Seasonal Foraging in a Downy Woodpecker Population

Abstract

The response of a downy woodpecker Picoides pubescens population to the interaction of food availability and distribution in both time and space were studied. Spatial movement pattern and substrate choice, 2 aspects of foraging behavior, were used to study these aspects. Concerning spatial movement, findings did not suggest anything other than random movement by the birds. As to substrate usage, in the winter the birds preferred to forage on Liriodendron, Acer negundo and Quercus. The birds foraged on larger trees in the winter.