Tuesday, April 10, 2012

A Pileated Woodpecker Takes A Walk

He lands and sits briefly.
Week before last I caught a glance of a Pileated Woodpecker out of the corner of my eye as I sat at my computer. I grabbed my camera hoping it would stayfor at least another minute. It had landed on the timbers surrounding one of the flower beds. It was a rainy day and I was shooting through the window as always. It's much better if you enlarge the pic and click through all the images. 
He walks on down the timber.
He sits and decides where to go next.
He decides on a tree TOO far away. :)
The woodpecker shots are not very sharp but it was the moment that counted. It all occured in just over one minute according to my camera data. With that in mind I'll leave you a couple of sharper images of a Mourning Dove that was directly under the window and slow enough for me to take a fairly good shot. Do enlarge these pictures as well.
Such sweet birds!
Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday.

30 comments:

Betsy Banks Adams said...

That Pileated Woodpecker is getting his exercise on that timber... ha ha We had a tree stump in our yard at ground level when we first moved here... A Pileated found that stump---and pecked and pecked and pecked.... Since I wanted to get rid of the old stump, I just let the woodpecker have it.... And--he eventually cleaned it all out!! Guess there were some bugs down in that old stump.... OR --maybe he was sharpening his beak..... Speak of sharpening his beak, Have you heard them 'peck' (drum) on the metal power poles???? Talk about LOUD!!!!

Great pictures...We have Mourning Doves also. I love to hear their coo...

Hugs,
Betsy

fjÀllripan said...

Such a beautiful woodpecker!! And the dove is really sweet! :)

TexWisGirl said...

i'm always thrilled to see the pileateds! and mourning doves are so sweet!

HansHB said...

Great shots, - they are perfect for WBW!

theconstantwalker said...

Wonderful birds to see... your Mourning Dove is so similar to the Collared Dove on my post.
Your little woodpecker is such a colourful little bird.

Hugs Drew xx

Unknown said...

Aren't they the greatest!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

Joanne Olivieri said...

Fantastic shots! That woodpecker is so colorful. I would love to see one in the wild. The mourning dove is beautiful and wonderful shot up close and personal.

Pat said...

The internet is very slow here so I'll just make my comment brief. I just scrolled through your last 7 or 8 posts and they all put a smile on my face: the birds, the flowers, the barns and of course, your lovely granddaughters! Thanks for making me smile today!

EG CameraGirl said...

You see great wildlife in your backyard! I'm quite jealous of the pileated woodpecker. :)

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

I am always excited too when I spot one of these big guys. I have a video of one really ripping up on a tree. Hopefully what I paste onto this will get you to the video. I'm not good at computer stuff. Thank you for the comment on my WBW post.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIFjN3FWXAc

KristiBowmanDesign said...

He's a beauty, through the window in the rain is better than not at all. Most of my pictures are also through the window, that's the way it's got to be sometimes! Nice shots!

eileeninmd said...

Hello Carletta, the Pileated is one of my favorites. Great sighting in your yard and wonderful photos.

mick said...

Great photos through your window.

CameraCruise said...

Great shots.
Love to see the woodpecker and the dove.

Linda said...

Wonderful photos to be taken through the window! And the doves are so pretty...gerat work!

Colin (HB) said...

Hi Carletta
That sure is a pretty looking woodpecker. The red "top hat" makes him/her (??) look like an Oxford "Don" or a Cardinal of the Roman Curia.
The delighful little dove was here and some have still survived the ravages of the wretched Indian Mynas. Once you saw them all over the place, now it is a rarity. Just pray that no idiot introduces Indian Mynas to the Americas. I was even "dive bombed" by a pair of them this morning when walking to the train! They attack like those WW2 German Stukkas!
Lucky you to still see lovely birds, here if you want to see the REAL native birds you have to go way out bush!
Great blog as usual.
Cheers
Colin.( Brisbane, Australia)
Weather report: Well, seems now 12.30pm, it can't make up its mind.
Probably storms later - yuck!

Sallie (FullTime-Life.com said...

Taking a walk in the Paradise that is your backyard! He's beautiful as is the dove.

Rajesh said...

Beautiful woodpecker, with nice red crown.

Brian King said...

That's really cool, Carletta! I've seen lots of Pileated Woodpeckers in the woods, but have never been able to get photos of one.

Stewart M said...

The PWP is one of my all time favourite birds. I was almost jumping up and down on the spot when I saw me first one!

I have a friend who gets them around his bird feeders - but not in Australia!!

Cheers - Stewart M - Australia

Springman said...

Sighting a Pileated is always a treat, picture or not. Nice job Carletta!

George said...

The pileated woodpeckers around our house rarely cooperate as well, but you did get a couple of great pictures. The pictures of the dove are marvelous.

joo said...

Sometimes even woodpeckers need a stroll:)
Lovely post!

Craver Vii said...

I know very well that excitement from trying to get the shot of the woodpecker. That, "Ooh, I must act now."

This dove is so pretty, and your pics have excellent detail!

Pat said...

Oh, wow! I envy you your shot of the Pileated Woodpecker!
I love the Mourning doves too. They often seem so clueless.

Larry said...

I would love to be able to see a Pileated Woodpecker in my yard! They have to be the coolest woodpecker out there! I have yet to get a good photo of one but I think your shots are fine. If they are visiting your yard, you will get another chance at a close-up eventually. Greta shots of the Mourning Dove too Carletta!

Michelle said...

I just love the pileated woodpeckers. How nice you were able to get him before he flew away!

A Colorful World said...

Exciting to get the Pileated Woodpecker shots! Just think if you hadn't been sitting at the computer at that very moment! Love the pretty dove pictures as well!

Thank you for your comments on my blog post, too.

Rose said...

That was a wonderful moment with the pileated woodpecker...I don't think I have seen one on the ground before.

And don't you just love doves...to me they are the most tender, sweet looking bird.

Amila Kanchana said...

Such cute things,both of them!