The pileated woodpecker's territorial call is loud and hollow and sounds like a war drum somewhere in the jungles of Africa. It is actually called "drumming" by ornithologists. The bird is native to North America and can weigh almost one pound on the large end of their size. They chip out rather large rectangular holes in search of insects or colonies of ants. The male's drumming is to declare territory and/or call to a mate. Since it is now spring, I hear his drumming every morning. It is a simple rhythm and is very short.
Their excavation can actually destroy a healthy branch of a healthy tree. This is what is happening to a huge oak near my neighbor's house.
The healthy branch in the photo above will fall in the coming months or next year if we get a big storm. One year I actually had a pileated come to my house and look into my patio door as the snow covered the patio. I couldn't find any bugs to offer and I do not know how to speak pileated. Some days I wish I was a witch. I have searched for that photo but it is on some other stored drive. I think I only have 10,000 photos of birds! I do have them organized by season and type, but still, it is a challenge.
A lovely piece on Pileated Woodpecker, a bird near and dear to the heart of every birder. It is more often heard than seen it seems to me, but to see one at work is a special joy.
ReplyDeleteThanks, David.
DeleteNeat photos
ReplyDeleteThe males chip out huge holes for nests. The first time I saw the hole and wood chips, I was stunned how big they are. In woods where parents once lived, the noise echoed jack hammer pace on wood. Not a pleasant sound.
Pileated woodpeckers can be very quiet and trusting and then gain they can really drum.
ReplyDeleteYou are blessed to see (and hear) a pileated woodpecker near your home. Are there food you can put out for them like suet or seeds or peanut butter, especially in the cold months, like when one came to visit you.
ReplyDeleteSuch a beauty of a bird. I have seen one but was never able to photograph one.
ReplyDeleteI don't know the differences between various woodpeckers, but I often hear one tapping away not far from my house. Many years ago we lived in a house where a woodpecker would peck our chimney, which had a metal lining. That lining would vibrate and make such a funny noise when the bird visited.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
We had one which used to tap on the metal pipe of our wood-burning stove. The echo could and did wake sleeping bears (my Sweetie, when he's interrupted in a nap, is like a sleeping bear).
ReplyDeleteIt’s an odd and wonderful world. I do wonder if such life exists anywhere else in this vast universe.
ReplyDeleteOh, they are such cool birds! Here we get Flickers drumming on our metal chimney cap in spring.
ReplyDeletethey are magnificent birds.
ReplyDelete