1 94 Hay, the Red-headed Woodpecker a Hoarder. | July 



a store of* food tor a period of scarcity ; and yet it is probable 

 that when we have thoroughly learned their modes of life many 

 will be found to do this. One Woodpecker, Melanerpes formi- 

 civorus, a near relative of our Red-headed Woodpecker, has long 

 been known as a hoarder of treasures, and an interesting account 

 of its habits is given in Baird, Brewer and Ridgway's 'Birds of 

 North America.' This species is accustomed to dig small holes 

 in the trunks of trees, and to drive into each hole with great 

 force a single acorn. "Thus the bark of a large pine forty or 

 fifty feet high will present the appearance of being closely 

 studded with brass nails, the heads only being visible." It has, 

 by some, been denied that these acorns are collected for food ; 

 and it is quite probable that many more are stored away than are 

 ever eaten. It is even related that these birds sometimes hide 

 away in trees collections of small stones. But there are evidences 

 that sometimes, at least, the acorns are utilized. Instinct probably 

 leads the bird to overdo the business of hoarding, just as human 

 reason in a similar direction often misleads its possessors. 



Our Red-headed Woodpecker betrays its kinship to the Cali- 

 fornia species by the possession of somewhat similar habits. Its 

 propensity for hoarding does not appear to have escaped the 

 observation of many persons who make no claims to being or- 

 nithologists, and yet I find in no scientific work that I have been 

 able to consult any notice thereof. Gentry, who describes 

 minutely the habits of this species, says nothing about this trait. 



'The Birds of North America' contains no statement concern- 

 ing the food of the species; and concerning the hoarding habits 

 of the California Woodpecker they are spoken of as being "very 

 remarkable and, for a Woodpecker, somewhat anomalous." 



Along with the great abundance of grains and fruits of the 

 past year, there has been, in Central Indiana at least, an immense 

 crop of beech-nuts ; and the Red-heads have appeared to be 

 animated with an ambition to make the most of their opportu- 

 nities. From the time the nuts began to ripen, these birds 

 appeared to be almost constantly on the wing, passing from the 

 beeches to some place of deposit. They have hidden away the 



nuts in almost every conceivable situation. Many have been 

 placed in cavities in partially decayed trees ; and the felling of 

 an old beech is certain to provide a little feast for a bevy of 

 children. Large handfuls have been taken from a single knot- 



