Woodpeckers Offer The Madman A Break

While taking a break from transplanting peppers the other day, the madman noticed a new bird at the suet feeder. Actually, Northern Flickers aren’t new to us. We often see these woodpeckers during the warmer months busily foraging for insects in the lawn. We just don’t recall seeing one on the suet feeder before – and we don’t even see this one at the feeder all that often, although with last week’s 15” of snow we are seeing more of him. In the past couple of days, we have even seen a second flicker.

Northern Flicker

The madman figures the flickers are having trouble finding food in the woods out back. The Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) is a 12” brownish woodpecker common in Connecticut. Some seek warmer temperatures in winter, although in our area, the flicker is considered a year-round resident. When we do see a flicker, he’s usually in the lawn since he prefers the woods or edge of forest for feeding.

While most woodpeckers look for food in the bark of trees, this bird prefers to hunt for beetles and ants on the ground. During winter months when insects are scarce, they will add wild nuts and berries to their diet. Some sources say they will opportunistically visit bird feeders – that’s why the madman thinks pickings are slim out in the woods.

The Northern Flicker isn’t the only woodpecker we are seeing near the feeders these days. Around the first of the year, we noticed an uptick in woodpecker activity near the suet feeder. Connecticut happens to be home to several species of woodpeckers – most of which we have spotted in the back.

Downy Woodpecker

Smallest of the woodpeckers at about 6 ½“ long is the Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens). It is a common woodland creature that is adapting to loss of habitat. In addition to visiting backyard feeders, it is sometimes found in city parks. It eats insects, in fact ¾ of its diet consists of bugs. Observers have noted that this bird really likes to dine on the Emerald Ash Borer. Others say it likes the nasty European corn borer. This bird is definitely doing us a favor. The madman wishes it would develop a taste for the Colorado potato beetle.

With the soft downy appearance of this guy’s white breast feathers, it looks more like a child’s stuffy than a wild bird. Only the adult males have a red patch on the back of their heads. Otherwise, males and females look the same with their black and white feathers.

We often see male Downy woodpeckers feeding on the stalks I have left standing in the perennial gardens. Interestingly, the females feed on the larger branches of trees. The males dine on the smaller branches of trees and on seeds left on garden stalks.

When nesting time arrives in spring, males and females work together to build the nest. They excavate a cavity in the trunk of a standing dead tree, and both members of a pair incubate the eggs. They seem to work together until feeding time when the males push females from the best feeding sites.

Hairy Woodpecker

The Downy Woodpecker is sometimes confused with the Hairy Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus villosus): the madman can understand why. To most observers they look the same. But once you see them together, you know the difference. The Hairy Woodpecker is larger and not nearly as cuddly looking. It also has a typical woodpecker bill, meaning that it is longer than its round head. On the other hand, the Downy’s bill is shorter than its head. Hairy Woodpeckers are less common and are rarely seen in city parks, preferring instead mature forests. Remember, it’s a bigger bird, so it needs bigger trees.

Like the Downy, both parents excavate the nest and care for the young. They prefer the dead branch of a live tree and begin working on the nest cavity two weeks before egg laying. When feeding the young, males tend to forage further away from the nest than the females. Hairy Woodpeckers prefer the larvae of bark and wood borers, although we have noticed an occasional visit to the suet feeder. The madman loves to watch these birds hitch their way up a tree, leaning on strong tail feathers to “hop” up the trunk. Unfortunately, he has to watch from a distance because these birds are rather shy.

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Not quite so shy is the Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) that we often see on our suet feeder. A lot of people confuse this woodpecker with the Red-headed Woodpecker (rarely found in Connecticut). But, despite the prominent red head feathers, this bird is named for its least distinctive feature – a small red patch on its breast, often hidden by feathers. As with the other woodpeckers, this bird prefers feeding on larvae and insects found on trees. Unlike the others, it does have an affinity to nuts and berries, often stashing acorns, berries and insects in tree cavities for later use. The females of this species often forage on tree limbs while males stick to the trunks.

The male begins excavating the nest before attracting a female. In fact, he may begin several nests before looking for a mate. The female chooses the best site and helps finish the excavation. They both incubate the eggs, and both feed the babies. Before the 1950s, this species did not nest in Connecticut. But it has become a commonly found bird around here and in suburban parks.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Now we’d like to mention a couple of other woodpecker species we don’t see very often if at all.

The first is the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius). This is a medium-sized woodpecker that is Connecticut’s only truly migratory woodpecker, sometimes heading as far south as the West Indies for the winter. In early spring, the males head for northern breeding grounds. The females follow a week later.

They nest in tree cavities and both parents take care of the young. As their name suggests, these woodpeckers drill patterned holes in mature trees to feed on the sap. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds often feed on this sap, too. Apparently, the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is okay with this for a couple of reasons. The hummingbirds don’t take too much sap and they chase other birds away.

Although we have seen “patterned” trees during walks in the woods, we have never spotted the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in the back. And, until recently we would have said the same thing about the reclusive Pileated Woodpecker. We’ve heard the drumming and distinctive call, so we knew the bird was around.

Pileated Woodpecker

By chance the other morning, we spotted a Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) foraging at the base of a large dead tree just beyond the edge of forest. Within a minute, he was gone, and we haven’t seen him since. I say he, but it could have been she. Both sexes look alike except for a red cheek stripe on the male.

Like other woodpecker species the Pileated Woodpecker is adapting to changing habitats. It prefers to nest in old growth forests although it has adapted to suburban areas with lots of trees. They excavate cavities in large dead trees for nesting. And, again, both parents share responsibility for the young. The famous Woody Woodpecker cartoon character was modeled after a Pileated Woodpecker although the call came from an Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus).

As the excitement of the Pileated Woodpecker died down the madman realized he’d better get back to his pepper work, so I’m in charge of woodpecker watch.

I guess we’ll have a cup of hot cocoa before we go our separate ways.