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Project Noah Nature School
Dryocopus pileatus
One of a nesting pair we have living in our woods. Each year, he becomes obsessed with a particular tree. This past Spring, he figured out he could make lots of noise by pecking on a birdhouse we have mounted to a snag in our backyard.
Mixed coniferous/deciduous forest in coastal area of SE Olympic Peninsula in WA State.
Spotted on May 5, 2010
Submitted on Mar 11, 2011
3 Comments
Yes they are drummers. I have a Downy that drums on my fig tree every Spring calling in a mate.
How ingenous: it must resonate like a drum. We had a yellow-bellied sapsucker discover that the tv antenna made a very loud noise so it became one of its regular places to drum (at sunrise, of course).
Pileated woodpeckers are ingenious finding instruments to drum on... love your description