Thursday Thrill

MrsP told me to grab my camera and get to the front door. Quickly! I don’t even remember what I was holding but it was tossed aside before I jumped from my chair and hustled my way towards her. What is it, I asked, looking out the window from one side to the other. The tree was empty! MrsP assured me Big Red had been on the suet feeder, as in the red-breasted woodpecker. I continued to search without success, and that’s when it happened. Something big blew by! Dark wings swooped down behind our lilac trees. In an instant it was gone! • Then, suddenly, they appeared again on a large Maple tree across the road, but still obscured by our lilacs. What was it? I needed to know! I dashed outside to the end of our driveway and waited for it to reveal itself again. It did! A male pileated woodpecker, the largest woodie in Maine, was perched on the side of an old tree in a neighbor’s yard. My heart skipped when a second one joined him, a female! (pictured) • What a thrill!!