Woody Woodpecker is real!

It’s true! Woody was modeled after the pileated woodpecker! Who knew?

Pileated woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus) are native to North America as well territories near the Great Lakes, Canada, and parts of the Pacific Coast.

The term “pileated” refers to the birds’ prominent red crests, with the term from the Latin pileatus meaning “capped.” Body lengths range from 16-19 inches long, with a wingspan of 26 to 30 inches, and weigh from 8.8 to 14 ounces. They are black with a red crest, and have a white line down the sides of the throats.

Adult males have a red line from the bill to the throat, but in the adult females these are black.

In April, large oval-shaped holes are carved out by the male in hopes of attracting a female for mating and raising young. The cavity is unlined except for wood chips, and once eggs are laid, both parents incubate the eggs for 12 to 16 days.

Predators at the nest can include weasels, squirrels, rat snakes and gray foxes. Adults have fewer predators, but are prey for red-tailed hawks, great horned owls, bald eagles and barred owls.

After the young have fledged, the hole is abandoned and it is not used the next year. These abandoned nest sites are used by many birds and animals. Owls, falcons and tree-nesting ducks rely on holes to raise their young. Other woodpeckers and smaller birds such as wrens may be attracted to pileated holes to feed on the insects found in them.

A pileated woodpecker pair stays together in its territory all year round and is not migratory, although this species is protected under the Migratory Bird Act.

Drumming is the most common way to proclaim a territory, and hollow trees are often used to carry the sound the farthest.

Drumming consists of a burst of 11 to 30 taps delivered in less than a second. So with this drumming and carving out nest sites, how are these birds adapted so they don’t suffer from brain trauma?

Skulls are designed to absorb shock and minimize damage. The bone that surrounds the brains is thick and spongy, and loaded with tiny pieces of bone that form a tightly woven “mesh” for support and protection.

Inside the skulls the brains are small and smooth, and positioned in a tight space with the largest surface pointing toward the front of the skulls. This prevents movement.

Beaks help prevent trauma, too. The upper beaks are longer than the lower beaks, and the bone structures of the lower beaks are longer and stronger than the upper ones.

The researchers think that the impact stress is displaced from the brains and distributes it to the lower beaks and bottom parts of the skulls instead.

And lastly, right before impact, the nictitating membranes beneath the lower lid of their eyes, sometimes called the “third eyelid” - close over the eyes. This protects them from debris and keeps them in place. They act like seatbelts. These membranes keep the retina from tearing and the eye from popping right out of the skull. Pretty neat, huh?

Woodpeckers’ tongues are twice the length of their bills so that they can reach for insects inside the holes they peck out. There are small barbs on the tongues much like a baby bottle brush so they capture every tiny morsel. Their tongues are also sticky. That sticky saliva helps them pull out insects they find in their holes.

When not in use, it curls around the back of their heads between the skulls and the skin.

In addition to eating insects, woodpeckers also like berries (including poison ivy berries) and nuts and they will store them for the winter. Some will even seal up their stored foodstuffs with splinters of wood that have been wet with saliva so that when they dry form a tight cover.

I often wondered with all that hammering how they don’t knock themselves off the side of the tree. Well, it turns out they have strong tail feathers for support.

One of the coolest things about woodpeckers is their zygodactyl feet. Huh? What does mean? It means that with two toes facing forward and two toes facing backward, their footing is pretty secure. See what I did there?

When climbing down a tree, they stay upright and lead with the tails first. Other insect-eating tree species of birds make their way down a tree head first.

Some scientists say that this difference allows the birds to find insects by accessing the tree in a different way and reduces competition between the species.

And I used to think woodpeckers were pretty silly thanks to Woody.

Jeannie Carl is a naturalist at the Carbon County Environmental Education Center in Summit Hill. The center rehabilitates injured animals and educates the public on a variety of wildlife found in the area. For information on the Carbon County Environmental Center, visit www.carboneec.org.