Hello Feathered Friends Lovers,
Let me present the Green Woidpecker also known as European Green Woodpecker(Picus viridis).
This is the bird I am always happy to meet and photograph. This year I have many encounters, early in the spring I saw at least one juvenile bird and I wish to think that is the same but as an adult.
The photos from today are of male woodpecker. More often we can hear his loud call, which reminds me of a laughter.
The Green Woodpecker belongs to order Piciformes, family Picidae.
It is a relatively big woodpecker, 30-36 cm in lenght and with wingspan of 45-51 cm.
It is easy to identify it as its back is green, head with red cap, black around the eyes and moustache. And the feature that distinguish male from female is the red in the moustache. The female has only black.
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This woodpecker is wide spread across Europe and in some parts of Western Asia. Nests in oaks, beeches, willows and fruit trees, the hole is slightly bigger than the ones drilled by other woodpeckers. This is a job of a male to drill it. The brood is 4-6 eggs, chickens hatched after 20 days and leave the nest after another 24 days.
The favourite food is ants and very often you can see it foraging on the ground. If not on the ground or tree, you can see the bird perching on lamp posts or railings.
After chasing the bird from tree to tree, he decided to stop first on a lamp post (pictures did not turn good enough) and then on the metal sort of railing that holds the wires for the trolleys. After that he flew further and I lost him, while crossing the street. Later I heard his call again, but it was too far.
If you want to hear the sound of the green woodpecker click the link. It is from the site Birds in Bulgaria.
I read that the bird is shy, but when I was in our Sea Garden, the biggest park of the town, I have the pleasure to watch it very close, perhaps the abundance of ants kept the bird so busy to be worried of my presence and the passers by.
Source of information:Wikipedia and my own observations.
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We have them in our area too but I am never able to capture them. Whenever I pass by the old apple trees I can be sure to spot one. Great shots though 👍 .
Thank you @bulldog-joy!