2 74 GREEN WOODPECKER. 



but in Sweden and in the islands of the Baltic it does not range so 

 far north ; in Russia, it is very rare about St. Petersburg and is 

 uncommon in the forests of the central provinces, though it reaches 

 the Urals. In Denmark it is scarce, and in Heligoland it has only 

 once been taken ; but southward it is generally distributed through- 

 out most of Europe down to Turkey, as well as in the Caucasus, 

 Asia Minor and North Persia ; it is, however, very local in Greece, 

 unknown in Sardinia and Corsica, and rare in Sicily, though 

 common on the mainland of Italy. It is abundant in the French 

 Pyrenees, but in the Iberian Peninsula its representative is the grey- 

 cheeked G. sharpli, which links our bird to G. vaillaiiti of North 

 Africa (with no red on the lower cheek-patch of the male), and, less 

 closely, to G. canus of the Continent (the male of which has little 

 red on the head, while the female has none). 



Early in April an old abode is occasionally utilized, but usually 

 a new circular hole is hewn in a trunk or branch of some tree 

 whose wood is not necessarily decayed ; the excavation running 

 horizontally till the heart is reached, and then turning downwards 

 for a short distance, when it is enlarged to form a suitable 

 receptacle for the 5-7 pure glossy white eggs, slightly pyriform 

 in shape : measurements i "3 by "88 in. The discarded chips of 

 wood are rarely removed from below, and often serve to indicate 

 the position of the nest. The note most frequently heard is the 

 loud laughing pleu, pleu, pleu, popularly supposed to foretell rain, 

 for which reason " Rainbird " is a common name in some parts, as 

 well as "Yaffle" and " Woodwale." In search of timber-haunting 

 beetles, spiders and other insects, this ^^'oodpecker may be seen 

 climbing obliquely up some trunk or branch with short jerking 

 movements, assisted by the stiff-pointed feathers of the tail, until, 

 on arriving at the top, it passes with dipping flight to some other 

 tree ; it also feeds to a great extent on ants in summer, and on 

 other ground-insects during the great part of the year, while it has 

 been said to eat nuts and acorns. 



The upper plumage of the male is chiefly olive-green, shading 

 into yellow on the rump : under parts pale greyish-green ; crown 

 and nape crimson ; lores black ; on each lower cheek an elongated 

 patch of crimson edged with black. Length 12-5 in. ; wing 6-4 in. 

 The female has less crimson on the head, and the cheek-patches 

 are black. In the young the under parts are barred. The nestling 

 is mottled on the back, and profusely spotted with arrow-headed 

 markings on the under parts. 



