140 



BIRDS OF AMERICA 



HAIRY WOODPECKER 



Dryobates villosus villosus {Linmrus) 



A. O. U. Number J93 See Color I'late 59 



Other Names. — Guinea Woodpecker ; Sapsucker or 

 Big Sapsucker (incorrect); Harry. 



General Description.— Length, 9"^ inches. Upper 

 parts, black and white ; under parts, white. 



Color. — Adult Male: Crown, uniform glossy blue- 

 black; a band of scarlet on hindhead usually inter- 

 rupted in middle portion by an extension of the black 

 of crown ; rest of upper parts, black, the center of back 

 (broadly) white, the wings (including middle coverts) 

 spotted with white, the spots on greater coverts and 

 wing feathers arranged in regular transverse series ; 

 too outside tail-feathers on each side, entirely zehite, 

 the third white except basal portion of inner web, the 

 fourth with greater part of outer web and rear portion 

 of inner web, white; nasal tufts dull white to dull 

 brownish-yellow, the bristly shafts blackish; a broad 

 white stripe above sides of head narrower in front 

 where extending over eye (sometimes confluent with 



One is tempted to think of the Hairy Wood- 

 pecker as hut an overgrown Downy, or his big 

 brother. Two and a half inches longer than 



whitish of nasal tufts) ; a broad white stripe below and 

 back of eye confluent in front with nasal tufts, behind 

 extending to sides of neck; between these two white 

 stripes a broad black stripe involving whole of sides of 

 head and part of region around eye. behind confluent 

 with black of hindneck ; a black cheek stripe (usually 

 broken in front by admixture of white), continued and 

 gradually widening behind where confluent with a 

 lateral extension of the black of hindneck, and also 

 sending off a short branch along side of chest; under- 

 parts, immaculate white; bill, deep grayish horn color; 

 iris, reddish-brown. Adult Female : Similar to the 

 adult male but icithout any red on head. 



Nest and Eggs. — Nest: Generally in a dead tree. 

 Eggs : 4 to 6, wliite. 



Distribution. — Northeastern United States from 

 Nebraska, eastern Colorado, and Oklahoma east to 

 middle and northern parts of Eastern States. 



Photo by G. C. Job Courtesy of Outing Pub. Co. 



HAIRY WOODPECKER 



Indulging his craving for meat by investigating a piece of suet 

 tied to a dead branch 



Downy is our big Hairy of the Trees, and his 

 voice is a big rollicking variation of Downy's, 

 deeper and stronger but with the same happy 

 ring. If one's observation of him is imperfect 

 he might easily be mistaken for Downy, for his 

 manners and coloration pattern are very much 

 like his smaller relative. Not nearly so common 

 as the Downies, the Hairies nevertheless are to 

 be found scattered over about the same area and 

 in the same kind of natural conditions. They are 

 jtist rare enough so that an enthusiastic bird 

 student hearing the strong call of Hairy will 

 quicken his step and add more alertness to his 

 observation for the pleasure of meeting big 

 Harry again. 



In Canada and the northern border of the 

 United States Hairy is over three inches longer 

 than Downy. Here he is called the Northern 

 Hairy {Dryobates villosus Icucouiclas) . He 

 seems astonishingly large to the bird-student who 

 finds him far up in the northern forests. Corre- 

 spondingly small is the Hairy of the Southern 

 States, there called the Southern, or Audubon's, 

 Hairy (Dryobates 2'Ulosus aiidiiboni). 



Newfoundland has a Hairy Woodpecker 

 (Dryobates villosus terrccnovir) which is inter- 

 mediate in size between the fainiliar Hairy and 

 the Northern Hairy; he also has less white on 

 his back and wings. 



Western America has four slightly variant 

 forms. The Rocky Mountain Hairy \\'ood- 

 pecker (Dryobates villosus monticola) is similar 

 in size to the Northern Hairy but the white spots 

 on the wing coverts are either reduced in size 



