28 THE FOOD OF WOODPECKERS. 
YELLOW-BELLIED WOODPECKER OR SAPSUCKER. 
(Sphyrapicus varius. ) 
This species is probably the most migratory of all our woodpeckers, 
breeding only in the most northerly parts of the United States, and in 
some of the mountains farther south. In the fall it ranges southward, 
spending the winter in most of the Eastern States. It is less generally 
distributed than some of the other woodpeckers, being quite unknown 
in some sections and very abundant in others. For instance, Dr. C, 
Hart Merriam states that in the Adirondack region during migration it 
Iria. 4.—Yollow-bellied Woodpecker or Sapsucker. 
outnumbers all other species of the family together, and throughout the 
summer is second in numbers only to the Hairy Woodpecker; and at 
Mount Chocorua, New Hampshire, Mr. Frank Bolles found it the most 
abundant species. In Minnesota also it is very common. On the other 
hand, near my home in Massachusetts only two or three were observed 
each year; and during a residence of eight years in Iowa it was noted 
only three or four times. 
