MS. DOWNY WOODPECKER

Meet Ms. Downy Woodpecker! (The male has a red spot on the back of his head.) I’m thrilled that she found my feeder. Now to get a suet holder installed - I hear woodpeckers like those too. I took hundreds of several shots of her today, but so many aren’t very clear because she has extremely quick movement and doesn’t stay long at a time. I finally learned about the ‘burst’ feature on my camera which takes several quick shots at a time - that’s how this one came about.

The Downy is the smallest of the woodpeckers. Its feather pattern is nearly identical to the Hairy Woodpecker, but the Downy is much smaller with a shorter bill. It is frequently found in mixed-species flocks (with chickadees & nuthatches, etc.) making it easier to find food and watch for predators. They eat mainly insects, but a quarter of their diet is plant material (berries, acorns & grains) and they also like oil sunflower seeds and suet. The male and female both excavate the nest hole, usually in a dead tree, and line the bottom with woodchips from their work.