Red-bellied Woodpecker--also with a Nut!
Our first birding venture since returning from Paris, to the Fort River Refuge. I've been nursing a fierce head cold, so I didn't do the full circuit; but before Marylee headed around we both saw this beauty, for at least a couple of minutes. A few seconds after this shot he picked up what could have have been an acorn (see the extra--I never got a better view of it), and carried it to a nearby tree with a spot where he could peck at it, for a couple more minutes. The only woodpecker I've ever seen carry nuts is the Acorn Woodpecker (in the southwestern U.S.), who of course does it all the time.
Edit (next day): Here's a red-bellied on our back fence in November 2014. Ornithologist's comment " [An] acorn is not unusual for this species. It is in the same genus as the Acorn Woodpecker and something of a generalist woodpecker. .. It's a female;" the red on the head continues onto the forehead of the male.
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