For the past week or so I’ve been watching a family of Downy Woodpeckers in my back yard.  My first glimpse was of an adult female feeding an insect to one of her offspring.

Since then, Mom has made herself scarce, and Dad seems to have the assignment of teaching the kids how to eat convenience food from our feeder.

The male flies to the feeder for a seed, then to the trunk of a Flowering Dogwood tree where he uses the hollowed out space of a knothole to mash the seed, repeatedly pecking at it with his beak to prepare it for consumption.  Sort of like using a mortar and pestle to make a paste.  Once the food is properly prepared, he feeds his offspring, occasionally having a bite himself.

Initially I saw the adult male with just one other bird who was flying pretty confidently, so at first I thought I might be watching a mate feeding ritual between an adult male and female.

Then three Downies appeared together, an adult male in the company of two birds that were lacking the signature red patch on the back of the head that distinguishes the adult male Downy from the female and juvenile Downies.  The adult male fed both of the other birds, and there wasn’t much squabbling, so I had to take a more careful look to be sure of what was going on.

On closer inspection, the birds that are being fed have black plumage that is somewhat duller than the adults, the white streak above the eye is broader and ends toward the back of the head with white speckles, and there are white speckles just above the beak, characteristics of juvenile birds.  Mystery solved!

So two young Downy Woodpeckers have just about successfully fledged.  They’re still looking for handouts from Mom and Dad, but they’re learning to feed themselves.

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