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A Woodpecker on his branch


A Woodpecker on his branch
Photo Information
Copyright: jeanpaul Bolduc (jeanpaul) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2097 W: 99 N: 3518] (14962)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-12-30
Categories: Birds
Camera: Pentax *ist D, 70-300mm f4-5.6
Exposure: f/6.9, 1/180 seconds
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Date Submitted: 2007-01-09 18:58
Viewed: 3068
Points: 32
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note [French]
Downy Woodpecker, (Picoides pubescens)
Diet of the Downy woodpecker
They glean ants and beetles from the bark of tees. They also eat fruits, seeds, nuts and cambium. The Downey woodpecker also forages in shrubs.

Migratory status of the Downy Woodpecker
The Downy woodpecker does not migrate, but it may move upslope in the Sierras during the summer.

Niche filled by the downy woodpecker
The Downy woodpecker will forage lower to the ground than most woodpeckers. It can be found in shrubs. Males and females do not compete directly for food by using different foraging behaviors. Females generally pry off bark and glean for insects whereas the males will drill deeper into the wood for insects.

Range of the Downy woodpecker
The Downy woodpecker is found throughout the continental United States and Canada. It is absent from the desert areas in the Southwestern United states.

Habitat/Plant communities used by the Downy woodpecker
The Downy woodpecker is found in most of the plant communities in California excepting the desert and semidesert areas east of the Sierra Nevada range and south of the peninsular range. The Downy woodpecker's favorite habitat is deciduous riparian woodlands.

Closed Cone Pine Forest
Lodgepole Pine Forest
Central Oak Woodland
Yellow Pine Forest
Northern Oak Woodland
Southern Oak Woodland
Mixed Evergreen Forest
Riparian
Red Fir forest
Reproduction of the Downy woodpecker
Try to dissuade European starlings from interring your garden. They will kick out other bird species from the nest cavities built by woodpeckers. They are quite aggressive. They have been known to wait around until the woodpecker has completed excavation of its nest cavity and then a group of them will gang up on the woodpecker and kick it out of its own nest. One woman said she plunged the cavities early in the breading season when the starlings were looking for nests and then unplugged them after the starlings had moved on. I would not advise this as it evolves climbing in trees and getting squawked at a lot by irritated wildlife.
How to attract the Downy woodpecker to your garden
Downy woodpeckers like young riparian trees for nesting so attracting them to your garden is too big a chore. Just plant a few cottonwood trees or other riparian species and you can have a suitable woodpecker house in only about five years. They will also use these trees for foraging. The downy woodpecker will even tolerate suburban conditions. They do not mind living in towns.
Juyona, bobair, TheMystic, magal, elefantino, wkshelton, pablominto, JORAPAVI, pierrefonds has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To claudine: retouche de photojeanpaul 2 01-09 20:19
To claudine: Isojeanpaul 1 01-09 20:03
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • Juyona Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor [C: 2232 W: 10 N: 2971] (16891)
  • [2007-01-09 19:13]

Hola Jean, buen disparo, el color agradable del pájaro resalta en el bosque oscuro, saludos y TFS.

  • Great 
  • Adanac Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1273 W: 1 N: 6188] (21378)
  • [2007-01-09 21:05]

Hi JeanPaul,
Very well done on this capture, good detail and colors. I may have cropped the right side to get him looking into the photo, but thats just what I like.
Rick

Hi Jean-Paul,nice shot of this little woodpecker.I do not see any red patch on the top of its head so it appears your woodpecker is a female and not male.The only thing that could make this picture better is if the foreground were a little lighter for added contrast.Nicely presented overall just the same. Bob

Bonjour Jean-Paul, projectile gentil de ce petit woodpecker.I ne voient aucune pièce rapportée rouge sur le dessus de sa tête ainsi il est évident que votre pivert est une femelle et pas la chose de male.The seulement qui pourrait rendre cette image meilleure est si le premier plan étaient peu un plus léger pour la combinaison présentée par contrast.Nicely supplémentaire juste les mêmes. Bob

What a cute little ball of feathers, Paul! Nice color contrasts with the bg.
Cheers
Otto

  • Great 
  • magal Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 224 W: 0 N: 313] (1251)
  • [2007-01-10 2:58]

Hi JP,
Beautiful shot, with excellent POV and very good detail. I tend to think it may be just a bit UE and I agree about a tighter crop [rhs]. but that's just my opinion.
Cheers and TFS
Mark

Hello JP, lovely atmosphere in this shot!
I love the soft light, the sharpness and compo.
Andrea

hi jeanpaul,
nice capture,
well composed with fine pov,
darg bg suits the shot,
well done,
tfs & regards
pankaj

Allo Jean-Paul,
J'aime beaucoup cette capture de ce beau Pic. Son expression et les détails sont excellents avec de belles couleurs et dans une bonne prise de vue et composition. J'aime bien les plumes qui s'ébouriffent dans le vent. Les notes sont super intéressantes aussi.

Le BG est "bruyant" et je trouve ça dommage car il déconcentre un peu du sujet. J'espère que ça ne te dérange pas mais j'ai fais un WS. J'espère que ça te plaira. Ça n'enlève rien à la qualité de cette photo toutefois. Ça me fait bien rire car hier tu as publié une sitelle et moi aujourd'hui, j'hésitais entre un pic et une sitelle. Il est vraiment drôle de voir comment nos sujets se suivent des fois :-) Merci,
Claudine
PS, sais-tu quel ISO tu as utilisé?

Hello JP,

Excllent photo again, perfect details very crisp, nicly composed and capture photo with great quaility,

TFS Kyle

  • Great 
  • Maite Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 998 W: 65 N: 1270] (5199)
  • [2007-01-10 9:29]

Hello Jean Paul
Beautiful bird and beautiful composition in this picture. Perhaps it may be seen a bit too much noise in the background but anyway it is a great capture.
TFS.
Best wishes
Maite

bonjour jeanpaul

comment fait tu pour avoir de tel photo tu a un afût je suppose encore une très belle photo bravo

eric

Hello JP,
That little featherball is a beauty!
Not so much because of colours thoug...
Nicely composed image, with fine details in the subject!
Greetings,
Pablo -

bonjour JP
voila un nouveau dans la galerie,quel chance.
un peu de bruit sur le BG mais le pic lui est bien detaillé.
laurent

Hola JeanPaul,
Excelente disparo, simpática la pose del pajarillo, buena nitidez y composición muy natural. Saludos

I love this sweet little woodpecker. You sure are collecting a nice group of bird photos. I like them a lot. They all seem so natural. I like the settings that you capture them in. Nice pose and expression on this one...if birds have expressions? : ) He just looks so cheerful. Good focus, color and exposure.

TFS
Evelynn : )

  •      
  • thistle Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1309 W: 74 N: 3014] (9282)
  • [2007-01-11 10:08]

Hello Jeanpaul,
Lovely shot! The POV is really nice and the woodpecker look very cute. The exposure looks perfect too. Maybe framing is a little unbalanced because the right part of the picture looks a little empty but that nothing serious.
WELL DONE!
Points later :-)

Bonjour Jean-Paul,

Une belle image de ce pic bois sur la branche, la photo a une bonne composition, netteté et de jolies couleurs. Bonne journée.

Pierre

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