Hobbies And Interests
Appearance
Male yellow-bellied sapsuckers have red-and-black foreheads, red throats bordered by black, black stripes across the eyes, black-and-white backs, yellow bellies and black wings with white stripes. Females resemble males but have white throats. Juveniles resemble their parents but don't have red on their heads or throats, and their bodies are predominately brownish.
Habitat and Range
Yellow-bellied sapsuckers live in wooded areas that contain deciduous trees or trees that lose their leaves in fall or a mixture of deciduous trees and conifers. They spend their summers in Canada and their winters in the Southeastern United States, Mexico and Central America. Females generally migrate farther south than males. According to the Smithsonian National Zoological Park, there is a 75 percent chance that a yellow-bellied sapsucker spotted in Mexico, Central America or the West Indies is female. If it is spotted in a U.S. state, it is probably male.
Harvesting Sap
A sapsucker begins harvesting sap by wounding a tree with a few horizontal holes. The sap then accumulates just above the wound and the sapsucker can lap up the sap with a brush-like tongue. The sapsucker will enlarge these holes over the next few days as it harvests more sap. The sapsucker will then add new holes above the old holes. Researchers have noticed that sapsuckers often choose trees that are already sick or damaged, possibly because sap in sickly trees is high in protein and amino acids. Researchers aren't sure how sapsuckers overcome the trees' defenses that prevent sap loss by sealing off wounds. Some researchers suspect that sapsucker saliva contains a chemical that prevents the sap from clogging and sealing over the sapsucker's holes.
Raising Young
Male yellow-bellied sapsuckers are heavily involved in raising the young. They choose the breeding area and nest site, excavate the hole for the nest, clean the nest and share incubation duties equally with the female. When the nest is complete, the female will lay two to seven eggs, which the parents will incubate for two weeks. After the babies hatch, the parents feed them insects coated with tree sap. The babies are old enough to leave the nest when they are three to four weeks old.
Natural Benefits
The yellow-bellied sapsucker's ability to keep sap flowing benefits many other species. Hummingbirds, nuthatches, warblers, other woodpeckers, squirrels, porcupines and bats all feed on the sap that the sapsucker makes available. Many species feast on the insects the sap attracts. The ruby-throated hummingbird is a major beneficiary of the yellow-bellied sapsucker. Without the yellow-bellied sapsuckers' sap wells, the ruby-throated hummingbird couldn't survive in its Canadian breeding grounds. Tree sap has similar sugar content and nutrients to the flower nectar eaten by hummingbirds, so it is a good substitute in areas where flowers are rare.