ANDERSON — THE BIRDS OF IOWA. 277 



severe season of 1898-99 when the thermometer went for many 

 days to 30° below zero. The bulk of the birds arrive about the 

 first of May and leave the last of September. The Red-headed 

 Woodpeckers do not confine themselves to woodland, but range 

 out to the prairie farms, sometimes boring their nesting holes in 

 telegraph poles. While mainly insectivorous, many of the birds 

 are guilt}- of puncturing apples in orchards and eating other fruit 

 at times. On the whole, however, they should be considered very 

 beneficial. 



In an article ' ' On Changes of Habit Among Woodpeckers ' ' 

 (Am. Nat., xi, 1877, p. 471), Dr. Samuel Calvin says: " Within 

 the past two or three years I have frequently had the pleasure of 

 observing the red-headed woodpecker in the act of catching flies 

 on the wing." He notes perching birds that have taken to tree 

 climbing {Mniotilta varia, Cert/iia, Siita) and considers that com- 

 petition with climbing perchers may constitute a large share of 

 the disturbing cause which has compelled certain woodpeckers of 

 late to abandon the habits of their ancestors. 



Chas. Aldrich noted one in the summer of 1877, on prairie half 

 a mile from timber, eating grasshoppers (Bull., Xutt. Orn. Club, 

 iii, 4, 1878, p. 189) ; and Major Bendire notes several instances of 

 the species killing and eating other birds. 



While the above variations in diet are exceptional, it is a fact 

 that the Red-headed Woodpecker shows an adaptabilitj^ to its 

 surroundings which enables the species to hold its own under 

 almost anj' conditions. 



Genus Centurus Swainson. 

 183. (409). Cejihiriis caroliiuis (L/inn.). Red-bellied Woodpecker. 

 The Red-bellied Woodpecker is a tolerably common resident in 

 the southern and central parts of the state, being reported by 

 nearly all observers, but appears to be of ver}- rare occurrence in 

 northern Iowa. Dr. C. C. Smith sa5's: "I shot a bird of this spe- 

 cies March 28, 1897 ; very rare here" (Winneshiek); and Dr. B. H. 

 Bailey shot a female in juvenile plumage at Lansing, August 12, 

 1904 (Allamakee). F. H. Shoemaker says: " A single bird was 

 seen near Hampton on March i, 1896, this being the only record 

 of its occurrence" (Franklin). I never observed the species in 

 Winnebago or Hancock counties. 



[Proc. D. a. S. Vol. XI 1 38 [Nov. 16, 1906.] 



