Man – doesn’t the title of this post sound like a horror movie in the making?!?!

But in reality, those words are so true of the Brown Creeper that has become enamored with my backyard supply of Bark Butter. This little fellow is pretty much a constant fixture these days!

These small birds are fun to watch as they spiral up one tree trunk…

…and then fly off to begin working their way up the next tree.

Their sharp, slightly curved beaks are perfect for prying insects from under the bark, and can open surprisingly wide for such a small bird.

Creepers aren’t so hard to spot when they are moving or are posed on the side of the tree with some non-bark background behind them…

…but with their built in camouflaged colors, when they are totally pressed against a tree they are indeed carefully concealed Creepers! There have been many times where they blended in with the bark so well that I didn’t see them in the picture until the exact moment I was hitting the delete button.

And speaking of blending in (and this is really just an excuse to share another picture of the Sapsucker who made a return visit!), if it wasn’t for the splashes of red, this woodpecker would be a perfect match for the bark next to him.

Thankfully, time spent taking backyard pictures doesn’t always feel like an “I Spy” game…there are plenty of bright Pine Warblers and brilliant Bluebirds that are always easy to spot!