#sapsuckers

[platypusesforarms]

Red-breasted Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber) 🐦Natural World S36E04

The Red-breasted Sapsucker cuts a dramatic profile with its brilliant scarlet head and dapper checkerboard pattern on the back. Sapsuckers are named for their habit of drilling rows of shallow wells in shrubs and trees, and then lapping up the sap with their brush-tipped tongues. Sapsuckers are important members of their ecosystems, because many species of insects, birds, and mammals use the sapwells to supplement their own diets.

[na-bird-of-the-day]

BOTD: Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Photo: Paul Reeves

"Although its name sounds like a cartoonist's invention, the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker does exist. This species is common in the north and east, and is replaced by close relatives in the west. Quiet in winter, it becomes noisy in spring, with cat-like calls and staccato drumming."

- Audubon Field Guide

[glaciernps]

Red-Naped Sapsuckers

These are two red-naped sapsuckers, and despite what their name implies, they do not suck sap, but are actually specialized for sipping it. Their tongues are shorter than those of other woodpeckers, so they do not extend as far out. They lap sap up with the tip of the tongue, which has small hairlike projections that help hold the sap, much like a paintbrush holds paint. These birds’ nest holes make very good homes for other species as well. Many species that nest in holes don't have a specialized bill needed to carve out their own home, including mountain bluebirds, nuthatches, and chickadees. The small holes excavated by sapsuckers provide safe places for smaller hole-nesting birds to nest.

NPS Photo

[Image description: Two black and white birds with red heads perched on a tree.]

[that-crazy-scorpio-man]

Yellow-bellied sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) and, aw, it’s a juvenile that’s on its way to being an adult.  Last juvenile I saw had a brown head.

[oceanodroma-blog1]

Not a great photo, but a pretty amazing bird. This is a hybrid Red-breasted x Red-naped sapsucker in my backyard. You never know what migration (esp fall migration) will bring

[indefenseofplants]

Meeting of the sap suckers. #rhododendron #plant #plantnerd #nature #leafhoppers #appalachia #sapsuckers #ericaceae #cicadellidae #northcarolina #appalachianmountains #insectsofinstagram #insectsofig #ecology #flowers #biodiversity #temperaterainforest #southernappalachia #coweeta #fieldwork

[thalassarche]

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) - photo by Jim McCree

[na-bird-of-the-day]

BOTD: Red-breasted Sapsucker

Photo: Jerry McFarland

"The Red-breasted Sapsucker cuts a dramatic profile with its brilliant scarlet head and dapper checkerboard pattern on the back. Sapsuckers are named for their habit of drilling rows of shallow wells in shrubs and trees, and then lapping up the sap with their brush-tipped tongues. Sapsuckers are important members of their ecosystems, because many species of insects, birds, and mammals use the sapwells to supplement their own diets."

- Cornell Lab of Ornithology