Knock Knock

Most days I see at least one of the bright red headed red bellied woodpeckers, but I don’t see the smaller, less colorful downy woodpeckers (Dryobates pubescens) nearly as often. They aren’t rare, mind you, but they aren’t as common as the red bellies, and they aren’t as loud or conspicuous. The little downies tend to stay further back in the woods, don’t come to the feeding stations, and are pretty quiet. They do have a quiet call, but I rarely hear it. You can hear them tapping on the trees, but they don’t dig big holes like larger woodpeckers do, so even their tapping is quieter. They also aren’t nearly as colorful as the red bellies. The females are completely black and white, while the males, like this one, have a red spot on the backs of their heads. Maybe it’s because I don’t see them as often or maybe it’s their small size, but I find the downies to be very cute. What do you think?