Evening star., 1950-01-09
This and That
By Charles E. Trace,ceU

Don't let the yellow-bellied sapsucker fool
you.
He is not good for your trees, and he is
not to be identified by the yellow on him.
Take good look at that bright red on his
head and beneath his neck
II these portions seemed marked or set
of by dark black lines, as if it is etched, it
is the sapsucker. which does your trees no
good.
Noisy. rollicking, he may be. but a nui-
sance. and real danger. at best and least.
Nor is he large, not much more than eight
inches long SO that many persons, looking
at him., do not think he can do much dam
age.
Do not let him fool you.
Despite his beauty, he is no bird to wish
around.
Examine him closely, if he calls watch
him carefully for time, then issue forth
and frighten him away. If you value your
trees.
especially II you have some prize naples
drive away this sapsucker, for he can do
1t real damage.
you do not chase him while the chasing
Is good some days later you will see long
wet streaks down the trees
Then you will go out to examine and dis
cover that Old Man Sapsucker has been
at work. Neat rows of good-sized holes
around and around, will show his presence.
Sap from the cambium will be leaking down.
Not only will there be this loss to the
tree, but the holes do inner damage, and
permit the entrance of diseases.
Since this is the season these birds come
around, be on the lookout for them, If you
live in the suburban areas.
This is migrating woodpecker, the most
travelling of them all.
He does not eat insects at this time. but
goes for the sap which gives him his name.
The holes he bores are so close together
that great deal more harm is done than
one might think, at first glance
The bird seems to squeal, at times, and
this has given him the name Of "Squealer." !"
Actually. he does a great deal worse than
squeal He destroys.
The end Of the sapsucker's tongue is a
veritable brush, with which he brushes up
the goody he likes so well.
This is not altogether q taste for candy.
however; the bird needs the sweet stuff.
evidently. to carry him through the cold.
There is another bad point to this bird,
not always realized. He is so small and
rather innocent looking. that sometimes his
irlend the downy woodpecker, is blamed
for what he does
This is rather tough on the downy, whose
borings seldom touch the cambium and do
no real damage
To the careless eye. the holes drilled by
the two birds may seem the same. but the
sapsucker's drilling Is 10 times as bad and
is executed In such q way that veritable
bands are made around trees.
The yellow-bellied is a fine drummer as
one might suspect by looking at him.
He selects hollow branch, and bobs his
head back and forward SO fast that the OBJ
server can't see 1t CO.
An odd fact about this bird is that he is
one of the few woodpeckers that manages
to eat more vegetable than animal matter.
He consumes many insects inimical to
man.
An authority states: while the animal
food of this bird should be reckoned In its
favor. it must be remembered that the
damage it inflicts is very serious and is
often so extensive that it cannot be balanced
by the good he does"
Damage to timber has been heavy. And
In the home place. damage to just q few
nice trees may sefm even worse.