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| The pileated woodpecker is known for its loud knocking sound as it hammers for insects or chisels out his nest. |
Lara Bailey has left a new comment on your post "The Pileated Woodpecker Sighted Again":
actually the acorn woodpecker was the inspiration for woody. I was confused too since they both have that tuft of red on their heads.Great article anyway, keep up the good work! :-)
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GJ - Some scholars believe Woody is indeed modeled after the acorn woodpecker, according to this story on NPR.
Several of them happened to know the truth and had discussed it at length, in between identifying puzzling shorebirds, curating museum collections and writing books and stuff like that. It turns out that Walter Lantz, the animator who created Woody Woodpecker, had personally given Garrett a copy of his biography, and in that book it says that Walter and his wife, Grace, while honeymooning in a California cabin, were amused by an acorn woodpecker who was poking nuts under the roof shingles. They liked the "little raucous scream" the bird emitted. Grace said to Walter, "Why don't you make him into a character?"
That may be true of the call of the cartoon character. But bird-watchers will back me up in saying the first Woody cartoon figure looked more like a pileated, which are rarely seen because of their wide-ranging habitat. I think the pileated is a ham, because he posed for me the first time and also for our friends when he was spotted.
Here is the very first Woody Woodpecker cartoon, which was found by our over-worked research department. He did not look like an acorn woodpecker. He looked like a pileated.
The acorn woodpecker sounds are found here. The last two calls sound more like the Woody Woodpecker theme, allowing for creative expression.
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| The acorn woodpecker had the raucous song that attracted the honeymooners. |
I thought my suet was drawing the pileated, but they are also keen on the acorn woodboring beetle, which was feasting on our dying oaks in Bella Vista. The drought killed the very tree we saw the pileated feasting upon. As the readers know, a compromised tree will become a great place for insects to dine.
Most birds will fly away when spotted, except for the brave little hummingbirds, who deliberately approach their friends. In Phoenix I often had them buzz by me, thanking me for all the friendly cover and food I provided. Once or twice I was able to provide a shower with my garden hose, as it flew back and forth for a bath.
The pileated woodpecker post remains in the top five of the all-time favorites on Ichabod:
We love woodpeckers because they are great insect eaters, whether they are downy, hairy, pileated, acorn, or flickers
Insect eating birds appreciate suet feeders, which are inexpensive and last awhile. I used to get suet for almost nothing, but now I have to buy little cakes of it or larger bags. Starlings love suet because they are also insect eaters. A gardener always wants insect eaters settling down in his yard.
We have four living and two dead trees in the back yard, one large tree in the front yard.
