52 FOOD OF WOODPECKERS OF UNITED STATES. 



item. It is eaten throughout the year except during the three sum- 

 mer months. It was found in 178 stomachs, and the greatest con- 

 sumption appears to be in November, when it reached 67.05 per cent 

 of the month's food, and it does not fall much below this figure until 

 spring. This record for mast eating is the largest of that of any bird 

 of this family except the California woodpecker. In most cases where 

 birds eat much mast they habitually store up nuts and seeds for 

 future use. The writer has been able to find but one reference to such 

 a habit in this bird. W. L. Dawson, in Birds of Ohio, page 357, 1903, 

 says it "lays up frugal stores of mast and corn/' This seems quite 

 probable, in view of what is found in the stomachs. Poison ivy 

 seeds amount to 2.15 per cent and are eaten in every month from 

 August to February, inclusive. 



The following fruits and seeds were found in the stomachs: 



Short-leaved pine (Pinus mitis). Poison ivy (Rhus radicans). 



Other pine seeds (Pinus sp.). American holly (Ilex opaca). 



Saw palmetto (Serenoa serrulata). Swamp holly (Ilex decidua). 



Date palm (Serenoa sp.). Frost grape ( Vitis cordifolia). 



Greenbrier (Smilax glauca). Fox grape ( Vitis vulpina). 



Bristly greenbrier (Smilax bona-nox). Woodbine (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) . 



Other greenbrier (Smilax sp.). Prickly pear (Opuntia sp.). 



Bayberry (Myrica carolinensis) . Wild sarsaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis). 



Hackberry ( Celtis ocddentalis) . Flowering dogwood ( Cornus florida ) . 



Red mulberry ( Morus rubra) . Rough-leaved dogwood (Cornus asp'eri- 



Smartweed (Polygonum sp.). folia). 



Pokeberry (Phytolacca decandra). Panicled dogwood (Cornus candidissima) . 



Sassafras (Sassafras sassafras). Sour gum (Nyssa sylvalica). 



Blackberry or raspberry (Rubus sp.). Huckleberry ( Vacdnium sp.). 



Wild black cherry (Prunus serotina). Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis). 



Sumac (Rhus glabra). Ragweed (Ambrosia sp.). 



Summary. Only one element in the food of the red-bellied wood- 

 pecker has much economic significance. The bird evinces a decided 

 taste for fruit, and sometimes injures orchards, as in Florida orange 

 groves. The contents of the stomachs, however, show that wild 

 fruits are the favorites, and probably only when these have been 

 replaced by cultivated ones is any mischief done. Orange pulp was 

 not positively identified in any stomach, though quite a number were 

 collected in Florida during the orange season. Only a little of the 

 grain eaten is taken when it is a loss to the farmer. In its animal 

 food the bird is almost entirely beneficial, as the insects eaten are 

 largely noxious. 



FLICKER. 



(Colaptes auratus subspp.) 



The flicker (PL VI), known also as the golden- winged woodpecker, 

 yellow-shafted woodpecker, high-holder, yellow-hammer, pigeon 

 woodpecker, and hairy-wicket, is one of the most widely distributed 

 and best known species in the United States. This is one of the few 



