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Project Noah Nature School
Melanerpes Uropygialis
About 9 ½” long with tan heads, necks, throats, breasts, and bellies, (although there is a yellow tinge to the central belly) And black and white barring across their rumps, wings and backs. Their tails also have barred central tail feathers. The wings are white underneath which can be easily seen when these woodpeckers are flying. They have pointed black bills and dark red eyes. Their legs are short; they have strong toes and sharp claws. They use their stiff tail feathers to balance and to hold themselves vertical. They have strong head and neck muscles, with skulls able to absorb the shock as they drum and hammer into trees. Their tongues are long, barbed and sticky.
Date palm tree near I-10 in Tucson.
Spotted on Nov 4, 2014
Submitted on Jan 12, 2015
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