Indian Spotted Creeper (Salpornis spilonota)

About the Indian Spotted Creeper

The Indian spotted creeper (Salpornis spilonota) is a small passerine bird that is a member of the family Salpornithidae, which was previously treated as a subfamily of Certhiidae. This small bird has a marbled black and white plumage that makes it difficult to spot as it forages on the trunks of dark, deeply fissured trees where it picks out insect prey using its curved bill. It is found in patchily distributed localities mainly in the dry scrub and open deciduous forests of northern and central peninsular India. It does not migrate. Their inclusion along with the treecreepers is not certain and some studies find them more closely related to the nuthatches while others suggest a close relation to the wallcreeper. They lack the stiff tail feathers of treecreepers and do not use their tail for supporting them while creeping vertically along tree trunks.