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woodpeckers

Acorn Woodpeckers: Adorable Acorn Adorners

January 29, 2022 by Paul Hetzler 3 Comments

Acorn Woodpecker with Hoard by wikimedia user JohnathWhile my musings about nature generally focus on southeastern Canada and the northeastern United States, there are times when a subject is far too juicy to ignore even if it’s out of this world, like Japanese satellites made from trees. Back home on our little planet, we have a blind, rainbow-hued marine worm which slices fish in half for the joy of it.

This “Bobbitt” worm grows to ten feet long and can paralyze a human with its venom. Also cool but way less terrifying, a rainforest tree on the island of New Caledonia oozes more nickel than the richest mines are able to yield. [Read more…] about Acorn Woodpeckers: Adorable Acorn Adorners

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, oaks, Science, Wildlife, woodpeckers

Downy Woodpeckers in Winter

January 22, 2022 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Downy Woodpecker courtesy Wikimedia user Wolfgang Wander On winter mornings, I often venture outside to photograph the assembly of birds that visit the feeders in my front yard. One of the regular visitors is the diminutive downy woodpecker (Picoides pubescens), which clings to my peanut feeder, takes a nibble of suet, or forages in the nearby maple trees. Fairly comfortable with a human presence, these birds feature heavily in my photos.

Measuring only six inches in length and weighing less than an ounce, downy woodpeckers are the smallest of North America’s 22 native woodpecker species. They are often confused with the similar-looking hairy woodpecker. Downies are smaller than hairy woodpeckers, however, and rather than the hairy’s spike-like bill, downies sport a smaller, less conspicuous bill. Males possess a red spot on the back of the head, and both sexes have a general black and white appearance. [Read more…] about Downy Woodpeckers in Winter

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, nature, Wildlife, winter, woodpeckers

Pileated Woodpeckers In Winter

January 2, 2022 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

Pileated-Woodpecker-by-Adelaide-Tyrol-294x300 Whenever I spy a pileated woodpecker traversing the sky, I pause to watch its weird undulating flight. The jerky rise-and-drop movement of this large woodpecker is endearingly gawky – like a mini pterodactyl visiting from the Cretaceous period.

This time of year, the bird’s bold crimson crest flashes in stark contrast to the mostly-muted colors of winter. [Read more…] about Pileated Woodpeckers In Winter

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, nature, Wildlife, winter, woodpeckers

Shelter for the Birds: A Primer

November 27, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Bird ShelterCome winter, after the bears have retreated to their cold weather dens, many backyard bird enthusiasts hang feeders to attract – and nourish – avian visitors. Birds need more than a supplemental food source, however.

Whether they are roosting, feeding, selecting a nest location, or flying from one grove of trees to another, birds rely on vegetative cover, from the ground level to the treetops. Offering natural sources of cover can help birds evade predators and find protection from inclement weather, as well as provide shelter during migration. [Read more…] about Shelter for the Birds: A Primer

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, gardening, trees, winter, woodpeckers

Understanding Our Old Forests

August 6, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Old ForestDecayed wood crumbled underfoot as I stepped on a mossy log. The ground was almost hidden by a lush, diverse growth of wildflowers and ferns. Brown scapes of wild leeks poked up above mottled leaflets of Virginia waterleaf and heart-shaped leaves of wild ginger. A green canopy of mostly sugar maple and yellow birch towered overhead. As we climbed higher on the mountainside, the trees increased in height and girth. We were in an old-growth forest, a remnant of the forest that blanketed the Northeast before European settlement. The extremely steep slope had likely allowed it to escape the axe and saw before it was protected. [Read more…] about Understanding Our Old Forests

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Nature Tagged With: Forestry, nature, trees, Wildlife, woodpeckers

Help Protect Nesting Birds in Your Field or Yard

May 29, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

robin in nestIn the spring and summer many species of birds will set up nests in shrubs (catbirds and common yellowthroats) and on tree limbs (robins, orioles, or vireos). Chickadees, nuthatches, or woodpeckers may be nesting in tree cavities. These nests may be hard to spot from the ground. To protect birds, wait until the fall to cut or prune trees and shrubs if possible. Birds such as house wrens, phoebes, and Carolina wrens often get creative and build nests on decks, porches, or sheds. [Read more…] about Help Protect Nesting Birds in Your Field or Yard

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, DEC, nature, Wildlife, woodpeckers

Ed Zahniser: Woodpecker Wake-up Calls

March 6, 2021 by Edward Zahniser 1 Comment

Downy Woodpecker courtesy Evan LiptonOne morning early, as I slept in our mountain cabin Mateskared, a woodpecker landed on the cabin’s wood siding. Its profound rapid-fire pecking jerked me out of sound sleep.

Did we have robo-termites?

Not in the Adirondacks. [Read more…] about Ed Zahniser: Woodpecker Wake-up Calls

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, nature, Wildlife, woodpeckers

Some Woodpeckers Imitate a Neighbor’s Plumage

March 4, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

look-alike-woodpeckers-300x222In the first global test of the idea, scientists have found evidence that some woodpeckers can evolve to look like another species of woodpecker in the same neighborhood. The researchers say that this “plumage mimicry” isn’t a fluke – it happens among pairs of distantly related woodpeckers all over the world. [Read more…] about Some Woodpeckers Imitate a Neighbor’s Plumage

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: birding, birds, nature, Wildlife, woodpeckers

Downy or Hairy Woodpecker?

March 3, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

hairy_downy-300x179“That’s a downy. No wait, it’s a hairy – definitely a hairy. Well, hang on…maybe it is a downy.” I admit it: I’ve had this happen to me more than once. [Read more…] about Downy or Hairy Woodpecker?

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: birding, birds, nature, Wildlife, woodpeckers

Hairy Woodpecker: Insect Hunter Extraordinaire

March 2, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

TOS_HairyWoodpeckerA woodpecker frequently visits our feeder, alighting on the wooden supporting post and hopping up the post to the suet. Its medium size and striking markings – black wings spotted with white, a large white patch on the back, and a red spot on the back of the head – identify the bird as a male hairy woodpecker.  The female, which also comes to our feeder, lacks the red patch on the head.

The hairy woodpecker is easy to confuse with its almost identical cousin, the downy woodpecker, another of our feeder guests. However, the hairy is about one-third larger than the downy and has a longer, sturdier bill – about the same length as its head. [Read more…] about Hairy Woodpecker: Insect Hunter Extraordinaire

Filed Under: Nature Tagged With: birding, birds, nature, Wildlife, woodpeckers

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