Tongue of Red-Bellied Woodpecker

Previously, I posted a limited number of photos showing woodpeckers and hummingbird tongues. Today, I took video of the tongue of a male red-bellied woodpecker in action. When the snow was too deep to get needed suet to the feeders, I hung this feeder just outside of the porch windows.  Over the last few weeks, the birds - primarily the woodpeckers - continued to come and eat the suet. The cone shape is a result of the suet sticking to the top of the cage feeder and the reach of the woodpeckers' longer beaks.

When the suet cannot be reached with the beak, the woodpecker tongue - which as you will see is longer than the beak - does a great job at reaching the suet. Above is one frame from the below video in which you can clearly see the curved tongue coming out of the beak and touching the suet. Now take a look at the video below. Enjoy the video.

Where does this woodpecker store his tongue?  The tongue slides to the back of the head, loops upward around the back of the inside of the skull, and then forward around and under the eye.

Coming Attractions: Bird Tongues, Birds in Flight, and Strange Poses

Let me use some photos from the past weekend as coming attractions of future posts.
Bird Tongues – Yes bird have tongues. Take a very, very close look at this photo of a downy woodpecker. Look just beyond the very tip of his (he is a male, not the red patch) beak – that small, thin, light covered line is his tongue. I have a series of bird tongues that I promise to dig out and show you.
Birds in Flight – I have shown lots of hawks, egrets, heron, and vultures in flight, but I have a complete series of small songbirds in flight also. Many photos of songbird in flight are taken simply by luck. Nevertheless, they are interesting. In the second photo from this past weekend, the downy woodpecker is leaving his perch in the dogwood tree – an interesting view of simultaneous wing action and leg kick-off. In the third photo, the wren is leaving the suet feeder. From studying the photo, I believe that he starts his wing action prior to letting go with his claws.
Strange Poses – In the last photo, the Cooper’s hawk is striking a strange pose with its long tail in a horizontal, instead of its normal vertical, position. I have an eclectic set of strange pose photos.
So, please return to the Colvin Run Habitat Blog when we talk about tongues, flight, and strange poses.