THE GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER 



quently seen in the tops of trees, and does not visit the 

 ground so much as the Green Woodpecker ; otherwise 

 the habits of the two species have much in common. 

 I ought to add that the bird is also more commonly seen 

 in orchards and wooded private grounds than its larger 

 ally, often taking up its residence in them for weeks, but 

 invariably disappearing as the breeding season comes 

 round. It is just as shy and secretive, just as solitary, 

 and obtains its food in much the same way. It searches 

 trunks and' branches, usually commencing at the foot of a 

 tree and working upwards in erratic course, ever and anon 

 pausing to hammer away at the bark, supporting itself 

 by its long and rigid tail. Like the Green Woodpecker it 

 generally contrives to pursue this search on the further side 

 of the timber, at intervals peering round the trunk or 

 limb, just its head visible, and then disappearing again. 

 Its tapping may be heard for a long distance through the 

 silent woodlands, and sometimes the blows follow each 

 other so rapidly that they sound as if the tree or branch 

 were being torn asunder ; this has been thought to 

 be a signal between the sexes, as it becomes specially 

 frequent during the breeding season. Its usual call-note 

 is a shrill whit. The food of the Great Spotted Wood- 

 pecker consists of insects and larvae, berries of various 

 kinds, stone-fruits, nuts, and acorns. It breeds in May 

 and June, apparently pairs for life, and frequently uses 

 the same site year by year. The nest is a hole excavated 

 in some tree-trunk or large branch, but sometimes one 

 already made is utilised. It is the usual shaft, enlarged 

 at the bottom, and here the eggs are deposited with no 

 other provision. These are from five to eight, white, 

 with a faint suffusion of yellow, and considerably polished. 

 But one brood is reared each year. During winter this 

 Woodpecker wanders about a good deal, and occasionally 

 visits places where trees are small or absolutely wanting. 

 The adult male Great Spotted Woodpecker has the 



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