Evidence of the presence of Pileated 
     
    

    
     Woodpeckers is relatively easy to detect. 
     
    

    
     Bent (1964) describes this species as 
     
    

    
     furtive, rather silent in midsummer, and 
     
    

    
     easily eludes observation", perhaps 
     
     Pchtcd explaining why few sightings of this 
     
     \Voodpccker crow-sized woodpecker have been reported 
     
     for Prince Edward Island. Despite this 
     
     fact, the borings created by these 
     
     woodpeckers in their search for food are 
     
     rather distinctive. The holes will tend 
     
     to have amazingly square corners, and are 
     
     normally 3 or more inches wide. Galleries 
     
     created by carpenter ants are often 
     
     visible inside the holes, although 
     
     Pileated woodpeckers will create similar 
     
     holes while searching for other 
     
     wood-boring insects. If the holes are 
     
     created in trees or stubs with sound 
     
     wood, the wood chips on the ground will 
     
     be quite large, often three or more 
     
     inches long. Wood chips from rotten wood 
     
     will, of course, be much smaller. Bent 
     
     (1964) explains that the borings may run 
     
     together in large furrows. In Townsend 
     
     Woodlot I observed one such furrow that 
     
     was 4 to 5 inches wide and over 5 feet 
     
     long. Quite often the smaller holes will 
     
     be situated around the base of the tree, 
     
     about one foot above the ground. 
     
    

    
     However, caution must be taken as other woodpeckers may sometimes produce 
     
     boring which appear quite square, although these holes will be much smaller 
     
     than those of the Pileated Woodpecker. The large size of both the holes and the 
     
     wood chips removed thereof are quite good hints to identify Pileated Woodpecker 
     
     work. Any areas containing such sign would be worth further scrutiny during 
     
     spring and early summer. , 
     
    

    
     Although definite confirmations of Pileated Woodpecker breeding have 
     
     eluded us thus far, it should be just a matter of time before this happens. 
     
     Hopefully, once this majestic bird is reestablished here it will become a 
     
     permanent resident of the Island's bird community. 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     QUESTIONNAIRE RETURNS SLOW BUT ENCOURAGING 
     
     Only 10 of the NHS questionnaires included with issue # 110 of the 
     
     newsletter have been returned to date but these ten have included some great 
     
    
   
   
    
     speaker and story ideas. Please ensure that you return yours as soon as 
     
     possible so that we can use your advice to modify programs. 
     
    
   
   
    
     - 5 _