Cooperative Living November/December 2017 - 15

FeatheredFriends | Story and Artwork by Spike Knuth, Contributing Columnist
Hairy Woodpecker
I
glanced out of the sunroom on a cold,
bright winter day at our big sweet gum
tree. That tree attracted yellow-bellied
sapsuckers, red-bellied woodpeckers,
white-breasted nuthatches and downy
woodpeckers regularly, so it was not
unusual to catch a glimpse of a bird
hanging on the trunk.
Assuming it was a downy woodpecker,
I didn't pay much attention to it.
However, I quickly realized this was
something different; it was larger than
a downy and its bill was larger.
A hairy woodpecker was making a visit
to our yard for the first time.
The hairy woodpecker is similar in
color and pattern to the more common
downy, but is noticeably larger with a
heavier, chisel-like bill as long as its
head. It too is basically black and white,
with white undersides, and a large white
back patch. The wings are black with
many large white spots. Its facial pattern
has two white stripes on either side of a
black cheek patch and crown. The male
of the species has a bright-red patch at
the back of its head that the female
lacks. Its outer tail feathers are white.
It measures about 9.25 inches, about
2 inches longer than the downy.
Unlike the smaller downy
woodpecker, it is normally shy and
somewhat secretive, tending to forage
higher in the trees and usually in denser
forests. It exhibits the typical rollercoaster-like,
undulating flight style. Its
call is a loud, sharp, high-pitched single
" peek, " often followed by a short rattling
call. Even its drumming is distinctive,
being fast at first but slowing at the end.
Its scientific name is Picoides villosus,
meaning " hairy tree-beater! " Other
common names are Guinea woodpecker
or simply " Harry. "
Generally, you may see only a single
bird in winter, since the male and female
will maintain separate winter territories.
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Active,
Energetic
Feeders
It is normally shy and somewhat secretive, tending to forage higher in the trees and usually in denser forests.
However, mated pairs may stay in contact
and come together in early spring. The
male will start drumming on hollow
branches or anything else that resonates,
to lay claim to territory and attract its
mate, often in the female's winter territory.
Courtship antics may consist of head
weaving and bobbing, and the flickering
of wings with high-pitched calls.
The hairy woodpecker nests fairly early
in spring; as early as late-March, with
egg-laying beginning in early April. Both
sexes will work at cutting a cavity in a
tree, living or dead, frequently in dense,
swampy woodlands. They will also use old
You may see only a single
bird in winter, since the
male and female will
maintain separate winter
territories. However, mated
pairs may stay in contact
and come together in early
spring. The male will start
drumming on hollow
branches or anything else
that resonates, to lay claim
to territory and attract its
mate, often in the female's
winter territory.
holes or natural cavities anywhere from
12 to 60 feet up. A roosting hole will also
be dug nearby. A normal clutch of four,
sometimes as many as six, white eggs are
produced. Both sexes participate in
incubation and the eggs hatch in about
14 days.
Once hatched, both sexes feed the
young, with the male likely to wander
more widely to bring food back to
the hatchlings and the female. Young
leave the nest area about 28 to 30 days
after hatching, although the parent
birds will continue to feed the young
for some time afterward. A single brood
is reared each year.
Hairy woodpeckers sit stiffly erect
when on a tree trunk or large branches.
They are active, energetic feeders as they
probe and dig in the bark or dead wood
of trees searching mainly for the larvae of
boring insects, in particular wood-boring
larvae of pine bark beetles. They dig them
out or extract them with their Velcro-like
tongue. Rotted stumps and logs also
provide food in the form of ants and
caterpillars, and they will also go to the
ground to feed. While 75 percent of their
diet is insects, they will also feed on wild
fruits, nuts and on tree sap, sipping from
old sapsucker wells.
Hairy woodpeckers are common over
much of North America from southern
Alaska to Newfoundland, south to
Florida and Central America. There are
many regional variations of color, field
markings and habitat. More northerly
breeders will migrate south as far as
Central America, the Gulf of Mexico and
the West Indies.
In our region they are with us yearround.
They favor deeper mixed forests,
but in winter may actually move in to
more open country, residential areas,
parks and orchards. At this time they may
even show up at backyard bird feeders,
especially for sunflower seeds and suet. 
November-December 2017 | Cooperative Living | 13

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Cooperative Living November/December 2017

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