The Downy Woodpecker

I took this photo of a Downy Woodpecker in February 2014.

This small black and white woodpecker is a year round resident that is in our area.  The red patch on its nape/neck tells us that it is a male woodpecker.  You may see them in your yard or in the woods.  If you put a suet feeder in your yard, they will come to it often. it flies like other woodpeckers in roller coaster fashion going up and down.  You may hear it drumming as it pecks at wood to find insects in the tree trunk.

There is another woodpecker in our area that looks very similar to this Downy Woodpecker and it is called the Hairy Woodpecker.  It is a bit larger than this one with a longer bill..  To read more about the Downy Woodpecker go to the bird site:  All About Birds/ Downy Woodpecker by clicking here.

To see more of my bird photos of birds in our area, go to my Flickr site by clicking here.  I have found in the past that the students and past students enjoy looking at the birds on my Flickr site.  It helps them learn the birds and learn which birds are in our area.

 A "life bird" is a bird that you've seen for the first time. the next time that you and your child see a bird for the first time and you can holler, "Life bird!"  Some people make lists of their life birds complete with the date and location.  It could be a fun journal idea for a family to keep.  The child could draw the birds they see on each page.  What was your last life bird?