Why does a woodpecker peck?

Tap-tap-tap-tap. You may have heard that sound while walking in the woods, or maybe in your own backyard. It’s a woodpecker (啄木鸟). Why do woodpeckers work so hard to drill (钻) holes in trees? They have the following reasons.

Someplace to live

Every year, the woodpecker carves (雕刻) a warm new nest hole in a tree.  When a male and a female woodpecker want to start a family, they work together to make a nest cavity (洞).

After the young woodpeckers are hatched, they live in their parents’ nest for about a month. The parents may continue to feed their children for a while after they have left the nest.

Something to eat

Delicious insects live under tree bark (树皮), and dead trees are full of bugs. These include insect eggs, immature insects, insects that are changing into adults, and adult insects.

A hungry woodpecker has all the right equipment to catch bugs for lunch. Four toes on each foot, two pointing forward and two backward, make perfect hooks for climbing up tree trunks. A tail that acts like a spring also helps. The woodpecker leans  back and bounces up the tree.