BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 27, 2024
I was surveying a block on the southeast side of First Roach Pond in Kokadjo, when I noticed a downy woodpecker clinging to a roadside tree, about 4 feet off the ground. Its head was turned, its bill across its back in normal napping fashion. On my return 45 minutes later, it was still there. As I approached, I noted that it was in classic cling-to-a-tree posture – two toes in front, gripping the tree, two in back doing likewise. Its tail was properly braced against the bark. But it was dead, apparently from natural causes. From this, I learned that woodpeckers are so well-adapted to a life of banging their heads against trees, that they can grip the tree even after dying. ~ Bob Duchesne