I must not live too far from Nari, and I have two *female* woodpeckers who seem to visit my yard every day. I'll have to start checking the time to note if they're as regular as her males. I always look for males, but these are two females, always busy feeding on trees both dead and alive, and they've been coming the last few years or so. And they are always a spectacular sight. I live on Ellis Hollow, about one mile up from Rt. 79 and about one mile from Ellis Hollow Creek Road, so wonder if they could be wandering that far from her two chaps.
Sheila Dean On Fri, Mar 4, 2016 at 5:36 PM, Nari Mistry <n...@cornell.edu> wrote: > For some weeks now, at 4pm every day (within 5 minutes or so), two male > Pileated Woodpeckers arrive and loudly announce their presence from our > neighbor's tree. Sometimes they fly over to the box-elder next to our house > to our suet feeder.. > > Today Gin and I went for a walk down Dodge Rd and on the way back > encountered the two down near the spruce woods at about 3:45pm. I said, > "let's watch, they will be at our house when we get back there." Sure > enough, at 4:01pm we got to our back yard to loud "Wuk,wuk,....." cries > from next door. One flew back across Ellis Hollow Rd but the other stayed > on the tree. This is a daily ritual by which I can tell the time within 5 > minutes. > > Later in March the two will come and chase each other around our yard, > sometimes displaying up and down parallel trees. This has been going on for > many years. > Here is a quote from my email to Cayugabirds-L on March 20, 2008: > "As I worked at my desk at home, a few minutes ago first one and then > another brilliant Pileated woodpecker flew in to a spruce trunk just > outside my window. One brilliant scarlet crest was fully raised. I think > both were males. Before I could get my camera they began a dance around the > trees and then flew from tree to tree all around the house, west to north > to east and finally around to the backyard (south) again, before flying > off. All this was at upstairs window height, fully displaying their awesome > shapes as they flew around while we watched. " > Here is another excerpt from March 9, 2013: > "A few minutes ago, as we were having lunch, two gorgeous male Pileated > Woodpeckers flew down just outside our window, one low on the box-elder the > other low on a black locust nearby. I think they were sizing up each other, > in an annual Spring ritual in our yard. In my bird archives I see that last > year they appeared on Feb. 12, and in 2011 on March 20, when they chased > each other repeatedly all around our yard." > > It's tempting to believe these are the same two every year, but who knows > ..... > > Nari & Gin Mistry > Ellis Hollow Rd. > > -- > *Cayugabirds-L List Info:* > Welcome and Basics <http://www.northeastbirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME> > Rules and Information <http://www.northeastbirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES> > Subscribe, Configuration and Leave > <http://www.northeastbirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> > *Archives:* > The Mail Archive > <http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> > Surfbirds <http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds> > BirdingOnThe.Net <http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html> > *Please submit your observations to eBird > <http://ebird.org/content/ebird/>!* > -- > -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
