A gardening expert has shared dramatic footage of the moment an unexpected “helper” arrived on her patch.
The proud homeowner took to TikTok [user West Coast Plants] after realising a woodpecker was getting himself acquainted with her garden. “I had a helper in the garden… this is a beautiful male pileated woodpecker,” they penned a caption.
The stunning bird, characterised by a red cap and red line from the bill to the throat, could be seen in West Coast Plant’s video gleefully pecking at felled logs. The short clip concludes with the woodpecker making a beeline for a nearby tree in order to resume pecking from a much higher altitude.
According to the Audubon Society, woodpeckers are called ‘keystone species’ due to their crucial role in creating habitat suited to other woodland wildlife. As such, abandoned woodpecker nest-holes become nests or roosts for small owls and ducks.
The Audubon Society adds: “Swifts, bluebirds, swallows, wrens, and other birds, as well as many mammals, make use of these holes. The snags can become multi-level condominiums for a whole host of wildlife. A venerable, dead tree, broken off at the top and perforated with multiple cavities, may actually be one of the most valuable trees in the forest.”
The capture is such an incredible one because people can go for decades without seeing the beautiful birds.
Writing in response to West Coast Plants’ video, one TikTok user gushed: “They are magnificent creatures. I seen a woodpecker that looked like that but he was much bigger in east Oklahoma of all places. The only one I’ve EVER seen in 63 years.”
A second person wrote: “Omg! This looks like the woodpeckers we had at my grandparents’ when I was growing up in New Mexico!”
Whilst a third indvidual quipped: “Those birds are HUGE! And kinda creepy looking.”
West Coast Plants added in reply: “They are spectacular, though sometime we surprise each other when they are on the vine above our deck, eating berries. I’ll walk under the trellis and then a huge bird flies out. Not sure who’s more startled.”
According to the RHS, three species of woodpecker are found in the UK. The charity’s website explains: “The great spotted woodpecker is a common sight at garden bird feeders. The green woodpecker is shyer, most likely to visit larger gardens particularly those with expansive lawns. The lesser spotted woodpecker is in decline and rarely seen.
The RHS adds: “Woodpeckers are present throughout the year but are particularly active and visible in gardens during spring. Keeping bird feeders topped up with peanuts, sunflower seeds and fat balls and leaving dead wood which house wood-boring insects will encourage great spotted woodpeckers into your garden. Leaving areas of long grass for ants and insects will also create ideal habitat for the green woodpecker.
“Woodpeckers breed in holes they peck in dead heartwood. Four to six eggs are laid inside between April and June (1-3 clutches per year). They hatch after around two weeks and chicks spend just over three weeks in the nest before fledging.”
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