Saturday Sightings

Saturday Sightings

Pileated Woodpecker 

The evidence of the Pileated Woodpecker can be seen all around the forests of the Backus-Page House Museum. Trees with large, rectangular or circular holes reveal the presence of the Pileated Woodpecker foraging for food in the surrounding area. Even if you cannot physically see the bird you may be able to hear its incessant drilling sound that echoes through the trees. 

The Pileated Woodpecker is one of the larger species of woodpecker that we see along the lakeshore. This bird is about the size of a large crow. Its colouration is a mixture of black, red and white. Pileated Woodpeckers enjoy foraging for carpenter ants which usually take hold in dead trees or stumps. Sometimes these birds can create such large holes in trees that it can cause them to die or even collapse! 

For more information about the Pileated Woodpecker please visit the following website:

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/pileated-woodpecker/