WOODPECKER. 561 



Picus erythrocephalus, Liu. Syfi. i. p. 174. N° 7. 8. 



Le Pica telle rouge de Virginie, Brif. orn. iv. p. 53. N° 19. pi. 3. f. 1. trc iWcn 



Le Pic noir a Domingo rouge, Buf.oif.vix. p. 55. * yy 



Pic de Virginia, Pl.enl. 117. 



Red-headed Woodpecker, Catejb. Car. i. pi. 20. 



Kalm. Trav. ii. p. 86.— Am. Zool. N° 



Lev, Muf. 



/> lp , HIS bird is eight inches and three quarters in length, and Description. 



weighs two ounces. Bill an inch and a quarter long, of 

 a lead-colour, with a black tip : irides dufky : the head and .the 

 whole of the neck are of a mod beautiful crimfon : back and 

 wings black : the rump, breaft, and belly, white : the ten firft 

 quills are black, the eleventh black and white, and the others 

 white with black fhafts : the tail black and cuneiform : legs and 

 claws lead-colour. The cock and hen nearly alike. 



Inhabits Virginia, Carolina, Canada, and moft of the parts of Places. 



North America; but at the approach of winter migrates more 

 or lefs to the fouthward, according to the feverity of the feafon; 

 and upon this circumftance the people of North America foretell 

 the rigour or clemency of the enfuing winter. 



Kalm obferves that it is a very common bird, and is very de- Manners. 

 flruclive to the maize-fields and orchards, pecking through the 

 ears of maize, and deftroying great quantities of apples. In fome 

 years they are more numerous than in others, when they attack 

 the orchards where the fweet apples grow, which they eat lb far 

 that nothing remains but the mere peels. Some years fince there ^ 

 was a premium of two pence per head paid from the public fund, 

 in order to extirpate this pernicious bird; but this has been 

 neglected much of late. They are faid likewife to be very fond 



4C *f 



