The title could be "X Marks the Spot". We noticed this spot in the wood a while ago when we heard the Pileated Woodpecker making his nest here. The sound echoed through the forest telling us where the exact spot was.
(the letter today for ABC meme is X and I can not think of many X words.)
He pecked for days..but then on subsequent visits it was all quiet. So I thought they had abandoned this nest and gone to another one. The holes they make when feeding on carpenter ants look very different, they are smaller square holes. They also eat other insects, seeds and fruit. Some will come for suet at the feeder if it is easily accessible for a large bird. They have a very long sticky tongue and they are the largest woodpecker here now. (Pictures will click larger.)
Male making the nest,, he has the red mustache, female has a black one.
The nest was up very high. The entrance hole looked bigger than three and a half inches. The book says the depth could be from 10 to 24 inches. What a lot of work this guy did...he made a very deep nest hole.
It was all quiet because she was busy sitting on the nest and hatching a baby chick!! And of course I did not have the camera with me when we went back and saw the baby sticking his head out and screaming
"Feed Me, Feed Me". So we had to return. I got some shots of him
calling out and looking out of his little nest hole.
Then on our next time there with the camera this is what happened. I said to my husband it would be nice if the parents would come in and feed this little fellow right now. And right then and there the parents both flew in and the little woodpecker chick kept turning his head all around looking at them.
He finally stopped screeching and the mom (or dad) flew in beside him and started to shove food right down his throat moving her head so fast and furiously.
The other adult was on a branch above him.
We went back the next day and he had fledged. I sometimes heard them calling farther back in the woods. Sad to see him go so soon, I was hoping I would see more of him. But he was really huge so I knew he was ready to go. The Pileated Woodpeckers have a very large territory perhaps up to 200 acres so they move around a lot and you cannot find them in the exact same spot. But they do return to favorite trees so I hope we will see this family again and also see their youngsters.
The memes for this week are: ABC Wednesday the letter "X". Thank you to these memes for allowing bloggers to share their story. I may not remember to enter them all but I still list them as this is the quick way for me to do it.
Show off Your Shot
Our World Tuesday
Sweet Shot Tuesday
Tuesday Tweets
World Bird Wednesday
ABC Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday with Words
Nature Notes Wednesday
Outdoors Wednesday
edit note: I sometimes have to republish after I see how many errors I made or links not working. I list all the memes for the week now as I can only spend a short time on the computer as my eyes get tired. Such is life. To continue reading posts you must click older post below or see the index at the top or the side or pick a popular post or label from the sidebar.