WOODPECKERS. 325 



never lined. They are not always straight, but the entrance is 

 almost invariably round, unless arched, as is often the case 

 with those of the present species. No nests require more pa- 

 tience in construction than these ; yet they are, in their way, 

 masterpieces, being smooth, symmetrical, and, as it were, 

 highly finished. 



The nest of the " Flicker " may be found in maples, oaks, 

 apple trees, and occasionally pines or birches, but more often 

 in some collection of trees than in an exposed place. In Mas- 

 sachusetts, it is finished about the middle of May, or earlier. 

 The eggs, like those of all Woodpeckers, have a smooth, white, 

 unspotted 117 shell, and are often elliptical. They average 

 about 1.15 X .90 of an inch. 



c. As is indicated by the great number of nicknames be- 

 stowed upon them, the Golden-winged Woodpeckers are com- 

 mon and well known throughout a large tract of country. In 

 fact, they may be found in summer from the Gulf of Mexico 

 to Hudson Bay, and in many places, inclusive of Massachu- 

 setts, they may be found throughout the year. Near Boston, 

 however, they are rather rare in winter. They usually become 

 common between the middle of March and the first of April, 

 and continue so until the approach of winter. Though social, 

 and in autumn somewhat gregarious, they usually arrive in 

 pairs, who return every year to their former haunts, but who 

 generally build a fresh nest. This latter work they begin in 

 April. Having chosen a suitable tree, by the roadside, in the 

 orchard, or the woods, they proceed to excavate, the male and 

 female laboring alternately. Observe one at work. Clinging 

 to the trunk with his feet, but supporting himself by his rigid 

 tail, he draws back his muscular head, delivers a vigorous 

 stroke, and cuts a chip from the wood, which is generally 

 dropped on the ground just outside. The hole (about three 

 inches wide) is gradually deepened at the rate of between one 

 half and a whole inch each day, so that he can cling to the 

 lower edge of the entrance while working. Finally he is lost 

 to sight, and his operations can no longer be watched, for usu- 



117 There are frequently apparent markings, which can easily, however, be 

 washed off. 



