Category: Woodpeckers
Red-breasted Sapsucker in habitat
I’ve had mixed success shooting red-breasted sapsucker on the west coast. Despite visiting several locations where other photographers have easily obtained great photos, I was always hampered by either not finding them, or having uncooperative birds.
On one occasion did obtain several photos, and although the distance was much farther than I would prefer, I used slight more creative cropping to frame the bird in a pleasing way. Traditionally the general rule of thumb would have been to crop with the bird in the lower left part of the frame, but to my eye that left me with far too much of the tree trunk in the frame. To me this gives a great perspective on the typical rain forest habitat this bird lives in.
Red-breasted Sapsucker in Habitat (click to enlarge)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
A very sharp looking woodpecker, the yellow-bellied sapsucker is quite common further north in Ontario, especially in the Algonquin Park area. Their distinctive “wells” that they drill in trees serve as a food source for hummingbirds, who arrive in the northern forests well before plants begin to flower, and are thus very dependent on the sapsuckers for the sap their wells produce. The sap attracts bugs and other prey items for the sapsucker. As a result of the damage to the tree, sapsuckers are important agents of change in the northern forests.
Male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker with food (click to enlarge) - Canon 1DIII - 800/5.6IS
Male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker at wells (click to enlarge) - Canon 1DIII - 800/5.6IS