![]() ![]() These birds are useful destroyers of insect pests, especially around orchards (Palmer and Fowler 1975). In the western United States, when leaves are budding, the Hairy Woodpecker will peck and tear at the buds to get at the hidden insects, in contrast to the Downy Woodpecker that uses probing and soft tapping (Short 1982). To obtain an insect, the Hairy Woodpecker will tap, probe, and pry at the bark of a tree, sometimes excavating deep into the bark. 1995).įoraging occurs on trees, bushes, stumps, vines, bamboo, reeds, sugar cane, and rotting branches and other debris on the ground. Hairy Woodpeckers will feed on suet in backyards (Winkler et al. They will eat a little vegetable matter including nuts, seeds, and some fruits (Palmer and Fowler 1975, Winkler et al. Other insects include ants, grasshoppers and wood-boring beetles, other beetles and their grubs, crickets, and flies. The majority of their foodstuffs is insects, especially hairy caterpillars and their chrysalids, particularly the gypsy moth. These displays are performed in concert with the variety of calls uttered by the Hairy Woodpecker (Short 1982). To show submission, tail spreading displays occur (Short 1982). To show aggression, they will engage in bill directing, head raised posture, head turned attitude, crest raising, head bobbing, wing flicking, and wing spreading. Hairy Woodpeckers will also engage in other displays. Calls uttered by young Hairy Woodpeckers include chirp and loud chirp to beg for food from the parents, and squeak calls uttered after feeding with the parents nearby (Short 1982, Winkler et al. Non-smacking wad calls are utterred in association with mating. Other calls uttered during conflict situations include the twitter call and smacking wad calls. Wicka calls in association with head swinging are performed by Hairy Woodpeckers in close proximity. Kweek calls in conjunction with flutter aerial displays are used as threats of aggression. ![]() Kweek calls and drumming will also occur when the bird is disturbed (Short 1982). Hairy Woodpeckers that are disturbed will flutter their wings and utter a "brrrup" noise, or they will engage in displacement tapping and pecking. The song of this bird is a "kingfisher-like rattle" or rattle call a note that preceeds the rattle call is a "peek" sound or peek call uttered sharply (Peterson 1967, Short 1982, Farrand, Jr. Status: wild 191 months Bird Banding Laboratory
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