WALK ON THE WILD SIDE Green Woodpecker
As you can imagine the heatwave has had a huge impact on our local wildlife. Butterflies have fewer plants to lay their eggs on, badgers can’t dig through the solid ground to find worms, and hedgehogs can’t find any delicious slugs to eat. There are, however, a few winners, like our friends the snakes, who love the hot weather. But one winner is the green woodpecker!
The largest of our British woodpeckers, the green woodpecker’s favourite food is ants, which are far more active in this hot weather. The heatwave brings about a feast for them! Generally ants would make up their entire diet if they could find them but they have to resort to different food sources when ants become less active. Sorry Scotland but this one is a rarity for you! The first record of green woodpeckers breeding in Scotland was 1951, comparatively very recent. crown. If you hear a woodpecker drumming on a tree, it isn’t likely to be a green one. Their beaks are much better for digging up ants than digging into tough trees. In fact, it can take them a month to chisel their nest holes out of soft tree bark. Only the male carves this hole but a well-crafted hole can be re-used for as many as 10 years!
Unlike other woodpeckers, who you most often see clung to tree trunks, you are much more likely to see these big green lumps sitting on a well cut lawn in a park or garden. They will fly off when you approach, leaving you with a view of their almost neon-yellow bottoms and olive green wings. They are unlikely to visit your bird feeder but an ant-rich lawn is a desirable spot.