Question: I have noticed a ring of holes on my hawthorn tree. Can you tell me what may have caused this?

Answer: These are almost certainly made by the red naped sapsucker. As the name implies, the bird drills holes in the bark searching for sap and any insects that happen to be there. The sapsucker belongs to the woodpecker family. It has red on the head and the throat and is otherwise black and white striped. Like all woodpeckers it has stiff tail feathers that are used for bracing against the tree trunk, a chisel like bill and drums on the tree or branch. The sapsucker can be distinguished by its drilling, 5 rapid taps which slows down and then occasionally two taps to follow. The call is a nasal squeal. During courtship the male raises the crest on the head, performs much bowing, exhibits the red throat patch and dips the wings. These birds are solitary and spend the winters in Central America. The nest is built in a cavity and lined with wood chips. The chosen tree is aspen, poplar, birch (softer inner core) and is often near water. The young are fed by regurgitation for 2 weeks and then taught sap sucking. The sap "wells" are used by hummingbirds, warblers and kinglets, although the sapsucker does guard as best they can. An interesting fact- the male incubates and broods at night. Pat Westheuser

2005-10