Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: American Three-toed Woodpecker

An overcast, dreary morning here today, 14 December 2015, Temperature is -5C (windchill -11C). There was s slight dusting of snow overnight. And Flickr is being a real pain this morning - too many problems. This photo shows a tree that has had bits of its bark removed, leaving the orange-coloured wood exposed. The Woodpecker wants to get to the larvae that are beneath the bark, once it has been removed. Some trees are almost completely orange, so much bark has been peeled away by a Woodpecker. In winter, when there is snow on the ground, you can see the pieces of bark lying around the base of the tree, on top of the snow, if a Woodpecker has been at work very recently. "The American Three-toed Woodpecker is found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_three-toed_woodpecker This bird, uncommon in Alberta, was seen on 28 November 2015, in Fish Creek Park, when I went on a morning walk with friends. We had seen Three-toed Woodpeckers in this particular forested area before, in other years, so we were hoping one might be around. When we stopped to look and listen, I heard a distant tapping and, when we walked in that direction, one of the other birders caught sight of this bird. It was moving through a tangle of branches, up and down the tree trunk. These birds just never keep still, so I had about 50 photos to delete and just a handful to keep.

This photo shows a tree that has had bits of its bark removed, leaving the orange-coloured wood exposed. The Woodpecker wants to get to the larvae that are beneath the bark, once it has been removed. Some trees are almost completely orange, so much bark has been peeled away by a Woodpecker. In winter, when there is snow on the ground, you can see the pieces of bark lying around the base of the tree, on top of the snow, if a Woodpecker has been at work very recently. "The American Three-toed Woodpecker is found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_three-toed_woodpecker This bird was seen on 28 November 2015, in Fish Creek Park, when I went on a morning walk with friends. We had seen Three-toed Woodpeckers in this particular forested area before, in other years, so we were hoping one might be around. When we stopped to look and listen, I heard a distant tapping and, when we walked in that direction, one of the other birders caught sight of this bird. It was moving through a tangle of branches, up and down the tree trunk, but I did manage to get a usable shot of the whole bird. Was also able to get several half-decent closer shots, including this one. These birds just never keep still, so I had about 50 photos to delete and just a handful to keep. Janet and Bernie's list of birds seen: 1. Canada Goose - 19 2. Cooper's Hawk - 1 3. Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1 4. Downy Woodpecker - 1 5. THREE-TOED WOODPECKER - 1 6. Black-billed Magpie - 5 7. Common Raven - 5 8. Black-capped Chickadee - 30+ 9. BOREAL CHICKADEE - 3 10. White-breasted Nuthatch - 2 11. Red-breasted Nuthatch - 11 12. BROWN CREEPER - 1 13. TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE - 1 14. Bohemian Waxwing - 28 15. White-winged Crossbill - 23 16. House Finch - 4 17 Pine Grosbeak - 3

This photo shows a tree that has had bits of its bark removed, leaving the orange-coloured wood exposed. The Woodpecker wants to get to the larvae that are beneath the bark, once it has been removed. Some trees are almost completely orange, so much bark has been peeled away by a Woodpecker. In winter, when there is snow on the ground, you can see the pieces of bark lying around the base of the tree, on top of the snow, if a Woodpecker has been at work very recently. "The American Three-toed Woodpecker is found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_three-toed_woodpecker This bird was seen yesterday, 28 November 2015, in Fish Creek Park, when I went on a morning walk with friends. We had seen Three-toed Woodpeckers in this particular forested area before, in other years, so we were hoping one might be around. When we stopped to look and listen, I heard a distant tapping and, when we walked in that direction, one of the other birders caught sight of this bird. It was moving through a tangle of branches, up and down the tree trunk, but I did manage to get this shot of the whole bird. Was also able to get several half-decent closer shots that I will post sometime. These birds just never keep still, so I had about 50 photos to delete and just a handful to keep. Janet and Bernie's list of birds seen: 1. Canada Goose - 19 2. Cooper's Hawk - 1 3. Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1 4. Downy Woodpecker - 1 5. THREE-TOED WOODPECKER - 1 6. Black-billed Magpie - 5 7. Common Raven - 5 8. Black-capped Chickadee - 30+ 9. BOREAL CHICKADEE - 3 10. White-breasted Nuthatch - 2 11. Red-breasted Nuthatch - 11 12. BROWN CREEPER - 1 13. TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE - 1 14. Bohemian Waxwing - 28 15. White-winged Crossbill - 23 16. House Finch - 4 17 Pine Grosbeak - 3 After our walk, a few of us went for a really enjoyable lunch at a restaurant near the park. After that, I called in to fill up my car with gas and a couple of minutes later, was involved in a car accident - not my fault, thank goodness! The driver of the other vehicle said that the man in the right lane had slowed down and waved her to go in front of him, so that she could cut across both our lanes. Why on earth he would wave her to go, on a busy road of MOVING traffic, I don't know. Or maybe he didn't notice that she wanted to cut ACROSS the lanes of traffic. Too bad that he kept going and disappeared, ha! Also, I don't know why she was trying to cut across traffic when coming out of a minor exit road at such a dangerous spot. She said she didn't usually do that. Also don't know why she trusted another driver's directions in moving traffic. Maybe he just didn't see me coming up alongside him - and his car was blocking the other car from my sight, until she pulled right out in front of me, and my car went into hers. No obvious damage like dents or scratches (thanks to the rubber? bumper on my car), but when the other driver told me to check the hood of my car, we found that it opened up OK but then we had difficulty getting it closed again. Annoyingly, the small lever inside my car for opening the hood snapped off when I pushed it up, so I probably can't open the hood at all now. Needless to say, I'm extremely thankful that things were no worse than they were!

Four days ago, 8 August 2015, I decided to drive SW of the city for a while. It was a Saturday, so I thought I would go and check if there were other people parked at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park. I had more or less stopped going into the forest there by myself, especially the last couple of years, knowing that Cougar and Bears can be seen there. All I have seen - so far! - is a Moose on a couple of occasions. The place gives me the creeps, so I usually just walk through the trees closest to the parking lot. So, this is what I did. Just a minute or two after entering the forest near the trail, I flushed a Grouse, which scared the life out of me. The opposite side of the trail, where I usually find a few mushrooms, had pools of water after the two devastating rain and hail storms that we had very recently. With several cars in the small parking lot, I decided to go just a short way into the park, trying to forget that animals can "smell fear". I did come across a few quite nice mushrooms, but with such a dry, hot summer, this is not a good year for fungi. The second time my heart started beating really fast was when I was trying to focus on a mushroom and I was aware of a deep, huffing kind of sound coming from right behind me. Turning around, dreading what I might see, I discovered it was just a small Red Squirrel, low down on his/her tree, just a couple of feet away from me. I've never ever heard a Squirrel make this kind of sound before! Sounded rather like what I imagine a bear might sound like. Almost back at the edge of the forest, I was happy as can be to hear quite a commotion that I then recognized as being American Three-toed Woodpeckers. There were three of them high up a tree, with at least one of them being a noisy, hungry juvenile that was feeding itself but every now and then would want the adult to feed it. Not sure if this was an adult or a young one in this photo. The light in the forest is not good for photos, but fortunately I got enough light on this bird's face. This species is uncommon in Alberta, year round, so it's always a treat to see one - and especially three. "The American Three-toed Woodpecker is found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_three-toed_woodpecker

On 2 December 2014, I went on a birding walk at Votier's Flats, in Fish Creek Park, hoping that someone would be able to find the Black-backed Woodpecker that had been seen. We were out of luck, unfortunately - I have seen one before, though. After the walk, I again went over to Bebo Grove. No sign of the Barred Owl, but after a lot of searching for the owl, I happened to spot this female American Three-toed Woodpecker, presumably the mate of the male Woodpecker I had seen the previous day. (Males have a patch of yellow on top of the head). This photo also shows a tree that has had some of its bark removed, leaving the orange-coloured wood exposed. The Woodpecker wants to get to the larvae that are in tunnels beneath the bark of dead or dying trees, so the bark has to be removed. Some trees are almost completely orange, so much bark has been peeled away by a Woodpecker. In winter, when there is snow on the ground, you can see the pieces of bark lying around the base of the tree, on top of the snow, if a Woodpecker has been at work very recently. This species is uncommon in Alberta, year round. "The American Three-toed Woodpecker is found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_three-toed_woodpecker

Two days ago (1 December 2014), I called in at Votier’s Flats (in Fish Creek Park) just before noon, and then I drove over to Bebo Grove to see if there was any sign of the Barred Owl – no, there wasn't, and two other people had looked and been unsuccessful. I did see a male American Three-toed Woodpecker, though, which is always a treat, especially as it is rare in Alberta. Yesterday was almost a repeat of the previous day, except that I went on a birding walk at Votier's Flats, hoping that someone would be able to find the Black-backed Woodpecker that had been seen. We were out of luck, unfortunately - I have seen one before, though. After the walk, I again went over to Bebo Grove. No sign of the Barred Owl, but after a lot of searching, I happened to spot this female American Three-toed Woodpecker, presumably the mate of the male Woodpecker I had seen the previous day (photo posted yesterday). Like yesterday's photo, this one also shows a tree that has had bits of its bark removed, leaving the orange-coloured wood exposed. The Woodpecker wants to get to the larvae that are in tunnels beneath the bark, so the bark has to be removed. See the tongue in action, lol! Some trees are almost completely orange, so much bark has been peeled away by a Woodpecker. In winter, when there is snow on the ground, you can see the pieces of bark lying around the base of the tree, on top of the snow, if a Woodpecker has been at work very recently. I think the tiny specks in this photo were from snow falling off one of the very high branches just as I was taking this photo. "The American Three-toed Woodpecker is found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_three-toed_woodpecker

When I went back and had a better look through the photos I took at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on 6 September 2014, I came across this shot that is somewhat sharper and better than most of that day's photos. The weather forecast was for upcoming rain, so I decided that I had better get over to the park straight away, as I wanted to check for any mushrooms. I had been there fairly recently, and only found a couple of things. The visit on 6 September was a little more rewarding and I found several large clusters of tiny mushrooms growing on tree stumps or at the base of trees. Also found several patches of bright orange Coral Fungi. Quite a few people were in the park, so I felt safer going a very short way in. Far enough, as it turned out, to watch an adult and juvenile Three-toed Woodpecker, feeding together on a tree trunk. The young one was copying Mom or Dad, but its soft squeaking sound resulted in the adult feeding it, too. Not sure if this is the adult or the young one in this photo. You can tell this tree has been used by the Three-toed Woodpeckers, as some of the bark has been stripped, leaving the orange/brown wood below. This Woodpecker species seems to be reasonably tolerant of people. These are rare birds here, so I feel very lucky to have seen these two and any others in the past. birdsofalberta.com/List/detail.php?id=226 www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... On the way home, I decided to call in at Fish Creek Park, hoping to find a Beaver or a MInk that a friend had told me about. Though I did see a couple of Beavers, I wasn't able to get a decent photo of them that day. One of them was a huge animal - this was the one that was recently found in a trap, biting off one of its front legs that was caught in the trap. Someone had been there when this was happening and she made several reports about it. Thanks, Linda, for doing this. Such a cruel way to deal with any Beaver problem! The now three-legged animal seems to be doing reasonably OK. I was luckier with the Mink, catching it in a couple of very quick shots. On the walk back to my car, I was lucky enough to see a distant doe and her two fawns. Apparently, there is another doe with triplets in the area.

Judging by the wispy feathers, this looks like it was the young bird that was on the tree right by Mom or Dad. It's not the best quality, but it's difficult to get decent shots deep in the forest and of birds that don't stay still for a second and keep travelling further and further up the tall trees. These Three-toed Woodpeckers are rare here, so I sometimes hang on to photos that are far from good. The weather forecast was promising rain and mixed precipitation for 7 and 8 September 2014, and there were a couple of places that I thought I had better get to before the bad weather arrived. The first one was Brown-Lowery, to check if there were any mushrooms. I was there recently, and only found a couple of things. This last visit was a little more rewarding and I found several large clusters of tiny mushrooms growing on tree stumps or at the base of trees. Also found several patches of bright orange Coral Fungi. Quite a few people were in the park, so I felt safer going a very short way in. Far enough, as it turned out, to watch this adult and juvenile Three-toed Woodpecker, feeding together on a tree trunk. The young one was copying Mom or Dad, but its soft squeaking sound resulted in the adult feeding it, too. You can tell this tree has been used by the Three-toed Woodpeckers, as much of the bark has been stripped, leaving the orange/brown wood below. This Woodpecker species seems to be reasonably tolerant of people. These are rare birds here, so I feel very lucky to have seen these two and any others in the past. birdsofalberta.com/List/detail.php?id=226 www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... On that day, little did any of us know that we were in for a major, late summer, snowstorm! Yesterday and today, 9 and 10 September (today), we've had heavy, wet snow that is causing tremendous damage to so many trees in the city. Yesterday, it was said that 5,000 trees had been damaged, and today, conditions are far, far worse. And the snow keeps falling ....

With a weather forecast of rain for tomorrow and mixed precipitation for Tuesday and Wednesday, there were a couple of places that I thought I had better get to yesterday, 6 September 204. The first one was Brown-Lowery, to check if there were any mushrooms. I was there recently, and only found a couple of things. Yesterday's visit was a little more rewarding and I found several large clusters of tiny mushrooms growing on tree stumps or at the base of trees. Also found several patches of bright orange Coral Fung. Quite a few people were in the park, so I felt safer going a very short way in. Far enough, as it turned out, to watch this adult and juvenile Three-toed Woodpecker, feeding together on a tree trunk. The young one was copying Mom or Dad, but its soft squeaking sound resulted in the adult feeding it, too. You can tell this tree has been used by the Three-toed Woodpeckers, as much of the bark has been stripped, leaving the orange/brown wood below. This Woodpecker species seems to be reasonably tolerant of people. These are rare birds here, so I feel very lucky to have seen these two and any others in the past. birdsofalberta.com/List/detail.php?id=226 www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Three-toed_Woodpecke... On the way home, I decided to call in at Fish Creek Park, hoping to find a Beaver or a MInk that a friend had told me about (thanks, Phil!). Though I did see a couple of Beavers, I wasn't able to get a decent photo of them. One of them was a huge animal - this was the one that was recently found in a trap, biting off one of its front legs that was caught in the trap. Someone had been there when this was happening and she made several reports about it. Thanks, Linda, for doing this. Such a cruel way to deal with any Beaver problem! The now three-legged animal seems to be doing OK. I was luckier with the Mink, catching it in a couple of quick shots. There were various things blocking part of my view, which is why I got pale or discoloured patches in the lower half of the image (posted today). On the walk back to my car, I was lucky enough to see a distant doe and her two fawns. Apparently, she had three, so we were wondering if something had happened to one of them. Maybe a Coyote?

It started to rain when I was driving to Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on 17 August 2013. It had cleared up by the time I got there, but the light was not good within the forest. I'm so glad I didn't turn around and head for home when the rain came, though, as I ended up seeing a group of three of these rare American Three-toed Woodpeckers. Not the best photos, but with some brightening, I think a few are fit to use. One of the three was definitely a juvenile, as every once in a while, it made a louder sound and the adult that was usually nearby would feed it. I was also lucky enough to see a pair of Ruffed Grouse - oh, and a few mushrooms : ) There were several cars parked in the parking lot when I arrived, so I felt brave enough to go just a little further into the park than I normally go. So glad I did! These are rare birds here, so I feel very lucky to have seen this one and any others in the past. "Woodpeckers, piculets and wrynecks all possess zygodactyl feet. Zygodactyl feet consist of four toes, the first (hallux) and the fourth facing backward and the second and third facing forward. This foot arrangement is good for grasping the limbs and trunks of trees. Members of this family can walk vertically up a tree trunk, which is beneficial for activities such as foraging for food or nest excavation." From Wikipedia. This tells why the American Three-toed Woodpecker is different : ) The Black-backed Woodpecker, rare here, also only has three toes. "In North America, data suggest that its populations may be declining, while long-term data from northern Europe leave little doubt that populations in Finland and Sweden are indeed declining." From birdsofalberta.com.

Not a very good photo, but am posting it because it shows this rare (in Alberta) American Three-toed Woodpecker's face and the gorgeous yellow patch on the head. On 17 August 2013, I went for a walk in Brown-Lowery Provincial Park, SW of Calgary. A group of people were going with Friends of Fish Creek Park, so, even though I was not going with them, I at least knew that there would be plenty of humans to chase away the Cougars and Bears : ) Normally, I barely go into the park, but this time got far enough to come across a family of three Three-toed Woodpeckers. They ignored me completely and continued to search for food and, in this photo, to do the occasional bit of preening. Yesterday, after my volunteer shift, I called in at a shopping centre to see if a small computer store was still in existence. A number of years ago, they did such a good job of transferring all the data from one computer to a new one for me. The time to go through all this has again rolled around and I was hoping so much that the same store would be there. I was so relieved to find it and now have to face the nerve-wracking time of getting used to a new machine (with Windows 7, not 8!). My new computer is still in its box (since late December), waiting for the day when I finally get myself sufficiently organized to bring it out, and that day is almost here. Really, really hoping it won't be too difficult to set up and then work out how to use it. Guessing it will be maybe three days or so that I will be without a computer, so when I suddenly "disappear" next week, you will know the reason : )

This beautiful American Three-toed Woodpecker was just a few minutes' walk from the tiny Northern Pygmy-owl. It's so dark in amongst the trees and this handsome guy, with his gorgeous yellow head patch, is usually either too high in a tree or is surrounded by annoying branches and twigs. I was lucky, for just a moment, to get a clear shot. I lucked out with getting the head sharp enough, too - as with many Woodpecker species, their head is constantly pecking away at the tree trunk, resulting in so many blurry shots : )

A beautiful, rare male American Three-toed Woodpecker seen at Bebo Grove, Fish Creek Park, on March 12th.

Definitely nowhere near as sharp as I would have liked, but you don't get to see these guys every day, lol! This handsome male caught me a little off-guard as it suddenly came a little lower down the tree and appeared round the side where I was standing. A little too close. Seen at Bebo Grove, Fish Creek Park, on March 12th.