Woodpeckers are cavity nesters; they nest in tree holes and here in the Southwest, they make homes in cacti. They're also identified by a specific foot design where two toes face forward and the other two toes face backward. The other two birds that have this foot design are the roadrunner and the cuckoo.
Woodpeckers are a two parent household where
both male and female share incubation and child
rearing duties.
The woodpecker's tongue is unique in that it has microscopic barbs on the tip and they touch/taste with their tongues. These tips, though, can get caught in fiber such as terry cloth so only use tightly woven fibers such as a linen dish towel for containment lining. Make sure there are no raveled edges. If the tongue does get caught, don't try to
pull it off! You could rip off the barbs and do permanent damage to the bird.
Call Wildwing at 480-893-6660 or Liberty Wildlife at 480-998-5550
Woodpeckers
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gila woodpecker hatchling
you can already see the sturdy tail is evident |
gila woodpecker hatchling
this shows
the toe formation with two toes forward, two toes backward |
gila woodpecker hatchling |
gila woodpecker Woodpeckers use those sturdy tails for balance as they climb around a tree |
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gila woodpecker nestlings |
gila woodpecker fledgling
note the ridge on the top of the head |
gila woodpecker
adult male |
gila woodpecker
adult male |
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Woodpeckers can be identified by their specific foot design where two toes face forward and two toes face backward. The roadrunner also has this foot pattern |
Zygodactyl Foot |
Northern Flicker |
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