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America (Woodpeckers are rather)

Woodpeckers are rather solitary birds, but are sometimes found associated in scattered companies during their migrations. Above all other birds they are especially adapted to creep or climb. The peculiar structure of the foot, with its two toes directed forward and two backward (except in one genus), assists them in clinging to an upright surface, while the pointed, stiffened tail-feathers serve as a prop when the bird is resting. The stout, chisel-like bill is used to cut away wood and expose the hiding places of grubs, etc., when the long, distensible tongue with its horny, spearlike tip is thrust in, the food impaled and drawn out. The vocal powers of Woodpeckers are limited, and the bill is also used to beat the long, rolling call which is their love-song. The eggs of Woodpeckers are WOODPECKERS. uniformly white, and are placed in a hole, generally in a dead tree or limb, hollowed out by the bird.

KEY TO THE SPECIES.

I. No red on the head or nape.

A. Entire under parts black. a. Wing about 10.00, bill ivory-white. 392. IVORY-BILLED WOODPECKER 9.

B. Under parts white, without black spots or streaks. a. Wing under 4.00; outer tail-feathers barred with black. 394. DOWNY WOODPECKER 9. b. Wing over 4.00; outer tail-feathers white, without black bars. 393. HAIRY WOODPECKER 9. 3936. SOUTHERN HAIRY WOODPECKER 9.

C. Under parts with black spots, bars, or streaks. a. Back entirely black b. Back black and white. 400. ARCTIC THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. . 61. Outer tail-feathers entirely white, crown yellow or spotted with white 401. Aм. THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. 62. Outer tail-feathers barred with black, no black patch on the breast, ear-coverts white 395. RED-COCKADED WOODPECKER १. 63. Outer tail-feathers black, with generally a narrow white margin; rump white. 406. RED-HEADED WOODPECKER 9. 64. Outer tail-feathers black and white, a large black patch on the breast 402. YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER 9.

II. Whole top of the head red.

A. Throat red. . . a. Primaries spotted with white, belly yellowish. 6. Primaries black, rump and belly white.

B. Throat white. a. Breast and belly black 402. YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER 8. 406. RED-HEADED WOODPECKER 8. 405. PILEATED WOODPECKER 8. b. Breast black or blackish, sides streaked, belly yellowish white. 402. YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER Q. c. Under parts tinged with red, without streaks or spots. 409. RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER 8.

III. Crown black, brown, or gray, a red band across the nape, a red crest on the back of the head, or small patches of red on either side of the nape.

A. Under parts black, wing over 8.00. a. Bill ivory-white b. Bill blackish 392. IVORY-BILLED WOODPECKER. 8. 405. PILEATED WOODPECKER 9.

B. Under parts more or less spotted or streaked with black. a. A black patch on the breast, throat brown, rump white. 412. FLICKER. b. Head black, ear-coverts white, a few red feathers on either side of 395. RED-COCKADED WOODPECKER 8. the nape.

HAIRY WOODPECKER.

YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER.

WOODPECKERS.

C. Under parts white, or whitish without black streaks or spots. a. Crown gray, a reddish tinge on the belly.

PECKER. b. Crown black. 409. RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER ?. 61. Outer tail-feathers barred with black. 62. Outer tail-feathers white 394. DOWNY WOODPECKER 8. 393. HAIRY WOODPECKER 8. 3936. SOUTHERN HAIRY WOODPECKER 8. 392. Campephilus principalis (Linn.). IVORY-BILLED WOOD- Ad. 8.-Upper parts shining black, a large scarlet crest; a white stripe begins below the eye and, passing down the side of the neck, meets its fellow in the middle of the back; ends of the inner primaries and the end half or two thirds of the secondaries white; outer tail-feathers very short, the central ones elongated and much stiffened; bristles over the nostrils white; bill ivory-white; under parts shining black. Ad. 2.-Similar, but with the crest black. L., 20.00; W., 10.00; T., 6.50; B., 2.75. Range.-"Formerly South Atlantic and Gulf States, from North Carolina to Texas; north in the Mississippi Valley to Missouri, southern Illinois, and southern Indiana. Now restricted to the Gulf States and the lower Mississippi Valley, where only locally distributed" (A. O. U.). (See Hasbrouck, Auk, viii, 1891, pp. 174-186, with map.) Nest, in the higher part of a tree. Eggs, "1.31 × 86" (Ridgw.). (See also Maurice Thompson's A Red-headed Family.) The home of this magnificent Woodpecker is in the almost limitless cypress forests of our southern coasts and river valleys. Even there it is common in but few localities. In Florida it is found chiefly in the western part of the peninsula, and doubtless occurs in greatest numbers in the region between the Suwanee River and the Gulf. The Ivory-bill is a wild, shy bird. It does not remain long in one place, and during the day ranges over an extended territory. Its call is a high, rather nasal, yap, yap-yap, sounding in the distance like the note of a penny trumpet. 393. Dryobates villosus (Linn.). HAIRY WOODPECKER. (See Fig. 37, a.) Ad. 8. - Upper parts black; a scarlet band on the nape; middle of the back white; wing-feathers and their coverts spotted with white; middle tail-feathers black, the outer ones white; a white stripe above and another below the eye; under parts white. Ad. q. - Similar, but without scarlet on the back of the neck. L., 9.40; W., 4·78; T., 3·30; B., 1·22.