Lessons Of The Grey Headed Woodpecker

Sattal, Uttarakhand. Male Grey Headed Woodpecker : Pics 1, 2, 3 & 4. Female Grey Headed Woodpecker : Pics 5, 6, 7 & 8

Woodpeckers are pretty amazing. The original drummers that go at 100 or so bpm with their faces. Yep ! I’d say that’s the average of any metal band’s catalogue as far as beat time goes.

I never had the chance to observe these guys until I was in Sattal and watching through my lens. The Grey Headed Woodpeckers were the ones I saw the most of and it was also the first bird I ever saw bathe himself (Pic 2, 3, 4). I had no idea the little guys were so thorough. We never had bird baths or feeders in the city growing up.

Second, see how the tail rests on the tree. (Pic 5, 6, 7, 8) If you look at the tail and the legs together, it forms a tripod so that our bird can stay balanced while belting out that beat. Cymbals, choke, snare drums, the most used parts of a drum kit all rest on tripods traditionally. Hah !

These guys aren’t very good vocalists you see, so they drum at it to communicate, to find food, to make a home, to find mates. They’ll even drum at your tin roof if they have access. Our grey headed friend does have a short song though it’s not the same for all kinds.

Finally, Ive taken many pictures of birds with the third eyelid pulled on. The nictitating membrane, nature’s goggles so to say, to protect eyes. Ask any biker how important eye coverage is. Well, the female woodpecker seen in pics 5 & 6 let me catch that action. It’s amazing how it’s structured to just slide in and out. I think we’d all be a little cooler ourselves if our own built in goggles had not gone vestigial. Imagine The Matrix with those goggles. How cool would that look?