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Range (Eastern North America breeds) (VI)

Eastern North America; breeds from Florida to northern New York and Manitoba; winters from Virginia, and occasionally from northern New York southward.

Washington, rather common S. R., rare W. V. Sing Sing, rare P. R., common in fall, Aug. 27 to Oct. 12. Cambridge, irregular at all seasons; sometimes common in fall.

Nest, generally in a dead tree. Eggs, four to six, 1.00 x 75. Give a bird an abundance of its favorite food, and its movements no longer seem to be governed by the calendar. Red-headed Woodpeckers were supposed to migrate southward in the fall and pass the winter south of Maryland until Dr. Merriam, in his interesting account* of the habits of this species, told us that in Lewis County, northern New York, their abundance in winter was in no way affected by the severity of the weather, but was entirely dependent upon the success of the crop of beechnuts which constitute their food. Indeed, few birds seem better able to adapt themselves to their surroundings. They change their fare and habits with the season, and to the accomplishments of Woodpeckers add those of Flycatchers and fruit-eaters. We should expect, therefore, to find them very generally distributed, but in the Northern States they show an evident choice for certain localities, and may be wanting over wide stretches of intervening territory.

They are noisy, active birds, and their loud, rolling, tree-toadlike call, ker-r-ruck, ker-r-ruck, and bright colors combine to render them conspicuous. When on the wing the white secondaries of both adult and immature birds make a striking field mark. 409. Melanerpes carolinus (Linn.). RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER. Ad. 8.-Whole top of the head and back of the neck bright scarlet; back regularly barred with black and white; primaries black at the end, white, irregularly barred with black, at the base; secondaries black, regularly spotted and barred with white; upper tail-coverts white, with streaks or arrowheads of black; outer tail-feathers and inner vanes of the middle ones irregularly marked with broken black and white bars; cheeks and under parts dull ashy white, the region about the base of the bill, the middle of the belly, and sometimes the breast more or less tinged with red. Ad. q. - Similar, but with the crown grayish ashy, the scarlet confined to the nape and nostrils. Im.-Similar, but with the belly sometimes tinged with buffy instead of red. L., 9.50; W., 5.00; T., 3·40; B., 1.10.