Dryocopus pileatus - #77

Went for a drive in the country this morning chasing a long shot that the Blue Grosbeaks might still be around. It was a "pea-soup" kind of morning but the birds seemed to enjoy the extra privacy and were singing everywhere. I never spotted the Grosbeak... well I think. I did see a Grosbeak on a telephone wire. I assumed it was a female for there were no real coloring or marks that I could see, just a dark brown body all over. It was a wet morning so her plumage could have been affected. The only reason I thought she was a Grosbeak was because of that extraordinary beak. Suffice it to say I am intrigued but there is nothing conclusive there. I was content to come home without a new bird but I didn't have to! I pulled up short near an old gnarled tree to get my lenses on what I think was a Mockingbird. Well that bird took off, but right beside it on the tree was a very good-looking Pileated Woodpecker. I have seen these wonderful birds before but not since I've been keeping an official list and was so glad to see it.

Pileated Woodpecker, Identification, All About Birds - Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Actually, one gave me quite a start a few years ago. I was renting a small trailer at the time and had put up a hopper feeder on a post that my landlord had made. (The seeds of further birding were already there!) I was minding my own business one day when I heard a strange, very loud knocking. Well I went to the front door and nada. I walked around the house listening intently trying to discover the source of the uproar. Finally I pulled back the curtains and looked out at the feeder. Perched right on top and drumming that hollow feeder box for all he was worth was a Pileated Woodpecker. I guess he liked the resonance. I get it, after all I am a musician too. When you find some good wood, you just have to rock it ;)


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