"My" rare woodpecker

Red-headed Woodpecker -- December 31, 2006
Photo by Barrie Raik


It's wonderful to have a special bird right across the street from home. Not only can I stand at my livingroom window with binoculars and easily see the woodpecker flying around its area, or perched in the vicinity of its roost hole, but I can stand in the same place and see a variety of Central Park birders arriving to pay their respects to this unusual visitor.

Yesterday as I was standing in front of the bird's tree on my second visit of the morning before beginning work--[yes, what I was doing is known as procrastination] there was Barrie Raik, a Central Park birder. I spend many Tuesday mornings during the spring migration walking around Central Park with Barrie [and about 20 other birders] as part of Steve Quinn's Museum of Natural History 7 a.m. bird walk.

Barrie was testing out a new camera lens yesterday. The result was the stunning photo above. I think that lens was a keeper, don't you?

PS If you look very hard you'll see the first red feathers coming in at the lower part of the woodpecker's head. If he or she stays all winter we'll have lots of fun watching the head redden as the bird begins to fulfill its name.