NEW MOUND HOUSE RESIDENTS
A pair of pileated woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus) has taken up residence at Mound House and have been seen dining on insects throughout the property, particularly at our jacaranda by the underground exhibit and our ancient strangler fig. In fact, they may even be building a nest cavity somewhere on site, so keep an eye out, its nesting season.
The pileated woodpecker is the largest woodpecker in the United States. They are mainly black with a red crest with distinctive white cheeks and white stripes on the throat. They feed mainly on insects, but also dine on fruits and berries. These woodpeckers like mature forests and wooded parks, such as our Mound House site. Theses woodpeckers carve out a rectangular hole in trees, searching for insects and for nest building. Pileated woodpeckers serve an important function for other birds. The abandoned nests and foraging cavities of woodpeckers serve as homes for many species of forest song birds.
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| Typical Pileated Woodpecker |
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| Mound House Pileated Woodpecker |
