This morning, 02/05/09 I was visited by a beautiful Red Belly Woodpecker. Though it has a glow of red on its belly its the head that stands out.  Against the snow covered yard and a bright sunny morning this woodpecker stood out. Its head was a fiery red and the back was just awesome with those black bars on it.  I watch him through my binoculars eating the raisin suet block I placed out and he was really enjoying it when I observed him carrying large pieces to a nearby tree  and packing it into crevices  storing it for another day. Here are a few facts I researched on the beautiful bird.

• Medium to large-sized woodpecker.
• Red hood from top of head to back of neck.
• Back barred black and white.
• Size:  (9 in)
• Wingspan:  (13-17 in)
• Weight:  (1.98-3.21 ounces)
• The Red-bellied Woodpecker competes vigorously for nest holes with other woodpeckers, but it is often evicted from nest holes by the European Starling. In some areas, half of all Red-bellied Woodpecker nesting cavities are taken over by starlings.
• Stores food in cracks and crevices of trees and fence posts. The woodpecker does not appear to defend its caches from other birds or mammals.
• The male Red-bellied Woodpecker has a longer bill and a longer, wider tongue tip than the female. These adaptations may allow the male to reach deeper into furrows to extract prey and may allow the sexes to divide up the resources in one area.
• Listen to its song;

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/audio/Red-bellied_Woodpecker.html

Harry Schmeider  <  Butler County PA >