31 December 2016
Range maps can obscure the seasonal movement of birds.
For instance, the range map for pileated woodpeckers, below, shows them in western Pennsylvania all year long but they’re not everywhere. There are none in Schenley Park in the spring and summer. (UPDATE in 2021: Pileated woodpeckers now nest in Schenley Park)
However, a male pileated woodpecker comes to Panther Hollow for the winter. He announces his presence when he sees me on the trail.
It’s a treat to see him as I walk through Schenley Park.
(photo by Dick Martin, range map from Wikimedia Commons; click on the map to see the original image)
Beautiful birds!!
Riverview Park has a couple pileated woodpeckers, it is a delight to hear their call.
There was one in the woods in Regent Square just the other day.
I have one that visits my back yard. He’s working over a couple of trees. Its so wonderful to watch this beautiful bird from my kitchen window. However I’ve never seen him at the suet in my front yard. I have Downey, Hairy and Red Bellied but no Pileated?
I have a pair that visit my yard (50 miles north of Pittsburgh) year round. One was on my suet feeder today.
Kate,
I have a pair of these beauties living in the woods behind my home. Although they are shy, every now and then they’ll park themselves in my yard to destroy a rotting log. When they find a yummy food source they are almost impossible to move!
Last spring they nested in an old hollow tree that I can see from my deck. One morning the chicks left their nest and for a few hours it seemed as though the trees were filled with red headed birds. It was a miraculous sight.
Kate Budacki
Leetsdale PA