Wow! What a nice documentary. These pictures are evidences for story depiction with the help of still photographs!
Thanks and Regards Giby On 6 October 2011 00:32, raghu ananth <[email protected]> wrote: > * Drama in my backyard – a woodpecker’s search for food atop a mango tree > and an inquisitive audience! ** * > > This time, mom hollered from the backyard and said “Some new bird has > landed on the mango tree. It looks beautiful. Come take a look”.**** > > ** ** > > To my surprise, it was a white-naped woodpecker - *Chrysocolaptes > festivus,* which I had seen once earlier. Moments after spotting me, it > gave a loud call and flew close to the bottom of another small mango tree > stump, climbed up and after ensuring that it was safe from whatsoever > threats, started pecking on an already cut/ marked portion in the bark. I > brought my camera and this time I asked my mom to go ahead and I followed > cautiously. The trick worked as the bird just watched for a few seconds and > continued its work and I started clicking. (I have noticed many common birds > that have strayed into the backyard like the hoopoe, tailor bird, sparrows, > koel and sunbirds coming very close, just a feet or two next to my mom. But > I seem like a stranger to them and a slight action on my part is enough to > have them scurrying away with a cry of alarm.)**** > > **** > > Soon, the noise aroused the curiosity of a furred mammal which came close > to the woodpecker, but one sharp peck from its beak sent the intruder > scampering away, only for it to return and peep at the woodpecker from a > respectable distance. **** > > ** ** > > Once, a woodpecker continued its rap-a-tap-tap noise on the bark of the > mango tree with its chisel-like bill, making a mark from top to bottom and > then again to the top right, as if drawing out a heart.**** > > ** ** > > ** ** > > It took less than three minutes for the wood pecker to remove a small > portion of the bark of the mango tree, eat some insects/worms and fly away. > I could see nothing what it ate. But there were small holes under the bark. > After the exit of the wood pecker, the squirrel came to check and spent all > its time sniffing and licking at the place, where moments earlier the > woodpecker had been busy at work.**** > > ** ** > > It took me years to learn that the continuous firing sounds in the > wilderness which resembled a gun being fired, was thanks to these > woodpeckers boring into hollow wood for insects. The alarm calls too are a > quick burst of sounds. During trips to my village, I normally see them on > many of the Ficus species (Banyan –Ficus bengalensis , Ficus.Mysorensis, > F.racemosa, coconut, areca and acacia trees making their way from the > bottom of the tree to the topmost branches invisible for some time and then > flying away **** > > ** ** > > ** ** > > Photo date : 20 Nov 2009, Time 1:00PM to 1:09PM**** > > Krishnaraja nagar, Mysore District, Karnataka**** > > ** ** > > Note: This Mango tree stump no longer exists > > > > > > Regards > > > > Raghu > > > > **** > > -- GIBY KURIAKOSE PhD Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Royal Enclave, Jakkur Post, Srirampura Bangalore- 560064 India Phone - +91 9448714856 (Mobile) visit my pictures @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/giby
