ARCTIC THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. 



400. Picoides arcticus. 9 l / 2 inches. 



Back shining black without any white; top of head 

 with a square yellow patch, on the male, and whole 

 crown black on the female. Only three toes, two in 

 front and one behind. These are birds of northern 

 temperatures and are found in northern United States 

 only during the winter, except in mountain ranges, 

 where they are found farther south. They frequent 

 pine, spruce or other coniferous forests almost ex- 

 clusively. Being usually found in remote localities, 

 they have little fear of man. Their food is chiefly 

 wood-boring insects or their larvae. 



Note. A sharp, shrill chirk, chirk. 



Nest. In holes in- trees, either live or dead. As 

 usual with woodpeckers, the eggs are glossy white 

 (.95x.70). 



tange. Northern North America from the northern 

 edge of the United States north to the limit of trees. 



