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445 



which they require. They enter by a sort of winding 

 passage, and then they work downwards to the nest, 

 which must be of pretty large dimensions, and their 

 depth into the wood is never less than two feet, and 

 sometimes as much as five. 



Their efficiency with the bill is proved by an 

 anecdote which Wilson relates of a bird that he 

 wounded in the wing, and then contrived to capture, 

 not far from Wilmington in Carolina ; but we must 

 allow him to tell his own story. After he had got. 

 possession of the bird, " it uttered a loudly reiterated, 

 and most piteous note, exactly resembling; the violent 

 crying of a young child ; which terrified my horse so 

 as nearly to cost me my life. It was distressing to 

 hear it. 1 carried it with me in the chair, under cover, 

 to Wilmington. In passing through the streets, its 

 affecting cries surprised every one within hearing, 

 particularly the females, who hurried to the doors 

 and windows with looks of alarm and anxiety. I 

 drove on, and on arriving at the piazza of the hotel 

 where I intended to put up, the landlord came forward 

 and a number of other persons who happened to be 

 there, all equally alarmed at what they heard. This 

 was greatly increased by my asking whether he could 

 furnish me with accommodations for myself and my 

 baby. The man looked blank and foolish, while the 

 others stared with still greater astonishment. After 

 diverting myself for a minute or two at their expense, 

 I drew my woodpecker from under the cover, and 

 a general laugh took place. I took him up stairs and 

 locked him up in my room, while I went to see my 

 horse taken care of. In less than an hour I returned, 

 and, on opening the door he set up the same distress- 

 ing shout, which now appeared to proceed from grief 

 that he had been discovered in his attempts at escape. 

 He had mounted along the edge of the window, 

 nearly as high as the ceiling, a little below which he 

 had begun to break through. The bed was covered 

 with large pieces of plaster, the lath was exposed for 

 at least fifteen inches square, and a hole large enough 

 to admit the fist opened, to the weather boards ; so 

 that in less than another hour he would certainly have 

 succeeded in making his way through. I now tied a 

 string round his leg, and, fastening it to the table, 

 again left him. I wished to preserve his life, and 

 had gone off in search of suitable food for him. As 

 I reascended the stairs, I heard him again hard at 

 work, and on entering had the mortification to per- 

 ceive that he had almost entirely ruined the mahogany 

 table to which he was fastened, on which he had 

 wreaked his whole vengeance. While engaged in 

 taking a drawing, he cut me severely in several places, 

 and, on the whole, displayed such a noble and uncon- 

 querable spirit that I was frequently tempted to 

 restore him to his native woods. He lived \viih me 

 nearly three clays, but refused all sustenance, and I 

 witnessed his death with regret." This anecdote is 

 highly characteristic of this finest of all woodpeckers ; 

 and it is just as characteristic of the naturalist us of 

 the bird. With it we must close our remarks, and 

 shall advert to the others more briefly, only noticing 

 farther, that it does not appear that any species, at 

 all resembling this in power and spirit, is found in any 

 other part of the world than North America. 



Pi/ffilcd Woodpecker (P. pilcatm). This bird is 

 rather smaller than the former, but still it is one 

 which ranges much farther to the north ; and endures 

 all the varied climates from the southern States to 

 the middle of Canada* The length of this one is a 



foot and a half, and the stretch of the wings two feet 

 four ; dull brownish black is the general colour ; but 

 there is a pointed cap of bright scarlet on the head, 

 and two mustachios of the same colour appended to 

 the lower mandible. The chin is white ; and the 

 white markings on the neck, back, and wings, are 

 nearly the same. The feet are leaden blue, and the 

 eyes golden yellow as in the former species ; but the 

 bill is a different colour, being bluish black in the 

 greater part of the length, and bluish white at the 

 point. This species is sometimes accused of attack- 

 ing the plantations, especially those of Indian corn ; 

 but it does not appear that there is the slightest ground 

 for the accusation. The birds build in holes of trees ; 

 the eggs are about six, of a brilliant white colour, and 

 it is understood that there are two broods in the year. 

 They are therefore much more prolific birds than the 

 ivory-billed woodpeckers ; and they seem to be rather 

 more discursive as well as more generally distributed. 

 They are exceedingly active birds, always in motion 

 of some description or other. 



Gold-winged Woodpecker (P. auratm}. This is a 

 smaller species than any of the two preceding ones, 

 more gay in its plumage, and a little different in its 

 manners. In the colder parts of the United States 

 these birds are migratory, but in the milder parts they 

 are permanently resident. The total length is about 

 a foot, and the stretch of the wings twenty inches ; 

 the back, and upper sides of the wings, are rich brown 

 streaked with black ; the top of the head smoke-grey ; 

 and the cheeks with the space round the eyes crimson 

 brown ; there is a black stripe like a mustachio from 

 each angle of the gape ; the throat and chin are fawn, 

 passing into bluish grey on the lower part ; on the 

 hind head there is a crescent spot of deep but pure 

 red, and an intense and larger one of black on the 

 breast ; the rest of the under parts have a yellowish 

 tinge, but mottled with bright black spots ; the lower 

 sides of the wings and tail, and the shafts of all the 

 larger feathers, are rich golden yellow; and the rump 

 and tail coverts are white. The markings of this bird 

 are exceedingly beautiful as well as striking, but they 

 are too varied for minute description. Though they 

 appear to be migratory in some places, they winter 

 far to the north, appear to be remarkably hardy, and 

 are said to resort to wild berries, when the insect 

 supply of the trees begins to fail. 



Red-headed Woodpecker (P. crytlirocepJiahis}. This 

 is an exceedingly abundant bird in North America, 

 and stands accused of being a great plunderer of small 

 fruits in orchards, and also a thief on the Indian corn. 

 So notorious are those propensities on the part of the 

 bird, and so persevering is it in the practice of them, 

 that a price is set on its head. The wisdom of this 

 is however very doubtful ; for it is only at one season 

 of the year that these birds live upon fruits, and they 

 are busied all the other parts in looking after the trees 

 and keeping them clear of insects. Now in all countries 

 fruit trees are more liable to insect ravages than trees 

 of almost anyother description, because their juices are 

 generally speaking sweeter, and their vigorous action 

 in most of the species begins more early in the season. 

 The suspending of this action by the reverses of the 

 weather which are so common in the spring, is particu- 

 larly favourable to the production of insect larva?, both 

 on the leaves of the tree, and in and under the bark. 

 The early season in most parts of the United States, 

 is remarkable for the great and rapid variations of the 

 weather. North America is a country which literally 



