Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: Notesfiles; site hpfcmp.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!think!harvard!seismo!hao!hplabs!hpfcdc!hpfcla!rjn From: rjn@hpfcla.UUCP Newsgroups: net.consumers Subject: Re: Re: Woodpeckers (cautionary note... why are they pecking?) Message-ID: <34800005@hpfcmp.UUCP> Date: Thu, 31-Oct-85 23:47:00 EST Article-I.D.: hpfcmp.34800005 Posted: Thu Oct 31 23:47:00 1985 Date-Received: Thu, 7-Nov-85 06:37:03 EST References: <232@rtp47.UUCP> Organization: 31 Oct 85 21:47:00 MST Lines: 21 re: "woodpeckers ... sometimes they must peck just to peck.." It may be a form of beak growth control. Parrot beaks are said to grow at up to 3 inches per year. They grind the upper mandible down by chewing on hard materials (lava rock or cuttlebone in the case of pets) and grind the lower against the upper. If a parrot can't control its beak growth, you're faced with beak trimming, which can be very unpleasant, since there are blood vessels surprisingly near the tip. A woodpecker probably has a maximum beak length, or a maximum distance that it likes to maintain between the tip of the beak and the tip of the tongue. If the distance gets too great, the bird may drop the meal before it gets to the back of the beak. If the your region contains mostly soft woods (e.g. pine vs oak), woodpeckers may be experiencing excess beak growth, and using your metal trim to compensate. The pecking could also be to attract a mate. Regards, Hewlett-Packard Bob Niland 3404 East Harmony Road [ihnp4|hplabs]!hpfcla!rjn Fort Collins CO 80525