Two Feathered Farmland Families

     My wife and I were driving through Lancaster County, Pennsylvania farmland on the afternoon of July 18, 2015.  And it was our pleasant surprise to see two families of birds that afternoon, of species that are not seen everyday in this area.  The first family was red-headed woodpeckers and the second was American kestrels.
     A pair of red-heads were feeding young in a cavity they chiseled out near the top of a dead, broken-off ailanthus tree, one of several trees in a cow pasture near a creek and cropland. We caught a glimpse of white as one of the woodpeckers flew up to its nursery to feed its young.  We pulled the car off the country road and watched both parent red-heads feed their young in that hollow for about 20 minutes.  And as we did, we saw a ruby throated hummingbird perched on a wire fence for a few seconds and a couple pairs of yellow and black American goldfinches ingesting tiny stones from along the edge of the road to grind the seeds in their crops to mush.
     Red-headed woodpeckers live permanently in central and eastern United States.  Each pair of them raises one or two broods of young, if they can withstand competition for nesting spots with the aggressive starlings, and other cavity-nesting creatures. 
     Adult red-heads do have bright red heads and necks all over, white underparts, black backs and wings, with a large white patch on the back of each wing.  In fact, most people see those white banners on the wings as the birds fly before they see anything else of the birds.  Young red-heads of the year, however, have brown heads and necks, dark backs and wings and white on each wing speckled with dark.  The young birds are camouflaged for their safety against predation.
     Red-headed woodpeckers are omnivorous, eating both plant materials and animal life.  They chip insects from dead wood, as all woodpeckers do, but they also catch insects from mid-air and take them from vegetation on the ground.  The adaptable and versatile red-heads also consume nuts, seeds, berries, corn kernels and other birds' eggs when those foods are in season.
     A couple of miles down the rural road, three kestrels were lined up together on roadside wires as they watched the tall grass and weeds along the road we were on for grasshoppers, mice and house sparrows.  The kestrels, which I figured were part of a family of them, flew up swiftly when we passed under them, but quickly swung around and landed on the wire again to watch for prey.  These small falcons that are related to the larger peregrines flew on pointed, swept-back wings that help identify their species. 
     American kestrel pairs do nest annually in cavities of lone trees in meadows and fields, and hollows in hedgerows and farm yards.  They, too, have to tolerate competition for nesting sites and sometimes lose the rivalry with pairs of their kind, or other species.  However, these handsome raptors and screech owls also rear young in kestrel/owl nest boxes and wood duck nest boxes that were erected by kindly farmers.  Those nest boxes help increase the kestrels' and screech owls' nesting successes and both their numbers.
     One never  knows what he or she will find in nature when out for a drive or walk.  Be alert for any possibilities, in all habitats, at all times of the year and you will experience many nature treasures.