FIG. 6. FLICKER.
WOODPECKER.
The favorite of this interesting family is the little downy, Fig. [7]. Living largely upon harmful grubs and insects, this bird does an immense amount of good by protecting our forests from insect scourges. Woodpeckers do not build nests as most birds do, but excavate a deep cavity in some dead tree leaving a quantity of chips at the bottom on which the eggs are laid. Nesting boxes should be of the rustic type made as shown in Fig. [12], leaving some sawdust mixed with a little earth in the cavity. These houses should be placed on trees in a park or orchard. Boys should be able to tell the difference between the woodpeckers beneficial to man and the sapsucker whose misdeeds often cause considerable damage to fruit trees. A nuthatch is also seen in Fig. [7] enjoying a meal of sunflower seed.
FIG. 7. DOWNY WOODPECKER (ABOVE) NUTHATCH (BELOW).
FLICKER.
The flickers spend much of their time on the ground in search of ants which form the larger percentage of their food. Since ants sometimes cause considerable trouble for other birds, a pair of flickers are worth cultivating for the sake of the work they can do. Artificial nesting boxes of sufficient depth and size are quite readily used, Figs. [6], [20] and [25].