This morning, Monday February 19 Chris Hockema, his brother John, Ben Frichtman, Jeff Stephenson and others found a Three-toed Woodpecker just north of Milepost 31 on St. Highway 72 north of Kelliher in Beltrami County. I was able to refind the bird later this morning, which bird is a well colored male with yellow crown patch and considerable well defined barring on the back with the back barring on a gray background. It was in the old growth stand of tamaracks on the west side of the highway amidst the many stripped trees. The woods look to be under heavy stress from the recent droughts. It has been over twenty years, as far as I know, since the last reliable record for this species in Beltrami County. There were also several male Hairy Woodpeckers present, and one with an especially large amount of white on the back
