Nature post of the day 18-4-16 Green woodpecker

Tweet

Yesterday when walking in the woods I was struck by the number of green woodpeckers around. I couldn’t see them among the trees but I could hear their distinctive laughing calls all around. Even if I had had a camera available I couldn’t have taken a photo as they are really difficult to see in the trees except when they fly away, when it’s too late of course. They spend a lot of time in the open though as they don’t actually peck the trees in their search for food; they mainly eat ants, and the field next to the wood is covered in ant-hills. Even on the ground they are difficult to spot if the grass is long due to their green colour. I do sometimes spot one on the ground but can never get close enough to take a photo before it flies away with a distinctive undulating flight. You can see pictures of them, and hear their call, here: All rights reserved. © copyright Fleur 2016.