Pileated Woodpecker

SCraig · Feb 16, 2014

Tromping around Radnor Lake this morning I heard a woodpecker pounding on a tree and knew from the sound that it had to be a Pileated Woodpecker since they are the largest woodpecker in this area and make a SERIOUS racket

This one was, as usual, way up in the top of a tree away from people walking below but for once that worked in my favor. It was very early morning and while the sun was still so low that the ground was still in twilight the tops of the trees were in brilliant sunlight.

The head in the first isn't as sharp as I would have liked. He would peck on the tree for a minute and then take a quick look around for a second. I got him while he was taking a look around but it was a quick shot. The second is a little sharper because he paused to look at something across the lake.

Both shots: Nikon D7100, Sigma 150-500 at 500mm, 1/400 second @ f/8 and ISO 400. Focus distance was 25.12 meters, and they are heavily cropped.

pjaye · Feb 16, 2014

Very cool!

tirediron · Feb 16, 2014

Nice!

BillM · Feb 16, 2014

Love it !!!! That is way up on my list of birds to find, no luck so far but I know eventually I'll find one.

DarkShadow · Feb 16, 2014

Pileated are so cool looking.Nice catch.

Woodsman · Feb 16, 2014

Sweet, nicely done

SCraig · Feb 16, 2014

Thanks, everybody. I'm glad you like him and appreciate the comments.

BillM said:
Love it !!!! That is way up on my list of birds to find, no luck so far but I know eventually I'll find one.

I saw one about 4 years ago and then none for a long time. This fall I started seeing them at Radnor Lake and have seen or heard them just about every time I've been there since. I think there is only one pair of them flying around that area and one of the pair is very, very shy. I'll see them both from a distance but as soon as I get even remotely close one of them will head for the tall timber. Literally

They are really gorgeous birds with that bright red head.

Nibbio · Feb 17, 2014

Woah, amazing!

sm4him · Feb 17, 2014

That second one is a stunner, Scott!

SCraig said:
Thanks, everybody. I'm glad you like him and appreciate the comments.

BillM said:

Love it !!!! That is way up on my list of birds to find, no luck so far but I know eventually I'll find one.

Click to expand...

I saw one about 4 years ago and then none for a long time. This fall I started seeing them at Radnor Lake and have seen or heard them just about every time I've been there since. I think there is only one pair of them flying around that area and one of the pair is very, very shy. I'll see them both from a distance but as soon as I get even remotely close one of them will head for the tall timber. Literally They are really gorgeous birds with that bright red head.

I've gotten to where I see them reasonably often--but getting a shot of them is a whole different matter. They're so sensitive to any sounds, and they take off like a flash--like kingfishers, only they have the added bonus of lots of woods to hide in. And then when you DO finally find one still for more than a few seconds, they are, as you said, WAY up high somewhere and you just can't get a shot without them taking off again. Elusive little buggers. ;-)

pondball · Feb 17, 2014

Great shot... We've had them around here in south eastern Ontario... But, sadly, it was before I had my dslr and I had to shoot it with an old cool pix 5700 beyond the optical magnification. That was one of the first items I audibly said "I've got to get me a decent dslr!" Now I've got one and I await the return of this magnificent bird. Can't believe they don't get headaches though... Man do they leave a mess of good sized wood chips when they leave!

JacaRanda · Feb 17, 2014

Really cool. I agree that they (maybe all woodpeckers) are elusive. I have nearly gotten dizzy following them around a tree trunk.

Amazing to do that much damage to a tree with something growing out of your face.

BillM · Feb 17, 2014

JacaRanda said:
Really cool. I agree that they (maybe all woodpeckers) are elusive.

Agreed, I watch Downey, Hairy and Red Bellied Woodpeckers every day out my office window. They are always on high alert, never in the same spot for long.

sm4him · Feb 17, 2014

BillM said:
JacaRanda said:

Really cool. I agree that they (maybe all woodpeckers) are elusive.

Click to expand...

Agreed, I watch Downey, Hairy and Red Bellied Woodpeckers every day out my office window. They are always on high alert, never in the same spot for long.

The Downy Woodpeckers, in my experience, are the boldest and "easiest" to get decent shots of. They tend to come down lower on trees and aren't nearly as skittish as the others. Mine even started coming right down to my feeders this winter and let me get some pretty nice shots of them.
The Hairys are tougher, in part because they are less common around here, and in part because they tend to stay much higher up in the trees.
The red-bellied are also pretty sensitive and flighty, although I have one in my yard that seems to be getting braver lately.
The Pileateds are the toughest for me…except for the Red-headed; it's the "toughest" so far, because I've never actually FOUND one.

BillM · Feb 17, 2014

Never seen a Red Headed, not sure we even have those up here. But we do have Northern Flickers, really like seeing those :heart:

SCraig · Feb 17, 2014

Nibbio said:
Woah, amazing!

Thank you! I'm glad you like it.

sm4him said:
That second one is a stunner, Scott!

Thanks, Sharon.

I've gotten to where I see them reasonably often--but getting a shot of them is a whole different matter. They're so sensitive to any sounds, and they take off like a flash--like kingfishers, only they have the added bonus of lots of woods to hide in. And then when you DO finally find one still for more than a few seconds, they are, as you said, WAY up high somewhere and you just can't get a shot without them taking off again. Elusive little buggers. ;-)

One of this pair, the one I got a shot of, is relatively unafraid of people. There aren't many around that lake, at least I don't think there are, and while I was out walking a couple of weeks ago one of them landed in a tree not 25' away from me. I was stunned! I've never had one voluntarily get that close to me before. Naturally it was pouring down rain so I didn't have my camera with me.

pondball said:
Great shot... We've had them around here in south eastern Ontario... But, sadly, it was before I had my dslr and I had to shoot it with an old cool pix 5700 beyond the optical magnification. That was one of the first items I audibly said "I've got to get me a decent dslr!" Now I've got one and I await the return of this magnificent bird. Can't believe they don't get headaches though... Man do they leave a mess of good sized wood chips when they leave!

Thank you! They can flat do a job on a tree in a hurry. I'm surprised they don't get a headache either. Maybe they do and just ignore it. This one had wood chips flying everywhere

JacaRanda said:
Really cool. I agree that they (maybe all woodpeckers) are elusive. I have nearly gotten dizzy following them around a tree trunk.

Amazing to do that much damage to a tree with something growing out of your face.

Thanks, Jacaranda. I compare it to trying to cut a tree down with my fingernail, and it ain't gonna happen

Somehow they know a trick I don't know.

BillM said:
Agreed, I watch Downey, Hairy and Red Bellied Woodpeckers every day out my office window. They are always on high alert, never in the same spot for long.

True, that. They are always on the move, even when they are sitting still. I had ot wait for this one to quit banging on the tree and take a look around. 1/400 second wasn't enough to stop that head, I tried and all I got was a blur

sm4him said:
Agreed, I watch Downey, Hairy and Red Bellied Woodpeckers every day out my office window. They are always on high alert, never in the same spot for long.

The Downy Woodpeckers, in my experience, are the boldest and "easiest" to get decent shots of. They tend to come down lower on trees and aren't nearly as skittish as the others. Mine even started coming right down to my feeders this winter and let me get some pretty nice shots of them.
The Hairys are tougher, in part because they are less common around here, and in part because they tend to stay much higher up in the trees.
The red-bellied are also pretty sensitive and flighty, although I have one in my yard that seems to be getting braver lately.
The Pileateds are the toughest for meexcept for the Red-headed; it's the "toughest" so far, because I've never actually FOUND one.

I agree. I've got some Downy Woodpeckers around my house (and the holes in the trim to prove it!), and they aren't nearly as skittish as those living away from people. Pileated are the toughest for me.