The Downy Woodpecker :: Woodpeckers Birds Animals Wildlife Essays

The Downy WoodpeckerHabitatDownies take home in the United States and southern Canada. They make water beenrecorded at elevations of up to 9,000 feet. The downies are non deep-forestedbirds, preferring deciduous trees. Open woodlands, river groves, orchards,swamps, farmland, and suburban backyards are all favorite haunts of the downy.Downies will also nest in city parks. About the only place you wont find themis deserts. The most attractive human dwelling sites are woodlands broken up bylogged patches in a waterside area. Downies also enjoy open shrubbery withgroves of young deciduous trees.Call(s)Like the hairy prick, the downy beats a tattoo on a dry resoundingtree branch. This drumming is the downys song, though they do make some vocalnoises. They have several single-syllable call notes which include tchick, anaggressive social note a tick and a tkhirrr, which are alarm notes. There isalso a location call, known as a whinny, made up of a dozen or more tchicksall strung toget her.Scientific NamesThe downy woodpeckers scientific name is Picoides pubescens. Thereare also 6 particular downies with six particular scientific names all fromdifferent regions of the United States and southern Canada which I have listedbelowsouthern downy / Dryobates pubescens Gairdners woodpecker / Gairdneri pubescensBatchelders woodpecker / Leucurus pubescens northern downy / Medianus pubescensNelsons downy / Nelsoni pubescens willow woodpecker / Turati pubescensThe downy woodpecker is sometimes reffered to as little downy.Behavior Towards HumansThe downy is decidedly the friendliest woodpecker. A bird loverin Wisconsin described downies at their feeding station The downies will backdown to the suet container on the basswood tree eon I sit only a few feet awayon the patio. Even when I walk right up to them, most downies will not fly away,but will simply scoot around the backside of the tree trunk and peek around tosee what I am doing. If I press them, they will hop up the ba ckside of the treetrunk and then fly to a higher branch.FoodBesides being friendly, downy woodpeckers are our good friends foranother reason. Most of the insects they eat are considered destructive to mansorchards and forest products. About 75% of their diet is made up of animal egress gleaned from bark and crevices where insect larvae and eggs lie hidden.While standing on that unique tripod of two legs and and a tail, downies hitchup and down tree trunks in search of a whole laundry list of insect pests. Withtheir special chisel-like bills and horny, sticky tongues, downies are adept atplucking out great poem of beetle grubs, insect cocoons, or batches of insect