Sauvie Island Gift

Not this bird, but listen. In the woods we hear the sound, a hollow knocking high above. Startled by us on the path below, a remarkable creature takes flight and lands on a treeside nearby. A shaft of sunlight penetrates the crested head and oh, such delight. Dryocopus pileatus, the largest woodpecker in North America! His ruby crest illumined, his face marked by a black stripe on a white background, the long feathered body, a strong dark beak. Minutes later we witness the flap and flight glide as the Pileated woodpecker circles and is gone. A Sauvie Island gift.