Arizona Woodpecker and the Sierra Madre

Found in the Sierra Madre, the Arizona Woodpecker has a special connection to the mountain range. Sharing mid-elevation pine and oaks with fellow border straddlers, these small brown birds with white and brown cheeks stand out from other Woodpeckers with their heavily marked white underparts. Uniquely, they forage by flying to the base of a tree and then spiraling up the trunk. And in courtship, the male turns himself into a paper airplane, holding his wings steady and gliding toward his mate.

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.

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