Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) Male (l) Female (r)
Cascade Mountains - Jackson County - Oregon - USA
Habitat : Open Woodlands
Food : Insects
Nesting : Cavity
Behavior : Bark Forager
Conservation : Low Concern
"Acorn Woodpeckers are medium-sized woodpeckers with straight, spike-like bills and stiff, wedge-shaped tails used for support as the birds cling to tree trunks..... Acorn Woodpeckers are very unusual woodpeckers that live in large groups, hoard acorns, and breed cooperatively. Group members gather acorns by the hundreds and wedge them into holes they’ve made in a tree trunk or telephone pole. Acorn Woodpeckers also spend considerable time catching insects on the wing. They give raucous, scratchy waka-waka calls frequently... In groups with more than one breeding female, the females put their eggs into a single nest cavity. A female usually destroys any eggs in the nest before she starts to lay, and more than one third of all eggs laid in joint nests are destroyed. Once all the females start to lay, they stop removing eggs."
- Cornell University Lab of Ornithology
Tags: Acorn Woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus Nesting Woodpecker Cascade Mountains Jackson County Oregon usa Mark Heatherington
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Cascade Mountains - Jackson County - Oregon - USA
Habitat : Open Woodlands
Food : Insects
Nesting : Cavity
Behavior : Bark Forager
Conservation : Low Concern
Tags: 2362 Acorn Woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus Male Woodpecker Nature Wildlife Bird Cascade Mountains Jackson County Oregon USA Mark Heatherington Mark Heatherington Photography
© All Rights Reserved
Habitat : Open Woodlands
Food : Insects
Nesting : Cavity
Behavior : Ground Forager
Conservation : Low Concern
"Northern Flickers are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle expression and handsome black-scalloped plumage. On walks, don’t be surprised if you scare one up from the ground. It’s not where you’d expect to find a woodpecker, but flickers eat mainly ants and beetles, digging for them with their unusual, slightly curved bill. When they fly you’ll see a flash of color in the wings – yellow if you’re in the East, red if you’re in the West – and a bright white flash on the rump."
- Cornell University Lab of Ornithology
Tags: Northern Flicker Colaptes auratus Red-shafted Woodpecker Flicker Female Cascade Mountains Jackson County Oregon USA Mark Heatherington
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These two males took turns going into the nesting cavity.
Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus)
Cascade Mountains - Jackson County - Oregon - USA
Habitat : Open Woodlands
Food : Insects
Nesting : Cavity
Behavior : Bark Forager
Conservation : Low Concern
"Acorn Woodpeckers are medium-sized woodpeckers with straight, spike-like bills and stiff, wedge-shaped tails used for support as the birds cling to tree trunks..... Acorn Woodpeckers are very unusual woodpeckers that live in large groups, hoard acorns, and breed cooperatively. Group members gather acorns by the hundreds and wedge them into holes they’ve made in a tree trunk or telephone pole. Acorn Woodpeckers also spend considerable time catching insects on the wing. They give raucous, scratchy waka-waka calls frequently... In groups with more than one breeding female, the females put their eggs into a single nest cavity. A female usually destroys any eggs in the nest before she starts to lay, and more than one third of all eggs laid in joint nests are destroyed. Once all the females start to lay, they stop removing eggs."
- Cornell University Lab of Ornithology
Tags: Cascade Mountains Jackson County Oregon USA Mark Heatherington Acorn Woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus Male
© All Rights Reserved
Brown Acres - Jackson County - Oregon
This male is one of several daily visitors to my feeding station.
Tags: 1D3A4294 Acorn Woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus Woodpecker Bird Bird Photography Nature Nature Photography Wildlife Wildlife Photography Brown Acres Jackson County Oregon Mark Heatherington
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