Posted by Patricia Loik on August 8, 2006

Q: We have been watching a Woodpecker at our cottage for the last several weeks. It has grown from about 6 inches to about 12 inches in the last two weeks. We are sure that it is a Pileated Woodpecker, given it's Woody Woodpecker red crest. It actually seems fearless, coming within several feet of humans and not at all concernced with the dogs (who we held on to). In addition, on Friday it seemed to have trouble flying,just some very short flights,however, by Monday, it was flying quite well. My questions are;

1) Are Pileated Woodpeckers common in the Parry Sound/Rosseau area of Ontario Canada?

2) Was it's difficulty flying when we saw it on Friday due to it's rapid growth?

3) Are they always so fearless?

Thanks for your response.

Pat Loik.

Habitat: pond/lake

State: Ontario

Habitat: pond/lake

A: Are Pileated Woodpeckers common in the Parry Sound/Rosseau area of Ontario Canada? The Pileated Woodpecker is found in all but the most northern areas of Ontario but I can't be sure it's "common" in your area. This particular woodpecker is usually found in rather mature forests (forests with large trees)rather than scrubby areas with smaller trees so I assume you have some large trees in your area. Are you sure the 6"-grown-up-to-12" woodpecker is the same bird? Once a young woodpecker leaves the nest cavity, it is very close to being full-sized and wouldn't grow twice as large at that point. I think you've seen two different birds. A full-grown Pileated is about 15-17" in length and about the size of a crow. Your 6" bird is probably a different species.

2) Was it's difficulty flying when we saw it on Friday due to it's rapid growth? I really can't say for sure what was going on with the flying but it seems to me that if it were having a problem, or at least was a poor flier, it may be due to its youth. Young birds simply are not as good as older ones when they first begin to fly. Maybe you saw it very soon after leaving its nest and it hadn't gotten very good at flying yet.

3) Are they always so fearless? In my experience, Pileated Woodpeckers are quite shy and don't allow people to get close at all. Those in my area fly away immediately when they see people. So, I'm guessing that your young bird simply hasn't learned to be cautious yet. It's amazing that at times young birds can be quite tame and allow people to approach within a short distance.

Hope this helps. Thanks for asking and thanks too for such a great description of events.

John Wiessinger ( August 9, 2006)