Raptor Respite

No owl today. No Red-shouldered or Red-tailed Hawk, either (I’ll get to the Red-tailed in my next post).

This morning I got my best view of a Pileated Woodpecker I’ve ever had, when my camera was at hand. This one called from one of the trees near the shelter, then moved over near the pier (where I took this picture). Last I saw, it was pecking and dropping bark and twigs onto the north bridge.

The best view of Pileated Woodpeckers I’ve ever had (without a camera) was on Orcas Island in Washington state. I took a walk in the woods and encountered five of them, all very interested in the base of a large conifer. I kicked myself for not having my camera with me, and this was in the days before smart phones. I was close enough to them—and they didn’t seem to care about me—that a phone camera would have been quite sufficient.