THE HAIRY WOODPECKBE. 47 



of any size now shows abundant and unmistakable signs of decay, caused by 

 the increase of the insects which hve in them and the decrease of such birds as 

 destroy these pests. In Oneida and Herkimer counties, New York, the top 

 of nearly every black ash tree is dead and the trees are slowly decayino-^ 

 undoubtedly due to some species of boring beetle ; there are not enough Wood- 

 peckers left to check the increase of these pests, and not alone the orchards but 

 quantities of valuable timber are being slowly but surely destro3^ed by them. 



The food of the Hairy Woodpecker, besides larvae, consists of various species 

 of small beetles, spiders, flies, ants, and in winter, when such food is scarce, 

 to some extent of seeds and grain, and less often of nuts and acorns. I have 

 seen it cling to fresh hides hung up to dry, picking off small particles of fat 

 and meat, and in summer it occasionally eats a few berries of different kinds. 

 In the faU of the year it can often be seen inspecting old fence posts and 

 telegraph poles, probably on the lookout for cocoons, spider eggs, etc. Mr. V. 

 A. Alderson, of Marathon County, Wisconsin, publishes the following interesting 

 statement in the "Oologist" (Vol. VII, July, 1890, p. 147): "Last summer potato 

 bugs covered every patch of potatoes in Marathon County (being my home 

 county), Wisconsin. One of my friends here found his patch an exception, and 

 therefore took pains to find out the reason, and observed a Hairy Woodpecker 

 making frequent visits to the potato field and going from there to a large pine 

 stub a little distance away. After observing this for about six weeks, he made 

 a visit to the pine stub, and found, on inspection, a large hole in its side, about 

 15 feet up. He took his ax and cut down the stub, split it open, and found 

 inside over 2 bushels of bugs. All had their heads off and bodies intact. Now, 

 why did the Woodpecker carry the. bugs whole to the tree and only bite off 

 and eat the heads, which could have been done in the potato field!" 



Like all Woodpeckers, it is an expert climber, and moves rapidly up and 

 around trees in short hops; it is equally easy for it to go backward or side wise, 

 and it is astonishing how readily it can move in any direction. The strong feet 

 and sharp claws enable it to hold firmly to the bark, and the stiff, spiney tail 

 feathers also come in play while it is at work, acting as a support for the body 

 which is well thrown back when a blow is delivered with its powerful chisel- 

 like bill. Although usually rather shy, when busy in search of food one will 

 occasionally allow itself to be very closely approached. I have seen one alight 

 on the trunk of a crab-apple tree within 3 feet of me and deliberately commence 

 searching for larvae, apparently perfectly unconcerned about my presence, and 

 when I moved up a little closer, he simply hopped around on the opposite side 

 of the tree and continued his search; every once in a while, however, his head 

 would appear from behind the tree to see if I was still watching him. He 

 remained fully thirty minutes on the same tree, where he evidently foimd an 

 abundance of food, and then flcAv off uttering several loud notes like "huip, 

 huip." Its ordinary call sounds like "trriii, trriii," a shrill, rattling note. 



The tongue of the majority of our Woodpeckers is especially adapted for 

 extracting larvae, etc., from the wood in which they live. The tongue proper is 



