Red-Headed Woodpecker

Posted on October 27, 2013 | 0 Comments

New for 2013 is Inge-Glas' Red-Headed Woodpecker Christmas ornament. Inge Glas No. 1-094-13. 5-3/4" tall.

Feeding on a tree festooned with greens, the Red-Headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) is a particularly charming member of the Inge-Glas bird collection. The Inge-Glas glass-blower family of Mueller-Blech has always been known for their production of glass birds. Birds are symbols of joy and happiness and are said to be messengers from God.

The Cornell University Lab of Ornithology provides thorough information on this majestic bird:

"The gorgeous Red-headed Woodpecker is so boldly patterned it’s been called a “flying checkerboard,”

with an entirely crimson head, a snow-white body, and half white, half inky black wings. These birds don’t act quite like most other woodpeckers:

they’re adept at catching insects in the air, and they eat lots of acorns and beech nuts, often hiding away extra food in tree crevices for later.

This magnificent species has declined severely in the past half-century because of habitat loss and changes to its food supply."

Their status is "Near Threatened."

Cornell's "encyclopedia of birds" page on the Red-headed Woodpecker even includes the opportunity to listen to their calls. Click through to their site to hear four different calls. "Red-headed Woodpeckers give all kinds of chirps, cackles, and other raucous calls. Their most common call is a shrill, hoarse tchur, like a Red-bellied Woodpecker’s but higher-pitched and less rolling. When chasing each other they make shrill charr-charr notes."

We are more than pleased that Inge-Glas has chosen this year to add the Red-Headed Woodpecker Christmas Ornament.

Posted in Birds, German Christmas, Inge-Glas

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