Downy and Red-headed Woodpeckers
Woodpeckers as decoys? Yes, indeed!
By: Rich Smoker
Downy and Red-headed Woodpeckers
Here on the Eastern Shore of Maryland people used woodpecker carvings as decoys. Any protein found in the woods or marshes was readily accepted for eating back in the day. Most of the decoys were yellow-shafted flickers, called “hanners” or “yellow hammers,” and people did shoot these birds for food. They were common then, as they are now. On a walk during the fall migration I counted 553 flickers that flew over me in less than an hour. For this class, which was a Road Scholar program held at the Crisfield Heritage Foundation in 2016, I decided to use some less obvious examples of woodpeckers. The downy and red-headed are some of my avian friends during deer and turkey seasons here on the shore. Give them a try—they are quick and fun