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No Pounding Headache

Doesn't that hurt?
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© Paul Bannick

The Pileated Woodpecker makes loud, hard whacks, as it leans back and then slams its bill into the side of a living tree. Sounds painful, if not downright disabling! How does the woodpecker's brain withstand it? All woodpeckers have an enlarged brain case, so the brain sits above the level of direct hammering impact. The skull's frontal bones - together with a set of muscles at the bill's base - act as a shock absorber.

Find your local Audubon chapter and learn more about birds.
Support comes from Sasquatch Books, offering BirdNote, the Book – for holiday gift giving. With stories of 100 birds. More at SasquatchBooks.com.

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BirdNote®

No Pounding Headache

Written by Bob Sundstrom

[Loud drumming of a Pileated Woodpecker] 

As any artisan knows, when you have a job to do, it pays to have the right tools.

[Loud drumming of a Pileated Woodpecker]

This is BirdNote. And THAT is a Pileated Woodpecker, as it leans back and then slams its chisel of a bill into the side of a living tree. Now, most animals would be knocked unconscious by slamming their faces into a tree at twenty-five miles per hour. 

[Loud drumming of a Pileated Woodpecker]

But not this one. A skilled carpenter. Its head is its primary tool. And it's highly evolved for the job. All woodpeckers have an enlarged brain case, so the brain sits above the level of direct hammering impact. The skull’s frontal bones, folded at the base of the bill, act as s shock absorber, together with a set of muscles there.

Now out comes the woodpecker’s amazing tongue, at least three times the length of its bill, with sticky barbs at the tip, to snag ants and other insects deep in the tree. When not extended, the tongue is sheathed up the back of the bird’s skull, curling all the way around to the eyes! 

[Loud drumming of a Pileated Woodpecker]

So knock on wood! If you’re lucky, there’s an Audubon chapter near you, ready to help you learn more about the amazing abilities of birds. Begin with a visit to our website, birdnote.org. I’m Michael Stein. 

[Call of Pileated Woodpecker]

Support comes from Sasquatch Books, offering BirdNote, the Book – for holiday gift giving. With stories of 100 birds. More at SasquatchBooks.com.

###

Call and pecking of the Pileated Woodpecker provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Excavating sound of Pileated Woodpecker [119461] recorded by G.A. Keller. Hurried call of Pileated Woodpecker [63129] and pecking of Pileated Woodpecker [47703] recorded by D. S. Herr.

BirdNote's theme music was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.

Producer: John Kessler

Executive Producer: Dominic Black

© 2014 Tune In to Nature.org     December 2016/2018    Narrator: Michael Stein

ID#122205peckKPLU           woodpecker-02d

Bob Sundstrom
Writer
Michael Stein
Narrator
Paul Bannick
Photographer
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Related Resources

Learn more about why woodpeckers don't get headachesPileated Woodpecker - More at All About BirdsFind your local Audubon chapterWatch this Red-breasted Sapsucker, pounding away!

More About These Birds

Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)

Dryocopus pileatus

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Birds connect us with the joy and wonder of nature. By telling vivid, sound-rich stories about birds and the challenges they face, BirdNote inspires listeners to care about the natural world – and take steps to protect it.

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