Woodpecker Visitors

For several years now I have been fortunate as several woodpecker families have visited me at my home. No early mornings but a lot of patience needs in waiting to see them appear.

They come to a tree and feeder about two metres from Hilary’s dressing room and bathroom so once they start to appear both areas are quickly converted into a hide. From mid-May to the end of June can be a busy time in both rooms.

Once the chicks have hatched the parents will come in to the peanut feeder. They tend to come in at breakfast, lunch and dinner, visiting several times each session.

They fly onto an old bent apple tree and then to the peanut feeder. They hammer at the feeder to get a peanut out, then take the peanut to a crevice in the trunk of another tree, place it very carefully and hammer it down into pulp. The beak fills with mashed peanut and the adult then flies away to the nest to feed the young chicks. I have never located the nest but it cannot be far away as they will often return with five or ten minutes.

The adults will eventually bring the chicks in and feed them at the tree. They also show them where the food is and how to use the crevice to break down the peanut. I expect to see the adults with chicks around the middle of June and the chicks, on their own, by the end of June.

For the past three years one pair has brought in a two chicks and there is often a lot or sibling rivalry, they just don’t tolerate each other.

Another interesting thing is how the other birds have watched this and are quick to examine the crevice for any leftovers, before being driven off when the woodpeckers return.