Woodpeckers: The Perforated Pantry

Along North America’s West Coast and much of the Southwest, thousands of holes riddle trees, telephone poles, and even wood houses. It’s not termites or a wood-eating disease—just a sign that acorn woodpeckers have been busy preparing for winter.

In the region’s damp winters, piles of acorns would mold. So the acorn woodpecker drills holes into dead, dry wood—the perfect place to store an acorn arsenal. In fact, the acorns fit so tightly, other creatures can’t remove them.

One problem: Acorns shrink as they dry. So the acorns eventually need to be moved to smaller holes. Throughout the winter months, the woodpecker keeps busy rearranging its food. And all that work has long-term benefits since the woodpecker uses the same perforated pantry year after year.

At first glance these trees may look as if they were used for target practice, but instead, they’re reminders that the Creator provided wood and carpentry skills so these birds could build pantries for their own survival and for their Caretaker’s glory.

Article was taken from Answers magazine, November–December, 2019, 36.