The Sapsucker Wintering in Central Maine.— Inasmuch as the 
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is a bird of evil repute the facts about to be 
recorded may not be particularly welcome but as the couplet 
“ In men whom men condemn as ill 
I find so much of goodness still,” 
may be true also of ‘ our little brothers of the air ’ I wish to speak a good 
word for this much maligned bird. 
The Sapsucker is a bird which is not common in our locality. Previous 
to the winter of 1911-1912 I had seen it only rarely, during migrations, 
the dates being April 17—19 and October 3-5. Therefore I was much 
surprised on December 11, 1911, to observe one of these birds in our apple 
tree in company with a Downy. At first I thought it simply a tardy 
migrant, but when its visit was repeated on the 13th, 14th and 15th of the 
month, with snow falling on the last day, my curiosity was aroused to see 
whether it would winter with us. The nearest approach I could find to a 
statement of its wintering in our latitude was in an article which appeared 
in the ‘ Lewiston (Maine) Journal,’ under date of April 21, 1893, in which 
the writer says that the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, “ is said to be migratory, 
but if he is, he frequently stays with us very late and returns very early,” 
but this statement seems too indefinite to prove the point in question. 
My observations were made from the windows of my home and the trees 
which the bird visited so regularly were sufficiently near to allow most 
excellent views of him in all positions. He appeared on the 18th, 19th, 
and 30th of December and on New Year’s Day he spent nearly the entire 
forenoon in the apple trees near the house, lunching from the frozen fruit 
which had been left on the trees and hunting over the trunks and branches. 
On January 2, he evidently came as soon as it was light and remained until 
nearly dark, putting in a nine-hour day of hard work without intermission, 
going at intervals to peck at the apples, but spending the greater part of 
the time upon the trunks of the trees. The vigorous way in which he 
threw off great flakes of bark was amusing, and quite a quantity of bark 
accumulated on the snow under the trees. Who shall say that this work 
on the trees was not beneficial? One pretty habit which may be worth 
noting is that while pecking at the apples he would often cling with his 
feet to the apple he was eating and hang, head downward, as chickadees 
so often do. 
On January 3, he was here the greater part of the forenoon, but about 
noon there was a great commotion and we rushed to the window only to 
see an impending tragedy. A Northern Shrike was chasing our Sapsucker. 
Nearly two weeks elapsed during which time I grieved over the untimely 
fate of the little feathered friend I was watching with so much interest, — 
two weeks of extreme cold and of severe storms. On the afternoon of 
January 16, however, he returned to his old haunts, eating apples and 
hunting on the tree trunks alternately. He did not seem quite as strong 
and active as before, owing, perhaps, to the severe weather of the previous 
fortnight, the mercury having ranged from 28° to 32° below zero. 
It was interesting to me to notice on this occasion the perfection of his 
protective coloring. The trunks of the trees were quite snowy with the 
rather damp snow clinging to the bark and as the bird remained almost 
motionless for some time on the trunk of an apple tree his spotted back 
and the longitudinal stripes on his wings simulated the bark of the tree 
with the snow upon it so as to almost defy detection. I could locate him 
only with difficulty even though I knew just where to look. The next day 
he came again and seemed as sprightly as ever and we also saw him 
Japuary 19-22, 24 and 31, February 2, 6 and 9, and March 1, 3, 5, 10, 12 
and 20. He was also present April 2 and 5, after which date I surmise 
that he went farther north. 
Since that year I have seen the Sapsucker only occasionally during the 
migrations, the dates being approximately as previously given, in April 
and October. — Harriet A. Nye, Fairfield Center, Me. 
