White-backed Woodpecker: winter feeding site

In winter woodpecker feeding sites are often easier to locate than in other seasons. Not in the least because of the lack of foliage on trees, but also because wood chips and other debris is easier to spot on snow-covered ground. This photo shows a typical winter feeding site of White backed Woodpecker Dendrocopos leucotos. A thin, rotting tree has been worked extensively to expose the wintering quarters of wood-boring beetles and other invertebrates. The tree is worked carefully and systematically for days, being shaving and chiselled rather than bored deeply into or hacked apart. The rucksack at the base of the tree gives an indication of how slim the tree is. This photo was taken by Romuald Mikusek in the Biebrza National Park, north-east Poland.