Woodpecker's Relentless Pecking Offers Insight

During the past few weeks my neighborhood has played host to a busybodied male Pileated Woodpecker. He seems to be spending an inordinate amount of time hammering away on the oak tree in front of my house, and is presumably after the tasty black ants that reside within. This process causes quite a racket, but I guess I'll take the bird over the ants, who will surely hasten this poor old tree's demise. Now back to the story: Right after I snapped this photo, the branch the woodpecker was perched on fell to the ground, startling both me and this apparently dimwitted carpenter, who flew away hastily in a confused panic. I think there's a lesson to be gleaned here: If you happen to find yourself perched high up in a tree, before you do any serious pruning, check to make sure you're on the right side of the branch, or you may just wind up with the short end of the stick! -- Paul Videla