A cold front came through yesterday and today finally felt like fall. The skies are clear and the air crisp. The calls of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker can be heard throughout the swamp. When this bird migrates south for the winter, it ends up here.
As you walk through the swamp, you may see rows of holes drilled in trees with some drilled from the ground to the crown. All of these holes are the work of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. The bird will either eat the sap oozing from the holes or the insects that are attracted to the oozing sap. In the spring before the Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers depart, returning Ruby-throated Hummingbirds may use these sap wells to supplement their diet.
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