Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus)

Photos by BarrytheBirder

Hairy Woodpeckers (Robin-sized) are like a larger version of the Downy Woodpecker. but less common and requiring larger trees.   Like the Downy, they are found across lower Canada and most of the United States.   The Hairy is more a forest bird and shyer than the smaller Downy.   The two species do not compete with each other.

The Audubon Society states that the Hairy is a "most beneficial bird, saving both forest and fruit trees by destroying many harmful insects such as wood-boring beetles (which it extracts from holes with its barbed tongue".

Female

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BarrytheBirder