The California Woodpecker

John Cassin (1813-1869)
Plate 23, The California Woodpecker
From: Illustrations of the Birds of California, Texas, Oregon, British and Russian America
Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott & Co., 1856
Chromolithograph
Paper dimensions: 10.5 x 7"
Framed dimensions: 12.75 x 21"

With text below image:
The California Woodpecker, also known as the Acorn Woodpecker, is a medium-sized woodpecker that lives in large social groups in the oak woodlands of the American Southwest. The adult male can be identified by the red cap starting at the forehead, while the female has a black patch between the forehead and the cap. The bird is so named because of its fascinating tendency to collect thousands of acorns every year and store them in a tree holes made especially for that purpose. These woodpeckers like to work in groups and practice division of labor, with one member always keeping watch over the stash of acorns to guard it from thieves, while others collect and store. Their breeding habits are similarly communal, with multiple partners working together to raise the young in one nest. This bird's other distinguishing feature is a waka waka call that sounds almost like a laugh.