To our great joy, we spied two woodpeckers feeding in the grass at the front of our house. I had to shoot them from inside, for to open the doors would've spooked them away.
Click on the images for a bigger, better resolution photo.
I love its crested, tan-coloured head and the zebra markings on its back and wings. This was probably the guy who gave us a start at 6.30 one morning when we were rudely awakened by a knock, knock, knock at the front door.
Half asleep and rather apprehensive, I opened the door to ... no-one there. But still the tapping continued. I stealthily walked around the house and disturbed my little mate on one of the garage window shutters.
Two holes pecked in a first floor shutter show Woody's work, one on the lower left and one on the upper right. Don't know why they are next to the brickwork.
Tony, these birds are Hoopoes — huppes fasciées in French. I don't think they are woodpeckers since their family is Upupidae and woodpeckers' is Picidae. They are beautiful birds. Very good pictures, considering…
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C.-H.
Yes, you are absolutely right. Thank you for that. I looked them up and one of the pictures showed a bird pecking a hole in a tree trunk. I assumed they were woodpeckers. They are a spectacularly beautiful bird and we have seen them in the garden probing the soil for worms or grubs with their long thin beaks. Cheers. Tony
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