This morning I looked out the bathroom window and discovered a red-bellied woodpecker family (father, mother & juvenile) hitching up a nearby tree. As I got ready for work and ate breakfast, the family stayed active in the side yard. The male would fly up to the feeder and start hammering away at sunflower seeds, and the female and juvenile would stay close by and wait for him in a tree. Then they would all fly off together into the treetops. This happened repeatedly as I sat at the table eating breakfast. The female and juvenile never came to the feeder, but always waited in the closest tree for Mr. Woodpecker to crack a few seeds. It was a pleasant domestic scene and a great way to start the day!

P.S. Later in the evening the male woodpecker was back with his young charge. The juvenile waited in the tree while the male went to the feeder. When the male returned to the tree, he pecked a tiny well in the trunk, dropped some seeds in, and cracked them open. Then he fed them to the juvenile and returned to the feeder. After he left, the juvenile poked around impatiently in the well looking for more seed.