by Roland D. Hallee

You catch a fast-moving, swooping bird navigate through the thick forest of trees. It looks more like a shadow. What was that? It lands on the trunk of a nearby tree, and begins a slow, rolling whacking sound against the bark of that dead tree.  You look closer, it’s a pileated woodpecker.

Although very common in the eastern United States, it can sometimes be quite elusive. You don’t generally see them often, because they prefer the protection of dense deciduous or coniferous forests.

The pileated woodpecker, Dryocopus pileatus, lives in Canada from British Columbia east to Nova Scotia. It can be found in most areas of the eastern United States, and west from Washington state south to California and east to Idaho and North Dakota.

Their numbers have increased from 1966 to 2014, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Partners in Flight estimates a global breeding popultion of 1.9 million with 67 percent living in the U.S. and 33 percent in Canada.

The reason for the subject of this bird this week is the numerous photos that readers have been sending to this newspaper.

I have seen several of these birds around camp, and even saw one, once, sitting on an apple tree stump in my backyard, in the middle of Waterville.

The pileated woodpecker is one of the biggest forest birds on the continent. It is close in size to the crow.

They drill distinctive retangular-shaped holes in rotten wood to get at carpenter ants and other insects. They are loud with whinnying calls. They also drum on dead trees. There flight is undulated (a bounding motion) as opposed to other birds straight flight paths.

Besides carpenter ants, pileated woodpeckers like woodboring beetle larvae, termites and other insects such as flies, spruce budworm, caterpillars, cockroaches and grasshoppers. They will also eat wild fruits and nuts. However, ants comprise 40 percent of their diet. Occasionally, you will find a pileated woodpecker at backyard feeders for seeds or suet.

Building a nest is quite a construction project that can last up to six weeks. The male begins excavating the nest cavity and does most of the work. The entrance hole is oblong rather than the circular shape of most woodpecker holes. For the finishing touches, the bird climbs all the way into the hole and chips away at it from the inside. The female begins to contribute as the nest nears completion. The cavity depth can be from 10 to 24 inches.

Of course, then you have the disagreement on how to pronounce the name. Well, in actuality, it can be pronounced two ways. You can use he soft “i” as in pill-ee-ated, or the hard “i” in pile-ee-ated. So, now we should have no arguments about that subject.

Many people, though, confuse the pileated woodpecker with the ivory-billed woodpecker.  The ivory-billed woodpecker is the largest woodpecker in North America, other than the imperial woodpecker of Mexico, which is feared to be extinct. The pileated is the second largest. Because of habitat destruction and, to a lesser extent, hunting, the numbers of ivory-billed woodpeckers, Campephilus principalis, have dwindled to the point where it is uncertain whether any remain, though there have been reports that they have been seen again, in Florida and Arkansas, although nothing has been substantiated. According to various sources, including the Cornell University Lab on Ornithology, almost no forests today can maintain an ivory-billed woodpecker population. Ivory-billed woodpeckers were most prominent in the southeastern U.S.

So, if you see that large woodpecker in Maine woods, you are most probably seeing a pileated woodpecker.

by Katie Ouilette

Well, here you are!  Yes, your accolades to Karen Lambke for doing such a superb job in making the Kneading Conference and Bread Fair so successful again this year, and certainly the many who attended the Run of River’s many activities deserve so many thanks for the organizing and hard work to bring fun to the many who attended.  Speaking of ‘attending,’ many thanks to the many supporters, as well.

Next, we shall welcome those who have planned another Skowhegan State Fair for us.  Imagine it, faithful readers, our Skowhegan State Fair is the oldest continually operating fair in our U.S.A.!   WALLS, much has changed over the years with our wonderful fair. Goodness, I remember when women and little girls got all dressed up and the men wore their Fedora hats. What’s more, the walk through the Exhibition Hall brought new and exciting things for folks to learn about, as they met friends and talked-the-talk during the walk.  Those were also the days of fish swimming in the water that had been prepared for them under the grandstand.  Oh, yes, the ‘back gate’ became a reality as we drove past the sign for Joe and Katherine Cayoette’s Somerset Motor Lodge,  The Roxiettes danced to entertain and the Banana Man did likewise every night.  Yes, and we had fireworks after each night show.  WALLS, have you ever wondered why those animals kept their cool and didn’t stampede through it all?  Oh, yes, the horses will race, but only at night, this year!  Well, as Judy Garland once sang:  “Hi-ho, come to the fair.”  Oh, lest you forget, WALLS, the Allan Karns Building is now showing floral displays….but, when we were young, we could ride by or bike past the magnificent display of gladiolas that Allan planted on Greenwood Avenue, in Skowhegan.

Y’know, WALLS, you made some promises to Vi Ferland, of the Skowhegan Garden Club, and you should tell folks about it.  Yes, yes, when she was asked how to ‘let folks know,’ she quickly told them about WALLS.

First, Vi told you about Amanda Black’s creating a beautiful wedding spot for those who prefer to plan an outdoor event.  She is a hair stylist, but she and her husband have purchased a home on Norridgewock Avenue, in Skowhegan, and hope they will have many brides-to-be calling them with a preferred wedding date.  They have also done over the historic barn, in case the couple prefers to not worry about our ‘sometimes’ unpredictable weather.

Secondly, Vi told you about the Skowhegan Garden Club’s planting a tree in honor of Charlotte Tripp, at Coburn Park, on August 16.  10 a.m. is the gathering time.  Yes, Vi told of the many good deeds that Charlotte did when a member of the garden club, and that ‘doing good for people young and old’ was her life’s work.  And WALLS adds (Surprise to Vi and Edna) that Edna Marshall and Vi Ferland are the ‘eldest’ members of the Skowhegan Garden Club.  Y’all invited!

In ‘signing off’ for this issue of The Town Line……….we hear about ‘older’ folks, but we are truly lucky to have folks who remember the goodness of days past.