[EBB Sightings] Another Pileated Woodpecker sighting in Redwood Park

This morning Marsha Feinland and I were checking out Redwood Regional Park, 
since it was the first day of the count week for Oakland. What we saw is in 
a separate message. What we didn't see was a Pileated Woodpecker, BUT ...

We bumped into two people on the West Ridge Trail who had seen a Pileated 
on  Tuesday on the East Ridge Trail. They described the location as in a 
"vertical log" (which I think I'd probably call a snag) to the right of the 
trail as you walk southward. Their normal route over the trail is down to 
the bench looking out over the canyon which is between the junction of 
Eucalyptus Trail and the south end of the Phillips Loop, where they usually 
just sit and look for birds, so they were idly chatting rather than 
actively watching when she spotted the crow-sized woodpecker on the snag. 
They had clear looks. It was a life bird for both of them.

Marsha and I interpreted what they told us differently. I thought they were 
describing one of the snags in the open area just south of the parking lot; 
Marsha thought it was further down the trail. We walked as far as the bench 
without seeing it, although we did see more than one snag with evidence of 
probes from something with a large and strong bill. We'll go back to look. 
The people we met took our phone number and will call us if they have a 
further sighting.

This makes three separate places in Redwood Park where Pileated Woodpecker 
has been seen within the last month, so we definitely know it's there. The 
problem's finding it.



Tom Condit
tomcondit at igc.org