Our Research on Red-headed Woodpeckers in Ontario Starting in May 2010 in Northumberland County, Ontario the first intensive study of Red-headed Woodpeckers in Ontario was initiated. The study’s main objective is to understand why Red-headed Woodpeckers are disappearing so quickly from the landscape by assessing various threats and habitat requirements. Since most Red-headed Woodpeckers nest on private land, we also want to spread the word about this species and create interest in its conservation. The initiative for this project stems from a Ph.D. thesis with joint efforts from McGill and Trent Universities, as well as continual and invaluable help and support from many other groups. Plans are for an intensive research and education campaign on Red-headed Woodpeckers in Ontario from 2010 – 2013. Afterwards we hope that continued interest, monitoring and conservation of Red-headed Woodpeckers will lead to both a greater understanding of this charismatic species and to its recovery to a self-sustaining population in the province. But we certainly can't get there alone! Our first and foremost challenge of this project is to find Red-headed Woodpeckers to research! As the numbers of the species in the province continues to plummet, their rarity increases this challenge. We are and continue to be indebted to the keen and watchful Ontario citizens that contact us to report sightings and provide information on spots that they think might have Red-headed Woodpeckers. By teaming the eyes and hearts of Ontarians with the knowledge and skills available to us we aspire to unravel the mystery of the disappearing Red-headed Woodpecker!
Why study Red-headed Woodpeckers? Information gaps Despite their charisma (how can you not like that crimson head!) very little research has been done on Red-headed Woodpeckers, indeed this is not only the first study in Ontario but also the first in the entire country! Their decline in Ontario is happening so quickly – 60% loss in 20 years! – that if we don’t act now they will have disappeared and we will never know what happened! Several threats have been suggested but with so much of the species life history a mystery, where do we start? Thus before recovery and conservation can truly begin we need to have a better understand of what the species eats, where it chooses to nest, what competition it faces and many other aspects of its ecology. By studying Red-headed Woodpeckers in Ontario, we can also tailor the management and recovery of the species in the province specifically to our findings there.  This Red-headed Woodpecker is gorging on ripe mulberries, but what else do they eat? Photo by Brian Tang  Red-headed Woodpeckers often stay near the top of the canopy making it a challenge to make observations and leading to a sore neck! Photo by Barbara Frei The importance of public sightings and participation Sightings of Red-headed Woodpeckers  Red-headed Woodpecker at peanut feeder Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Red-headed Woodpecker will come to bird feeders, especially suet or peanut feeders. They are often quite aggressive with other birds and will chase them away when they come to feed. Around humans they can be quite shy and often will fly away when approached while feeding. In spring they can also be heard calling or drumming within their territory, if you are lucky enough to find one that is! Potential habitat reports Although Red-headed Woodpeckers tend to be conspicuous at feeders and when they are establishing their territories, they can easily be overlooked when nesting in an obscure woodlot or treed pasture. Our team tries our best to scope out the all the possible places that Red-headed Woodpeckers can be found in the counties we are working in: Northumberland, Durham (2010-2012) and hopefully Norfolk (2011-2012). But despite our maps and efforts, we don’t know the area as well as the people living in these areas! If you own habitat where you think Red-headed Woodpeckers may be found or know of someone who does, we would love to hear from you. Both farmers and landowners can benefit through various tax-incentive programs by providing habitat for species at risk on their land. Good for Red-headed Woodpeckers and good for you!  How we are studying Red-headed Woodpecker On the search for a rare species! The first and perhaps the most challenging step of the project is to find breeding pairs of Red-headed Woodpeckers in Ontario to study. Using the sightings reported by the public and by scouring the area for possible habitats, we survey possible breeding sites using playbacks of Red-headed Woodpecker calls. Red-heads are very territorial and will react strongly if they hear another Red-head in their territory. This allows us to discover where they are and if they are nesting, to track down their nest. How successful is a nest? Once we find an active nest we monitor the nest by revisiting the site every few days and record what stage it is at. For those nest we can reach with our Elevated Video Inspection System (EVIS) we can take a 'peep' at each visit so we know exactly the number of eggs, nestlings and the age of the nestlings. But since some of these nests are higher than we can reach (15 m +) we can give a good guess at the nest's age by the parent's and nestling behaviors (i.e. incubating = eggs, feeding=nestlings, soft peeps = young nestlings and head-sticking-out-of-hole = older nestling!) Why nest in that woodlot? Following nest completion (i.e., nest failure or successful fledging of young woodpeckers), we measure the habitat characteristics of the nest tree, the area directly surrounding the nest and the overall characteristics of the habitat the nest site is in. This will help us understand why Red-headed Woodpecker are choosing to nest where they do and how this choice helps them be more successful in their nesting attempts. |
Have You Seen a Red-headed Woodpecker?  Photo by Michael Hogan Contact the research team at: Every sighting is important! Our work is based in Northumberland, Elgin, and Norfolk County News and Updates A Second Year : 2011 Researchers from McGill and Trent University have returned to south-central and south-western Ontario to study Red-headed Woodpeckers again in 2011. We are again very thankful to the welcoming community members and invaluable help from local birders and naturalist! Old News : 2010  May 13, 2010 First nest found in Northumberland County! Thanks to a handy tip from the landowners who were receiving daily visits from a Red-head at their feeder. Due to the birds aggressive nature at the feeder their named him King Kong. Thus we name this nest the Kongs!  May 20, 2010 The second nest was found today, thanks to another handy tip from a neighbor! He was very happy to have visits from a pair of woodpeckers at his peanut feeder. And after many hours of searching, we were very happy to find the nesting pair. As they were tricky to find we've dubbed them Mr. and Mrs. Smith.  May 25, 2010 Some sad news today. A freshly made Red-headed Woodpecker nest was found in Cobourg, Ontario but it has already been taken over by one of the numerous European Starlings in the area. A nearby resident that was keeping an eye out of the Red-headed pair said that they put up a gallant fight but after 2 days of skirmishes they lost the nest. |
