ocd, though downies can do damage to trees if they are excavating for nesting chambers, it is not all that common....on healthy trees. We more often see this and other woodpeckers on dying or insect riddled trees already in decline. These woodpeckers can detect borers, for example, that we cannot see and will be very persistent in retrieving them. If the trees appear to be dying, then I'll suggest that the woodpecker is simply taking advantage of the situation, and not the cause of it.

Downys also use thermoregulation in the winter to conserve energy. They can slow their heart beat and reduce body temperature - sort of a mini hibernation. I've seen many photos of people in the dead of winter going out after dark and taking pictures of downies "sleeping" in bluebird boxes. You can open the box and they dont wake up. I was meaning to try it this winter, since I have a BB box a Downy uses. I never made it out this year and the extreme cold temperatures are past us, maybe next year.

Yes, oldned is correct, this bird has it's neck extremely extended, giving it a funny looks. Here some other fledglings

I'd never heard of this but it's mentioned on Cornell's All About Birds website in the section on Food. "Downy Woodpeckers are common feeder birds, eating suet and black oil sunflower seeds and occasionally drinking from hummingbird feeders." I also found a nice reference: Birdlife: Woodpeckers stick out their tongues for nectar. "A woodpecker's unusually long tongue is mainly an adaptation to find and capture insects. After drilling a hole, a woodpecker sticks its tongue into the hole and explores for insects. The sticky barbed tip of the tongue helps capture and remove insects. Woodpeckers also explore cracks and crevices (and sometimes hummingbird feeders) with their sensitive tongues." I'd leave the feeders up until it gets really cold in case some late migrating hummers come through. The downies are probably enjoying a sweet snack in addition to their normal diet. Claire