In my mission to enthuse people about the special species of Sherwood Forest and show them the amazing wildlife of the Futurescape, I agreed to lead not one but three walks earlier this month to try and see lesser spotted woodpeckers.
Advertising a walk to seek out Britain’s smallest and most elusive woodpecker certainly did drum up interest. Originally two walks soon became three as demand soared past our limited numbers for each walk. This is no doubt a reflection of the species real scarcity nowadays - the recent bird atlas for 2007-11 shows a decline in range and its distribution is now fragmented. The BTO has more information on its website here
Sadly, we didn’t see any lesser spotted woodpeckers – some distant drumming was all we heard. There were drumming great spotted woodpeckers on display, yaffling green woodpeckers, acrobatic nuthatches and treecreepers, well, creeping up trees.
I believe! Male lesser spotted woodpecker© Mike Langman (rspb-images.com)
The RSPB is investigating why lesser spotted woodpeckers are declining and there is information to read on the new Centre for Conservation Science website on planned research and publications. The reasons aren’t fully understood at present, but it appears as though large tracts of suitable woodland are required to support a breeding pair, and a lack of food for chicks is resulting in low fledging rates.
They seem to prefer a mix of veteran oaks and birch trees in Sherwood – feeding in the outer branches of the oak crowns, drumming on dead wood in the crowns in trees known as ‘stag heads’ and excavating nest holes in birches. I’ve had some magical mornings in Sherwood watching males drumming, chasing females through the trees, and found a nest hole a couple of years ago. I was surveying for redstarts and noticed a bird mobbing a great spotted woodpecker out of the corner of my eye. Checking it out it was a female lesser spotted woodpecker near her nest hole - a truly special moment and it was a successful nest.
An oak with dead branches in the crown – typical site used by drumming lesser spotted woodpeckers © Carl Cornish
If you are fortunate enough to see a lesser spotted woodpecker please report it using Birdtrack http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/birdtrack/about
We are leading some further bird walks in partnership with Nottinghamshire County Council at Sherwood Forest NNR – a dawn chorus, redstart ramble and evening nightjar walk. Dates are just awaiting confirmation, but will be on Nottinghamshire County Council’s website, advertised at the Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre and on our Twitter account.
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