They do! Although Acorn Woodpeckers eat mostly insects and some fruit and sap during the summer months they also eat acorns and other nuts the rest of the year. Between fall and spring they create granaries from snags (standing dead trees) to store as many as 50000 acorns in the holes they drill.
Photo by Mary K. Hanson
Acorn Woodpeckers are one of the birds most commonly seen in the Effie Yeaw nature preserve (and they’re our mascot)! Unlike most woodpeckers Acord Woodpeckers live in groups and work together to gather food raise young and protect their territory.
Fun Fact: A woodpecker’s tongue is so long that when it’s not in use the tongue wraps around the skill and comes to rest in the nasal cavity!
Check out this incredible video by Cornell Lab of Ornithology showcasing these hardworking birds maintaining their acorn granary tree as well as learn more about their amazing adaptations and behaviors!
Create
Have beautiful flowering plants in your garden and an abundance of sticks?
Try creating a spring nature mobile by using this craft by Red Ted Art for inspiration! Please make sure to collect from your own yard and neighborhood and not from the protected nature preserve!
Activate
Next time you’re out on the trails keep an eye out for an Acorn Woodpecker granary tree. How many holes can you count on one snag?
Resources
Learn more about the Acorn Woodpeckers’ granary trees and the different acorns they love to eat!
Read this story about an Acorn Woodpecker’s interesting choice of acorn cache location.