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Woodpeckers |
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Our woods are filled with the plunking and hammering of happy woodpeckers, and we have found three varieties in our yard. We love to listen to them, and see them at work, and study the places they vigorously work around our wooded yard. |
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This site has a protection for a certain variety of woodpeckers in Virginia. We love the idea of buying up land to protect wildlife. Also of note, these endangered woodpeckers are right here in Virginia. Notice here they are only in a handful of states! |
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Other good sites for information on these creatures include:
Did you know— about Flickers (even Northern Flickers which we have in our yard!) Pileated Woodpecker (We have seen a very large woodpecker in our yard rarely. We think this is it since it is in this area, and we have a suitable habitat for it)
And then there is You Tube, which has nothing to do with Woodpeckers, but offered great entertainment to my children…
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Several pairs in our yard return to raise families each year. We call him “The King” because when he arrives everyone else leaves the feeder. |
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What we’ve learned:
· Woodpeckers are all over the world, except Austrailia · Toucans are in the same family as the woodpeckers (Piciformes) · All Piciformes have two toes that go backwards, and two that point forward · Many species are endangered, and you cannot ‘remove’ them without state and government permission.
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Pileated Woodpecker. He is illusive, but we believe this is the big guy we have seen here on occasion. |
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Here are some examples of woodpeckers at work in and around our yard. You may be surprised to see that a lot of these pecks are made close to the ground! The tree on the right has been hollow for many years. First we saw flickers in there, then squirrels...now it seems abandon. |