362 Trees, Stars, and Birds 



the tail feathers having stiff shafts and pointed tips that 

 do not slip when applied to smooth bark. The central 



FIG. 222. Beak, tongue, and foot of woodpecker. 



tail feathers are longest. Does this adapt the tail to a 

 curved surface? The beaks of woodpeckers may be 

 compared to drills or picks and their tongues to spears. 

 Their skulls are hard and thick and their necks slender, 

 enabling them to give force to every blow. In some 

 species the outlines of the beak are almost perfectly 

 straight. Its strength is increased by ridges running 

 lengthwise of the beak. The tongue of an ivory-billed 

 woodpecker is about 6 inches long, but cannot be pro- 

 truded nearly this distance beyond the end of the bill. 

 The downy woodpecker. The downy woodpecker is 

 very widely distributed. It is smaller than the other 

 members of its family, and is neither so common nor so 

 conspicuous as some of the other species ; yet it is often 

 seen both in town and country. When clinging to the 

 under side of a low limb, pecking vigorously in search 

 of grubs, it may easily be watched at close range. In 

 winter, when other birds are scarce, its cheerful note and 

 the bright scarlet on the back of the head of the male 

 enliven the scene. Few birds are more useful. It not 

 only cheers us, but it also renders valuable service by 

 extracting borers from trees. Downy woodpeckers 

 drill into the cocoons of Cecropia moths and devour the 



