32 THE FOOD OF WOODPECKERS. 



GREAT PILEATBD W^OODPECKER. 



( Ceoplilwus pileatus. ) 



Excepting the Ivory Bill this is the largest woodpecker in the United 

 States, where it inhabits most of the heavily wooded districts. It is shy 

 and retiring, seldom appearing outside of the forests, and difficult to 

 approach even in its favorite haunts. Its large size, loud voice, and 

 habit of hammering upon dead trees render it conspicuous. Its strength 

 is marvelous, and one unacquainted with it can scarcely credit a bird 

 with such power of destruction as is sometimes shown by a stump or 

 dead trunk on which it has operated for ants or boring larvae. 



Only 23 stomachs of the Pileated Woodpecker have been obtained; 

 all taken in the months of October, Novem.ber, December, and January 

 and collected from 6 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada 

 (including New Brunswick). Fifty-one percent of the contents of 

 these stomachs consisted of animal matter or insects; 49 percent of 

 vegetable matter. The insects were principally ants and beetles, with a 

 few of some other orders. The ants were mostly of the larger species 

 that live in decaying wood. A large projiortion of the beetles were in 

 the larval form, and all were of the wood-boring species. There were 

 also a few caterpillars, also wood-borers, a few plant lice, several cock- 

 roaches of the species that live under the bark of dead trees, a few 

 white ants and a few flies, with one spider. 



The gizzard of a Pileated Woodpecker shot by Dr. Merriam in the 

 Adirondacks, April 25, 1882, contained hundreds of large ants and no 

 other food. Six stomachs, collected by Dr. B. H. Warren on the St. 

 Johns Eiver in Florida, contained numerous palmetto ants ( Gampanottis 

 eseuriens), and remains of other ants, several larvse of a Prionid beetle 

 {Orthosoma brimnea), numerous builder a,nts (Gremastogaster lineolata), 

 one larva, of Xylotrechus, and one pupa of the white ant ( Termes). The 

 insects were determined under Prof. 0. V. Eiley.' 



Seeds and berries of the following plants were found in the stomachs 

 examined by the division : 



Sourguin {Nyasa aquatlca) . 

 Flowering dogwood (Cornns fiorida). 

 Black haw {Viburnum prunifolium). 

 Casseua (itex caaaine). 

 Hackberry {Celtia occidenialia). 

 Persimmon {Dioapyros virginiana). 

 Wild grapes ( Vitia cordifoHa). 



Virginia creeper (Parthenociasua quinque- 



folia) . 

 Greenbrier (Smilax rotundifolia and 



iS. glauca). 

 Sumac {Rhus eopalUna). 

 Poison sumac (Ehus vernix). 

 Poison ivy {Ehua radicana). 



'Birds of Pennsylvania, 2d ed., 1890, p. 177. 



