[Woodpeckers]

winter is gone to awaken and the birds are beginning their spring songs a strange hammering comes from the treetops someone working or is it some kind of spring song let's have a closer look at these eager drummers they're all woodpeckers this is the great spotted woodpecker now the smallest of them all the lesser spotted woodpecker he's as small as a sparrow and the largest woodpecker it the black woodpecker as big as a crow the drummers are usually the male birds and for their music making they choose dry branches ones that give them the best resonance and range for as always when a male is showing off he is out to attract a female [Music] as soon as a couple have found each other the music stops and work begins real precision work and it's amazing to see how close this carpenter hits past his toes nearby the black woodpecker is building his home the tree hole for this tall gentleman must be 20 inches deep and this isn't done quickly so at regular intervals the black woodpecker is relieved by his wife when she calls him he answers her in a very ceremonious way yes it takes a lot of work to cut a hole as deep as this three weeks if all goes well and nearly every year the woodpecker builds himself a new house his old houses are then taken over by many other forest dwellers this jackdaw for instance can hardly wait to the apartment to be finished but his mere appearance upsets the owner of the house under construction so much but for the time being the woodpecker quits the field the jackdaw takes the first opportunity of thoroughly inspecting the new house this is too much for even the black woodpecker but what can he do except make a big noise [Music] he can only look on as another jackdaw arrived quite unconcernedly the interlopers begin to set up house [Music] but as soon as the two are on their way again the woodpecker comes flying down in a hurry andrey occupies his premises so out with those strangers rubbish now the room is clean again a neighboring apartment is being taken over by this small fellow but nuthatch he plasters up the entrance so much that no larger sized bird can enter cunning fellow [Music] not even the Starling can get into the nuthatches home and the Starling is also looking for a place to live after 8 busy days the industrious black and spotted woodpeckers have disappeared right into the tree with powerful swings of the bill the loads of chips are thrown out the door as far as possible from now on the house is under constant guard for not only starlings jackdaws and nuthatches but other birds depend on house building carried out by woodpeckers the stock dog 2 pays regular visits and looks longingly on the woodpecker's new home [Music] work goes on for three weeks then the living quarters are finished and ready for the new generation [Music] the month of May fills the tree homes with new life in every hole hungry woodpecker babies waiting for their parents who work hard to provide them with food so that father woodpecker can carry more on each trip he keeps the food stored in his throat unfortunately we can't follow him through the door but let's look at what's going on inside the tree trunk the black woodpecker wakens his young ones by knocking gently against it and now he feed bang from throat to throat so to speak the house is built in such a way that the parents can enter head downwards after the meal father warms the little ones with his soft feathers until mother arrives [Laughter] [Music] here is another carpenter of the forest the green woodpecker occasionally he may use the same tree for several seasons but usually he chooses a new one each year like the others the green woodpecker brings up each helping singly out of his throat the food calls of the little ones sound through the forest the great spotted woodpecker has heard them he's curious and wants to look into the strange nursery but immediately the parent who doesn't think much of the visitor chases the stranger away let's follow the spotted woodpecker and see what's going on at his house the children of the spotted woodpecker have grown bigger their plumage has developed and they're able to climb as is the custom in a spotted woodpecker nursery they quarrel with one another mother would have liked to serve dinner long ago but seeing this family upheaval she decides to withdraw for the time being well peace has been restored and now dinner is served and at the same time care is taken of cleanliness meanwhile the young ones of the black woodpecker have nearly become grownups they are much better behaved at feeding time even though they have to wait an hour to between meals say what's the matter with the black woodpecker ah an enemy the kite is passing so for the moment you must watch out [Music] one morning in July we meet the young woodpeckers as they eat out for the first time their menu is a very big one spiders beetles in fact any big insects they can find special delicacies sometimes live in deep seclusion the spotted woodpecker must knock hard at branches and Trunks until he hits a hollow spot perhaps a tunnel board by beetle grubs there now he's found something the billboards again the long tongue pressed forward like the point of a harpoon and the beetle larvae are caught let's see if there's anything sorry there isn't but the young green woodpecker on the neighboring tree can stick his tongue out still Friday the one down there gets his food out of the earth he likes ants best and with his bill he digs around in their Hill but the ants don't like this they attack he's able to shake off the first ones but then it's too much for him and he has to retreat the green woodpecker tries another anthill first he picks off the centuries and then he discovers the entrance [Music] now he puts in his sticky tongue he thrusts it out several times the length of his bill and like a piece of sticky fly paper all the ants and pupae in the way are licked up the whole encampment within his reach is swept clean why there's our spotted woodpecker again what attracts him now oh that hazelnut the green woodpecker prefers his ants the spotted woodpecker this delicacy but it's a hard nut to crack he must work on it in the woodpecker smithy first he shapes a holder to wedge the nut in no it's not the right size yet again and again the nut falls down but the little fellow knows how to deal with it he ruffles his feathers and catches the nut in his apron no it doesn't work here at all he looks for a different smithy and here he succeeds right away he has been on the move almost the whole day always busy now his working hours are over while not send day flies dance in the light of the Setting Sun the pole cats and foxes leave their burrows now it's time for our young woodpecker to find lodging for the night but many holes unfortunately are already occupied this is where the tree battle is let's have a look over here Oh a sleeping dormouse and here maybe this place is vacant oh yes and so good night