This male Downy Woodpecker visits the log feeder every afternoon looking to see if the Blue Jays have left any shelled peanuts behind. If he finds one, he jams it in a crack and pecks away.
Every morning I press some of my homemade suet in the holes of the old elm branches I use for perches. One of our male Downy Woodpeckers was making sure every last speck was cleaned out of this hole.
Female Downy Woodpecker at Sunflower - Video Attached
Posted:
August 4, 2010
Many of the sunflowers in our yard have finished blooming and are beginning to dry. The woodpeckers are already eating the sunflower seeds right out of the head like this female Downy Woodpecker.
This is one of two male Downy Woodpeckers that we have the pleasure of enjoying daily. He competes with the other 3 Downys and 4 Hairy Woodpeckers for time at the suet. They all manage to get their fair share.
Downy Woodpecker Prefers Dog Bones - Video Attached
Posted:
March 24, 2010
Our dog Coby left one of his marrow bones on our brick walkway. Just by chance I happened to notice this female Downy Woodpecker next to it pecking out the marrow. She was there twice for about 5 minutes each time. So I hung it up at the feeder area and she went to it again. Must be real tasty stuff.
The Downy Woodpeckers treat the dried sunflower stalks like little tree trunks. They scoot up, down and around them and peck at them just like they would a tree trunk.
This female Downy Woodpecker is keeping an eye out for the Sharp-shinned Hawk. The Blue Jays usually announce the hawk's presence with loud alarms calls. The Downy Woodpeckers will quickly fly to a larger tree and stay very still on the backside from the hawk's location.
This adult male Downy Woodpecker's red cap is looking brighter than usual, probably to impress his mate. I like to catch them in this over the shoulder look.
Downy Woodpecker on Tree Trunk - Video Clip Attached
Posted:
January 22, 2010
This is one of two female Downy Woodpeckers who are regulars. Often both females are on the locust suet log together. In the attached video she was grooming herself during a snow storm.
When the Downy Woodpeckers are not on the suet log, they like to perch on the dried sunflower stalks. they move up, down and around them as if they were little trees.
This male Downy Woodpecker landed on a sunflower stalk and worked his way down to a little hole at the bottom. He did not seem to mind that his tail feathers were 2 inches into the snow as he pecked away at something in the hole.
Downy Woodpeckers seem to always have a cheerful look about them. Even when they tussle with each other at the feeders, it looks more playful than aggressive.
A first year male Downy Woodpecker (red cap not yet full) flew from the sunflower seed feeder tray to this sunflower seed head. He wanted to try his seeds straight from the plant.
The male downy woodpecker will grab a chunk of suet from the feeder, bring it to this branch and stuff it into a crevise. Then he can nibble away at it.
We only had 3 pears on our small pear tree this year. This Downy Woodpecker decided he likes them before they are ripe. So now we have only 2 and probably will not get any of them. Oh well.
This is the adult female downy woodpecker taking her turn at the suet feeder area. The "kids" have been hogging more than their share now that they are eating on their own.
This is the adult male member of our downy family looking on as mom feeds the juvenile female. They all really like peanut butter suet. He was a bit damp after a day of rain.
This guy was looking particularly cheerful in this shot. He had just successfully chased the other male downy off this perch and must have been proud of that accomplishment.
A favorite pecking spot for the downy woodpeckers is this shredded mountain ash tree. I planted it 9 years ago to attract the cedar waxwings in the fall, but I finally gave up trying to save it from the woodpeckers a few years ago.
The hairy and downy woodpeckers enjoy a stop at our locust stump on their way to and from the suet feeders. The 8 foot high stump is all that is left after they girdled and killed most of the tree. Now I don't care if they peck away at the bark, which they are enjoying.
Here is the male downy woodpecker that hid on the backside of this slender poplar tree to avoid the view of the shrike that was scanning the area for a meal.
Bird Species
