BIRDS OF PEASEMARSH 



feeder and will devour great quantities of ants 

 and grasshoppers and ground insects. But, 

 poor Flicker! where he finds the hunting 

 ground that he requires it is hard to find a de- 

 caying tree or a hollow stump in which to rear 

 his family. 



The most beautiful member of the Wood- 

 pecker family is the Redheaded Woodpecker. 

 With his body all clear black and white, and 

 his head a brilliant red, he is a very noticeable 

 guest should he chance to visit the orchard in 

 the early spring. He is unfortunately more 

 shy and much more rare than the Flicker. As 

 he works among the trees and nests in hollow 

 trees or stumps, he has retired with the clear- 

 ing of the land and the disappearance of any 

 abundance of trees. His beauty has made him 

 a mark for the gunner, but fortunately this 

 danger is growing less as his value is better 

 known. A suitable nest box would attract 

 him and he would pay high rent by the work he 

 would do among the orchard or shade trees. 



Here, where they have hollow trees in the 



bush and swamp below the hill, they have 



never chosen to occupy a nest box, though they 



are often in the orchard and near the orchard. 



[47] 



