Downy Woodpeckers
While sitting in my yard last week, I heard the familiar drumming of a woodpecker pecking at a tree. That unmistakable sound always catches my attention. This time I was lucky enough to be able to grab my camera and get a few shots. 
They were pretty high up in my neighbor’s tree, so they aren’t as close up of photographs as I would like, but they will have to do. There were two pairs of them playing on the branches. They were fun to watch. 
Downy Woodpeckers are the smallestNorth American Woodpecker. They are identical to the Hairy Woodpecker except they have black spots on their tail feathers and they are much much smaller. 
Downy Woodpeckers are almost as small as Nuthatches and Sparrows. They are competent climbers that are known to visit back yards and eat suet and seeds from feeders. The male has a red patch on the back of it’s head, while the female does not. Their almost checkerboard pattern makes them stand out among the other birds in the yard. 
~My favorite weather is bird-chirping weather. ~Terri Guillemets
April 9th, 2010 at: 9:05 pm
I love those little guys Teresa – and their bigger relatives too. We get 6 kinds of woodpeckers in our yard – but we have a nice patch of woods just a few feet from the back door. The downies are the most common though – love your photos of them!
April 9th, 2010 at: 10:12 pm
Thanks Donalyn. You are lucky to have both. I am thrilled to get a sighting in the city. I would have like to have been a lot closer to them for sharper pictures but something is better than nothing I guess.
April 10th, 2010 at: 7:13 am
The wing patterns are beautiful. Great photos!
April 10th, 2010 at: 10:40 am
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April 10th, 2010 at: 11:57 am
I’d love to get a shot of a woodpecker, sadly no luck so far. Nice shots, they look like they are having fun as you say
April 10th, 2010 at: 2:05 pm
They are one of my favorite birds.
April 10th, 2010 at: 3:21 pm
We have the downy and hairy woodpecker in our backyard feeders. They love the suet mixture that we make up. We have had a visit from the piliated as well but not often. Valerie
April 10th, 2010 at: 11:39 pm
I love these little guys! One visits my feeders regularly.
Awesome shot you got of one in flight between the branches!