Just couldn’t resist this face

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A pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers are reportedly building a nest in this dead tree, and I just had to photograph the handsome dad poking his head out of the nest cavity! He didn’t oblige me by flying, just surveyed the neighborhood for several minutes and then disappeared back inside.

Red-bellied Woodpeckers are found throughout the Eastern U.S. and nest “in dead trees (hardwoods or pines), dead limbs of live trees, and fence posts. The same pair may nest in the same tree year after year, but typically excavate a new cavity each year, often placing the new one beneath the previous year’s.” (All About Birds)

In addition to his red crown, the Red-bellied has a faint wash of red on its belly, often difficult to see in the field. Don’t mistake this fellow for a Red-headed Woodpecker, whose head is completely deep red – See a very clear comparison HERE.

41 thoughts on “Just couldn’t resist this face”

  4. Amidst a landscape, dead and stark, A tale unfolds, a work of art. A pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers reside, In a lifeless tree, their nesting stride.

    A lens in hand, I sought to capture, The elegant father, a poetic rapture. Emerging from the nest’s safe keep, His countenance, a beauty, ran deep.

    No flight was granted, to my dismay, He lingered, surveyed, in a thoughtful way. The neighborhood, his watchful domain, He vanished inside, his presence waned.

    Throughout the East, this avian clan, Nests in lifeless trees, a cunning plan. Be it pines or hardwoods, posts or limbs, Their homes, a cycle, nature’s whims.

    Each year, a fresh cavity they shape, Beneath the past, a new nest takes shape. Yet, some remain loyal to a chosen tree, A testament to love, for all to see.

    Amidst the plumage, a crown of red, And on the belly, a hue widespread. Elusive in sight, this subtle tinge, Challenges the eye, a visual fringe.

    Akin to a cousin, the Red-headed they claim, A distinction clear, not one and the same. For the latter boasts a deep red crown, A contrast vivid, when compared, renowned.

    So marvel, dear reader, at this avian tale, Where intellect and humor, in rhyme, prevail. A Woodpecker’s dance, a nest’s allure, Nature’s wonders, forever pure.

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  7. I can see why you couldn’t resist! It’s a lovely face in a beautiful shot!
    When I was six and very sick, my mother bought me a snap-together model of a red-bellied sapsucker, mostly because of the wonderful name. But I wonder if that isn’t where I first learned to love birds. You bring those feelings of mother’s love, and first discovery of nature back to me. Thank you.

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