Hundreds of 'fire feasters' swarm charred High Level forest
Weather Network meteorologist Kevin MacKay was in High Level, Alberta as wildfires raged through the area earlier this month.
When he walked through the woods of one charred area he expected to be greeted by silence. Instead, he heard the methodic strikes of hundreds of woodpeckers.
According to MacKay, the forest was teeming with them. Some even stopped to dine on trees that were still smoking.
Light brown marks on some of the trees indicate a recent visit from a woodpecker. Courtesy: Kevin MacKay.
'FIRE FEASTERS'
The woodpeckers that swarmed the area are black-backed woodpeckers, a species that thrives in wildfire zones.
Almost immediately after a fire sparks in a rest, several species of 'pyro' bugs move into the area. Experts say they play a vital role in revitalizing the space by chewing on deadwood and turning it back into soil, allowing seedlings to grow into healthy trees.
One species of wood-boring bug prefers to lay its eggs in the trees. Black-backed woodpeckers follow these bugs around, swoop into wildfire sites and feasting on the larvae.
According to the Montana Natural History Center, the woodpeckers can stay in a charred forest for up to 10 years before moving on to a newly-burned area.
Sources: CBC | Montana Natural History Center