The acorn woodpecker plucks an acorn and sticks it in the tree hole. A single granary tree, according to the Cornell Lab, can contain an astonishing 50,000 acorns and other nuts. These woodpeckers store acorns on a scale worthy of one of those cable hoarding reality television shows. A family unit uses one tree to drill with thousands of holes, which they then fill with acorns. The acorn woodpecker drills into trees to create storage holes. When you think of woodpecker behavior, chances are you picture a woodpecker drilling into a tree to access larvae or other invertebrates. All the activity happens around a most interesting tree and the territory surrounding it. Photo © The Nature Conservancy (Lisa Feldkamp)Īcorn woodpeckers are indeed the most social of North American woodpeckers they’re organized in family groups of up to twelve individuals (more on this relationship in a bit). Acorn woodpeckers at the Santa Rita Lodge. But look closer and there’s a whole lot going on. Acorn woodpeckers are entirely predictable and easily findable in their range. They were looking for Southwest specialties and rarities. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, my trusted source for all things woodpecker, describes them aptly as “a troupe of wide-eyed clowns.”Īdmittedly, other birders at Santa Rita Lodge seemed hardly to notice. With acorn woodpeckers, it’s like a riot of sound, color and flight acrobatics. They’re always enjoyable birds to watch, but you often don’t see any of them. Or perhaps a hairy woodpecker will show up at the backyard feeder. I’ll be out snowshoeing and see a pileated woodpecker hammering away at a dead tree. And mostly, you are seeing a solitary individual or perhaps a pair. I’ve long enjoyed observing woodpeckers on my outdoor rambles. At least this is what I first noticed when I saw them around Santa Rita Lodge, located in the birding hotspot of Arizona’s Madera Canyon. If you see one, you’ll probably soon see more. The first thing you’re likely to notice about acorn woodpeckers is that they’re in a flock. Let’s take a look at the fascinating life history of these colorful, charismatic birds. A lot of its behavior may even seem completely at odds with what you know about “typical” woodpecker behavior. The acorn woodpecker displays some of the most interesting and complex feeding and social behavior among birds.
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