excavation underway!
On Tuesday morning last week, I began my morning work to the beat of an intermittent rapping. It was so loud and so near, I thought it must be someone hammering on the house.
I looked outside and saw, across the lawn, a large bird with a flaming red crest. A Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)!
We have seen this species of woodpecker several times before in our Grey Woods. These birds leave their oval cavities in many of our older trees, evidence of their search for insects or the preparation of cavities for nesting. The use of dead or dying trees as cavity nesting sites is an example of how important these trees are to the woodland ecosystem.
I watched as the bird did her circuit of the tree and hopped down to the ground for a while. Then she fluttered up to our cedar rail fence and into the trees.
The Pileated Woodpecker’s bright red crest and long skinny neck give it a comical air – not a beautiful bird, but very exciting to see and watch.
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© Jane Tims 2012
Pileateds are majestic birds- very large, and sometimes their crest is ruffled up like a mohawk. Very enjoyable sights!
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Watching Seasons
May 17, 2012 at 10:52 pm
Hi. The crest looks like a paint brush dipped in paint just so far. Jane
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jane tims
May 18, 2012 at 6:52 am
I thought of Woody Woodpecker too. I’ve been watching some of our dead trees, those that look like they have nests in them, but nobody has come out to visit with me yet. 🙂
Wonderful drawing of a wonderful bird.
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Robin
May 15, 2012 at 5:33 pm
Thanks, Robin. Keep watching! That red crest would be great in one of your photos. Jane
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jane tims
May 16, 2012 at 7:20 am
Hi Jane, I love the fact and metaphor of the dead and dying trees having their place in the world as nesting sites.
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Ellen Grace Olinger
May 10, 2012 at 12:36 pm
Hi Ellen. Nature never wastes anything! Jane
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jane tims
May 10, 2012 at 7:26 pm
We have Pileated Woodpeckers in our neighbourhood. Last winter one excavated a hole large enough to cause the large limb to break under the weight of snow and ice, causing damage to a beloved ancient maple. We had a tree surgeon look at it and did what he said to do. We hope it’ll last a few more years, though it is dying slowly…just have to keep the woodpeckers away.
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Carol Steel
May 9, 2012 at 7:50 pm
Hi Carol. Sometimes the goals of the wild life and our goals are just not the same!!! Hope your tree lives. Jane
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jane tims
May 9, 2012 at 8:37 pm
That’s some cavity he chiseled out! It always amazes me how loud woodpeckers get and how they somehow don’t wind up with a headache…
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Barbara Rodgers
May 9, 2012 at 12:18 pm
Hi. It must be built into them. The cavity is one of the smallest of the ones I’ve seen! Jane
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jane tims
May 9, 2012 at 8:33 pm
One of my favorites, our own Woody Woodpecker. Thanks, Jane.
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Jane Fritz
May 9, 2012 at 10:12 am
Hi Jane. I agree… he is the prototype Woody Woodpecker! Jane
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jane tims
May 9, 2012 at 8:31 pm