The Downy has a small, dainty bill, while the Hairy has a longer, chisel-like beak. They are very similar in appearance, but the Downy is much smaller – about seven inches long compared to the Hairy, which is about 10 inches long. Someone new to birding, and even old pros, find that it is hard to distinguish between a Hairy and a Downy. The two birds – probably male and female – quickly came and went. In Munds Park I first saw a pair of Hairy Woodpeckers this spring off our back deck. Because it is so small and can forage in small spaces among trees and their limbs, it uses food sources in its natural habitat that larger woodpeckers do not. The Downy Woodpecker has a black back with a broad white patch down the center, a white checker-board pattern on its wings, a white belly, and a small red spot on its crown. We don’t see them too often in Munds Park – but now and then I spot one on our property. This little bird, about seven inches in length, is common throughout the United States and a welcome sight with its bright red cap on a wintry white day. The second black and white bird with some red on its head is the Downy Woodpecker. These birds would be a real “find” for visitors from the Midwest or East because they only inhabit parts of the Southwest and California. The species has a clownish, comical face, with a bright red cap and a face that has a distinct white eye ring and black-white pattern. Their breeding behavior is quite unique – multiple males and females combine their efforts to raise young in a single nest. Acorn Woodpeckers live in year-round social units and depend on groups to build up and defend their stored supplies of acorns and insects. This bird’s back is mostly black, but when it flies from tree to tree or across your property, you can see the white under parts of its wings and belly. The Acorn Woodpecker is most prevalent here. These three species have black/white/red coloring, but they are distinctly different in other ways. So I thanked him for his interest and his suggestion, and that’s why we are going to discuss woodpeckers in Munds Park. One Friday night this summer I was sitting at a table in the Pinewood Country Club bar waiting for karaoke to begin and a member came up to me and said “Why don’t you write about the three woodpeckers we have here? We see the Acorn, Hairy, and Downy Woodpeckers all the time on our property”. Red breasted sapsucker.Downy Woodpecker Courtesy of Gordon Karre The Northern Flicker is a regular visitor and the Red breasted Sapsucker drums daily. They are not the only peckers in our yard. From left to right : male Hairy, male Downy, female Hairy. When they are on their own, it is sometimes hard to tell which is which. Most recently, John shared a video comparing two of the more popular woodpeckers found in the Pemberton region. I haven’t submitted him to any formal testing, but I’m curious to know if John Tschopp, our bird community leader, feels this. A 10 percent increase in the number of bird species in peoples’ surroundings increased their life satisfaction as much as an extra 10 percent in the bank, the study found. Research suggests that spending more time in nature and with animals can help people relax and even lessen physical and mental stress.Īnd the more birds, the better, according to the study, which analyzed data from the “2012 European quality of Life Survey” on life satisfaction in more than 26,000 adults from 26 European countries. Joel Methorst, a doctoral researcher at the Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, the iDiv, and the Goethe University in Frankfurt, explained that, “according to our findings, the happiest Europeans are those who can experience numerous different bird species in their daily life, or who live in near-natural surroundings that are home to many species.” Here’s what the science says: want to be happier? You need more birdsong in your life.Īccording to a recent study published in Science Daily, “Europeans are particularly satisfied with their lives if their immediate surroundings host a high species of diversity.”
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