) Short-toed TreecreeperCerthia brachydactylaAll the treecreepers are similar in appearance, being small birds with streaked and spotted brown upperparts, rufous rumps and whitish underparts. Eurasian Treecreeper (Certhia familiaris) Eurasian TreecreeperCerthia familiarisSimilar in appearance, all treecreepers are small birds with streaked and spotted brown upperparts, rufous rumps and whitish underparts. Bar-tailed Treecreeper (Certhia himalayana) Bar-tailed TreecreeperCerthia himalayanaThe bar-tailed treecreeper has a flecked or striped feather pattern, usually in black, brown, white and red hues.

Side by side: Brown Creeper vs Short-toed Treecreeper · Brown Creeper vs Eurasian Treecreeper · Bar-tailed Treecreeper vs Brown Creeper

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