creeper

creeper common name for members of a family of small, inconspicuous birds related to wrens and nuthatches. They are found in wooded regions of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. A creeper spirals up a tree trunk using its long, stiff tail as a prop and searches out minute insects with its long, downward-curved beak; it then swoops to the base of another tree to begin again. The most widely distributed member of the family is the brown creeper, Certhia familiaris, found in North America and Eurasia. It is 5 in. (13 cm) long, brown above and white below. Other North American creepers are the Rocky Mt., Sierra, and California creepers. Some warblers are also called creepers, e.g., the honey creeper. Creepers are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Aves, order Passeriformes, family Certhiidae.

creep·er / ˈkrēpər/ • n. 1. Bot. any plant that grows along the ground, around another plant, or up a wall by means of extending stems or branches. 2. any of a number of small birds that creep around in trees, vegetation, etc., including the North American brown creeper (Certhia americana, family Certhiidae). 3. a low, wheeled platform on which a mechanic lies while working on the underside of a motor vehicle.

creeper, another name for a small four-hooked grapnel used to recover articles dropped on the seabed by dragging for them. In clear water a white plate or dish dropped overboard immediately after the object falls gives a useful guide to where to use the creeper.