Sussex Wildlife Trust: Great Spotted Woodpecker: Keep your pecker up.
February 1st, 2022
The drumming of the Great Spotted Woodpecker is a familiar sound throughout FebruaryMy New Year’s resolution was that I would try to be more positive about the future. It’s only February and I already feel like banging my head repeatedly against a tree. As I left my house this morning I heard a noise that reassured me that I’m not alone.
The drumming of the Great Spotted Woodpecker is a familiar sound throughout February surely earning this striking black and white bird the reputation (along with Ringo Starr and Phil Collins) as one of Britain’s most famous drummers.
The bird’s drumming serves an important function because the Great Spotted Woodpecker realizes it can’t sing and doesn’t attempt to. Sadly, the same can’t be said for Ringo Starr and Phil Collins.
Instead, its drumroll is a percussive proclamation that hammers home the message to other male woodpeckers to stay away from its territory in the treetops. It also serves to drum up support from female woodpeckers in the vicinity who may be looking for a pied partner.
This ‘song’ may not be as sweet as the melodies sung by the Robin or Blackbird but it still gets its message across. Indeed, the drumming can carry the bird’s message across half a mile of countryside with a male broadcasting up to 600 drumrolls a day. Each drumroll consists of up to 10-16 beats typically in a one second burst.
Of course, if I did attempt to take my frustrations out on a tree in a similar way I’d suffer some form of concussion but woodpeckers are specially designed to avoid this by having shock absorbent tissue between the base of their bill and their strengthened skulls to cushion the impact.
Their incredible beak is more than just a drumstick, it’s also a pickaxe which allows them to chip away at trunks to excavate their own nest hole and a chisel with which the woodpecker prises open tree bark to find food.
That mighty beak is a formidable weapon too which sends other birds on the peanut feeder scarpering pretty sharpish. And Great Spotted Woodpeckers are becoming more greatly spotted as it’s a British bird which is actually increasing in numbers.
The pecker’s population leapt in the seventies and nineties with some estimates stating they have increased by 300% over the past five decades. The availability of dead wood thanks to Dutch Elm Disease and the availability of peanuts thanks to British bird lovers being among of the reasons for this increase. See, I ended the article on a positive note, maybe I haven’t broken my New Year’s resolution after all. Well done to me. Now to put the kettle on, put my feet up, and turn on the news...
By Michael Blencowe: Learning & Engagement Officer, Sussex Wildlife Trust
It’s easy to join online at: www.sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk/join or T: 01273 497532
Great Spotted Woodpecker © Bob Eade Sussex Wildlife Trust
The drumming of the Great Spotted Woodpecker is a familiar sound throughout February surely earning this striking black and white bird the reputation (along with Ringo Starr and Phil Collins) as one of Britain’s most famous drummers.
The bird’s drumming serves an important function because the Great Spotted Woodpecker realizes it can’t sing and doesn’t attempt to. Sadly, the same can’t be said for Ringo Starr and Phil Collins.
Instead, its drumroll is a percussive proclamation that hammers home the message to other male woodpeckers to stay away from its territory in the treetops. It also serves to drum up support from female woodpeckers in the vicinity who may be looking for a pied partner.
This ‘song’ may not be as sweet as the melodies sung by the Robin or Blackbird but it still gets its message across. Indeed, the drumming can carry the bird’s message across half a mile of countryside with a male broadcasting up to 600 drumrolls a day. Each drumroll consists of up to 10-16 beats typically in a one second burst.
Of course, if I did attempt to take my frustrations out on a tree in a similar way I’d suffer some form of concussion but woodpeckers are specially designed to avoid this by having shock absorbent tissue between the base of their bill and their strengthened skulls to cushion the impact.
Their incredible beak is more than just a drumstick, it’s also a pickaxe which allows them to chip away at trunks to excavate their own nest hole and a chisel with which the woodpecker prises open tree bark to find food.
That mighty beak is a formidable weapon too which sends other birds on the peanut feeder scarpering pretty sharpish. And Great Spotted Woodpeckers are becoming more greatly spotted as it’s a British bird which is actually increasing in numbers.
The pecker’s population leapt in the seventies and nineties with some estimates stating they have increased by 300% over the past five decades. The availability of dead wood thanks to Dutch Elm Disease and the availability of peanuts thanks to British bird lovers being among of the reasons for this increase. See, I ended the article on a positive note, maybe I haven’t broken my New Year’s resolution after all. Well done to me. Now to put the kettle on, put my feet up, and turn on the news...
By Michael Blencowe: Learning & Engagement Officer, Sussex Wildlife Trust
Sussex Wildlife Trust is an independent registered charity caring for wildlife and habitats throughout Sussex. Join Michael Blencowe on our regular wildlife walks and also enjoy free events, discounts on wildlife courses, Wildlife magazine and our guide book: Discovering Wildlife in Sussex.
It’s easy to join online at: www.sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk/join or T: 01273 497532
Great Spotted Woodpecker © Bob Eade Sussex Wildlife Trust
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