Ashley and Crippen Photographers, Toronto|Corporate Headshots/Executive Headshots 

Birds

Downie Woodpecker

The Downy Woodpecker is the smallest North American woodpecker and is common across the whole continent, except in drier regions in the southwest and the cold far north. It is often seen in suburbs, parks and orchards as well as woodland. As a nest it excavates a hole up to 50 feet above the ground in a dead tree trunk or branch, in which it lays 4-7 white eggs, which are incubated by both parents for around two weeks. The young birds leave the nest just over three weeks after hatching, and there is often a second brood. The adult bird has a very short bill-although that of the male is slightly longer. Both birds have a white back, black forehead and crown, a broad black eye stripe, white face and underparts and black wings with white spots. The male is slightly larger and has a small red patch on the nape. In the Pacific Northwest, birds tend to have a gray-brown back and underparts, but are otherwise the same. In flight, the outer tail feathers are white, barred with black-although this may be difficult to see. The Downy Woodpecker will often come to bird tables for suet, but also eats wood-boring insects, berries and seeds.