15 Facts About Woodpecker
236 species of woodpeckers
Woodpeckers are found in approximately 236 different species across the world.
According to the International Ornithological Union, there are 236 different species of woodpeckers around the globe.
Woodpeckers are classified as members of the Picidae family, which includes 36 genera.
Except for Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, and Madagascar, woodpeckers may be found everywhere around the world.
Descent is a group of woodpeckers
You’ll typically only encounter one or two woodpeckers since they feed alone or as a breeding pair.
Some woodpeckers, like Acorn Woodpeckers, do, however, dwell in big communal family groupings.
A descending of woodpeckers is what you’ll witness if you’re lucky enough to view a bunch of woodpeckers.
Super long tongues
To reach insects within the holes they peck out, woodpeckers have tongues that are roughly twice the length of their bills.
The lengthy tongue coils around the back of the head between the skull and the skin when not in use. Their tongues are sticky as well.
Most woodpeckers have barbed tongues or sticky saliva on their tongues to assist scrape out holes in trees they’ve dug with their tongues, dragging whatever insects they locate.
Their tongues curl around their brains
They have to coil their tongue around their brains over the top of their heads because it is so long.
To assist them to catch prey, their tongues are sticky and often thorny. Like a chameleon, they can launch and withdraw their tongues at high speeds.
Their tails feature one-of-a-kind, extremely robust feathers.
When pecking on trees and hollowing out nests, woodpeckers utilize their tails for support.
In comparison to other birds, woodpeckers have very big tail bones, lower vertebrae, and muscles that support their tails.
Woodpeckers’ tails are particularly rigid, allowing them to use them for added support and balance.
The hearing of woodpeckers is exceptional
Female red-bellied woodpeckers have exceptional hearing and can hear insects and larvae moving about and chewing on wood.
They utilize sound to identify their food, which is hidden beneath the bark, and to determine where to begin pecking to reach the juicy larvae. You must have a strong hearing if you can hear bugs moving within trees.
Their noses are hairy.
Woodpeckers have fuzzy noses, as shown in the photos above. Feathers protect their nostrils to keep splinters and dust out when they peck.
They do not suffer from headaches.
When pecking, woodpecker bills help diffuse shock throughout the thick skull. Humans would feel a lot of pain if they smashed their heads on a tree, but woodpeckers don’t.
They cannot sing
Woodpeckers make churrs, rattles, chatters, and screeches, as well as quick peep and pik noises. Their calls are not called songs since they lack unique melodies.
To compensate for their lack of vocal talent, woodpeckers use drumming to create remarkable rhythms, tempos, and repetition.
Songbirds’ singing strength and length can indicate how healthy and robust a bird is, and therefore how appropriate a partner is, but woodpeckers’ drumming performance is what distinguishes them as a desirable mate.
They like making rhythmic music
Woodpeckers are the only animals in the world that create a sound using anything other than their bodies.
They will drum on various items to express territory, attract mates, find food, and sometimes even exercise or play.
They prefer to remain erect
They maintain erect and lead with the tail first when going down a tree. Nuthatches and other insect-eating tree birds, for example, descend a tree headfirst.
According to some experts, this variation helps birds to approach the tree in a different way, allowing them to collect insects and reducing rivalry between species.
Woodpeckers are overly strict with detail
Iowa woodpeckers build their nests in tree cavities that they dig out themselves.
They’ll make an entrance in the shape of a complete circle. The nest hole of the Pileated Woodpecker is round or oblong in shape.
Their nest is about a foot below the actual entrance
Woodpeckers don’t just make a hole in the tree because predators like raccoons would be able to readily remove the young one.
Woodpecker nests vary in size according to the species, with the hollow hole being somewhat larger than the bird.
Smaller woodpeckers, such as Downy Woodpeckers, dig a hole approximately a foot deep from the opening, whereas larger woodpeckers, such as Pileated Woodpeckers, excavate a hole around two feet deep. The depth of the nests is designed to keep predators away from their young.
Nuts are a perfect snack for woodpeckers
Woodpeckers like eating berries and nuts in addition to insects. That is why they will appear on your nut feeders.
Some woodpeckers are so fond of acorns that they will store them for the winter, and red-headed woodpeckers may even cover their cache with damp splinters that dry out to form a tight seal.
Red-headed woodpeckers have even been observed attempting to load a home attic with acorns.
They consume newborn birds’ brains when thirsty in the desert
This activity might be because of the extreme heat in the desert where they reside, and the brains serve as both a supply of moisture and nourishment.
It might also be that they were a simple meal, as woodpeckers are known to consume eggs, and a chick head is quite similar to an egg.
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