Woodpeckers

Thumbnails

Info

Photo Info

Dimensions3601 x 5400

Original file size7.21 MB

Image typeJPEG

Color spacesRGB

Date taken5-Jul-10 11:43

Date modified25-Dec-22 12:54

Shooting Conditions

Camera makeNIKON CORPORATION

Camera modelNIKON D2X

Focal length420 mm

Focal length (35mm)630 mm

Max lens aperturef/4

Exposure1/125 at f/4.5

FlashFired, return light detected

Exposure bias-1/3 EV

Exposure modeAuto

Exposure prog.Aperture priority

ISO speedISO 160

Metering modePattern

Digital zoom1x

Red-naped Sapsucker_Male_JF03315

It seemed like a poor choice for a nesting spot - in a busy campground, in a corner campsite only a few feet from an intersection where vehicles and trailers and people passed by often. But given how few people seemed to notice the parent's frequent trips to the nest hole, perhaps it wasn't unwise after all.

I spent 3 mornings photographing as both parents brought food to the chicks inside at a rate of about one delivery every 2 to 3 minutes. And all the while the ravenous chicks kept up a constant chorus of begging calls from deep within.

Spiders, worms, bugs and in this image a mouthful of ants were regular fare. Woodpeckers (Sapsuckers are a kind of woodpecker) have sticky saliva. Which explained how he was able to keep so many ants from escaping before delivering the goods.

Location: Glacier National Park, MT