Sightings of pileated woodpeckers increase in DuPage

Once rarely seen in DuPage, pileated woodpeckers - crow-sized birds with flaming-red crests and chisel-like beaks that can be heard hammering a quarter-mile away - are being spotted in increasing numbers in some county forest preserves.

"A few lucky folks have recently observed the elusive pileated woodpecker in woodlands at Danada and St. James Farm," said district ecologist Brian Kraskiewicz, who describes the bird as mostly black with white stripes on its face and neck and a triangular red crest that sweeps off the back of its head.

Pileated woodpeckers prefer expansive woodlands with plenty of dead trees, where they pound out rectangular-shaped holes to get at carpenter ants and other insects.

In addition to hammering, they communicate by drumming on dead trees in deep, slow, rolling patterns and sending out whinnying calls. They're common in southern Illinois and other parts of the country, but disappeared from the Chicago area because of habitat loss.

Many of the recent DuPage forest preserve sightings, though, have been in areas where the district has restored woodlands by clearing invasive, nonnative woody plants such as buckthorn and honeysuckle.

"All the invasive tree removal and burn management we've done has produced a healthy environment for pileated woodpeckers," said Joe Cantore, forest district president.

"Even if sightings are increasing because pileated populations are increasing nationally, our observations still show that individuals showing up in DuPage prefer to peck in restored woodlands at preserves such as Waterfall Glen, West DuPage Woods, Fullersburg Woods and St. James Farm," Kraskiewicz said.

But Kraskiewicz adds that the destructive emerald ash borer might also be a contributing factor.

"There also could be a link with emerald ash borer and increased dead standing snags, which could provide nesting/foraging habitat," he said.

DuPage forest preserves are home to several bird species that are rare in the Chicago area, including the yellow-headed blackbird, which lives in cattail marshes; the savanna sparrow, a prairie bird that nests on the ground; the short-eared owl; and the northern harrier.