DOWNY WOODPECKER. 17 



The following is the list of fruits and seeds identified in the 

 food: 



Foxtail grass (Ixophorus sp.). Juneberry (Amelanchier canadensis) . 



Bayberry seed (Myrica carolinensis) . Northwestern Juneberry (Amelanchier 

 Hazelnut (Corylus sp.). alnifolia). 



Beechnut (Fagus americanus). Chokeberry (Aronia sp.). 



Acorn (Quercus sp.). Strawberry (Fragaria sp.). 



Mulberry {Moras rubra). Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana). 



Sassafras berry (Sassafras sassafras). Black or rum cherry (Prunus serotina) . 



Spice berry (Benzoin benzoin). Woodbine berry (Parthenocissus quinque- 

 Pigweed (Amaranthus sp.). folia). 



Pokeberry (Phytolacca decandra). Frost grape ( Vitis cordifolia). 



Vervain ( Verbena sp.). Sumac (Rhus glabra). 



Blueberry ( Vaccinium sp.). Poison sumac (Rhus vernix). 



Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis). Poison ivy (Rhus radicans). 



Sour gum (Nyssa sylvatica). Black mustard (Brassica nigra). 



Flowering dogwood ( Cornus florida) . Barberry (Berberis sp . ) . 

 Rough-leaved dogwood (Cornus asperi- Magnolia (Magnolia foetida). 

 folia). 



Summary. — The foregoing analysis of the food of the hairy wood- 

 pecker shows that it is a bird from which the orchardist and forester 

 have nothing to fear and much to gain. The quantity of useful insects 

 or economic produce which it eats is insignificant. On the other 

 hand, the number of destructive larvse which it devours must have 

 a very sensible effect in reducing the abundance of these pests. 



DOWNY WOODPECKER. 



(Dryobates pubescens subspp.) 



The downy woodpecker (frontispiece) is the smallest member of 

 the family in the United States. With its various forms it occupies 

 practically the whole country and extends north into British America 

 and as far as Alaska. To the ordinary observer it is but a miniature 

 edition of the hairy, as the plumage is practically the same. It is also 

 a quieter bird and probably the least wary and suspicious member of 

 the family. When busy in search of food, it pays little attention to 

 human intruders, and often the first intimation of its presence is a 

 gentle tapping on a dead branch or knot only a few yards away, where 

 a colony of ants or some wood-boring larvse have established them- 

 selves. 



Like the hairy, it does not migrate, and may be found on its range 

 at any time during the year. Owing, perhaps, to the absence of so 

 many other birds and the leafless condition of the trees, it seems to 

 be most conspicuous in winter. After the summer visitors have gone 

 southward, the downy has a habit of associating with a mixed com- 

 pany of titmice, creepers, nuthatches, and sometimes a few kinglets, 

 who seem to be bound together by a community of interest in the 

 75713°— Bull. 37—11 2 



