by Sam Ashburner
Pileated Woodpecker - One of the coolest birds in our area and certainly my favorite of them all. The pileated woodpecker is the largest woodpecker in North America. Both sexes can be 19 inches long with a wingspan up to 29 inches. Mostly black overall with white stripes on their head and neck, topped with a flaming red crest. Their bill is long and looks just like a chisel. In flight, their bright white underwings are very noticeable and makes them easier to follow.
I have seen many pileated woodpeckers on the Woodland Trail moving from tree to tree in search of food and nesting spots. When a nest spot is found, both sexes will drill out a rectangular hole in dead trees and set up shop. There are many of these rectangular holes in trees along the Woodland Trail (Rochdale to N. Valley in particular). Pileated woodpeckers will forage for insects on and inside live and dead trees. Their favorite food is carpenter ants, which make up over 50% of their diet. This species became rare in Eastern North America with clearing of forests centuries ago, but has gradually increased in numbers again since the beginning of the 20th century. Pileated woodpeckers seem to have found a safe home in Roosevelt. I have seen and heard them in yards and the surrounding woods.
Rose-Breasted Grosbeak - This is an uncommon bird for Roosevelt that was recently spotted by Tim Hartley! Central Jersey is listed as an “uncommon breeding area” for the rose-breasted grosbeak which is normally spotted only in the northern part of the state. Males are black and white with a vivid red patch extending from the throat down the middle of the breast. Females and immatures are brown and heavily streaked, with a whitish stripe over the eye. Males flash pink-red under the wings and females flash yellow in flight. Both sexes are about the size of a robin. Their large, triangular bill is made for opening seeds and chomping insects.
In areas where they are common, Grosbeaks can often be found at neighborhood feeders in search of sunflower seeds. The male’s song has been described as “sweet with rising and falling notes” and as “an improved version of the Robin’s song”. They are not the best nest builders though, and many reports note that they can be “so thin and flimsy that the eggs are visible from below.” Thank you to Tim Hartley for bringing this wonderful songbird to our attention during a recent Environmental Commission meeting.
Scarlet Tanager - A true brake slammer here. The scarlet tanager is common enough in New Jersey during its breeding season (summer) but they are notoriously difficult to spot because they stay high up in the tree canopy. These birds are blood red with deep black wings and tail. In the fall, the male’s feathers turn to a green-yellow color and they migrate to South America. Females remain a green-yellow color throughout the year.
The scarlet tanager is a small, stocky songbird with a large, short bill for cracking open seeds and catching insects. Scarlet tanagers breed in mixed deciduous-evergreen forests in eastern North America. While breeding, they remain secretive and do not leave the forest. During migration, they move through a broader variety of forest and shrubby habitats, as well as backyards.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? BoroughBirds@gmail.com
To learn more about birds in our area, I suggest visiting allaboutbirds.com and downloading the Merlin app (both from The Cornell Lab). To learn even more about birds in our area, I suggest attending Roosevelt Environmental Commission meetings every third Wednesday of the month.