Nature Blog

Incredible Adaptations

The Perfect Skull

🐦💥 How Do Woodpeckers Bang Their Heads Without Getting Hurt? The Real Story!

Have you ever seen a woodpecker hammering away at a tree? Tap-tap-tap! It looks like they’re smashing their heads into wood all day long—and somehow they’re just fine! For a long time, scientists thought woodpeckers had a kind of built-in cushion in their skulls. Like wearing a helmet made of sponge! They believed parts of the woodpecker’s head, like the beak and special bones, helped absorb the shock—like shock absorbers on a bike or a car. But a brand-new study turned that idea upside down.

🧠 Wait… No Cushion?

That’s right. Researchers used super slow-motion videos and computer models to look closely at how woodpeckers peck. They discovered something surprising: Woodpecker skulls don’t absorb shock. They act like a hammer. A really stiff hammer. When a woodpecker hits the tree, its whole head—beak, skull, and even the brain—move together like one solid piece. There’s no soft squish or spring inside. That would actually make pecking harder and slower. And a woodpecker’s job is to peck fast and hard, right?

🔬 But Doesn’t That Hurt Their Brains?

You’d think so! But here’s the clever part: woodpeckers are small. Their brains are tiny, and that means there isn’t much force when they stop suddenly. Plus, their heads are built so well that the force is spread out safely.The scientists measured how much pressure the brain feels during a peck and found it’s only half the amount that would cause a human concussion. That means woodpeckers are perfectly safe doing what they do—without needing any squishy helmet inside their heads!

💡 So What does that Mean?

Woodpeckers protect their brains not by softening the blow but by being:

• Strong (their skull is tough like armor),
• Light (less weight means less force),
• and Fast (quick hits don’t last long enough to do damage).

That’s a totally different way of staying safe!

🛠️ Why It Matters

People used to think we could design better helmets by copying the “shock absorber” idea from woodpeckers. But now we know that may be the wrong direction! Instead, we can learn from their strong, stiff, and smart design. So next time you hear a rat-a-tat-tat outside your window, remember: that little bird isn’t just knocking—it’s showing off some amazing science!

On busy Saturday night two men sat down at my blackjack table. They spoke a little louder than everyone else, enough to be heard above the clatter of the casino. Their accent and their self-assured manner suggested that they were American. I listened to their conversation, hid my growing enmity behind a hospitable smile while their story unfolded. My unmindful hands shuffled the cards. The men were trophy hunters, recently returned from a trip to the nearby national park. I don’t remember what they had gone to kill, but I do remember their offhand conversation.

“Goddam things woke me,” the one said, stacking his chips in front of him.
"Uh huh.”
“Banging against the tree non-stop like a damn machine gun; wouldn’t let me sleep.”
“Yeah?”
"I took the shotgun and went outside. They were right there, didn’t stop when I came out.”

He stopped talking when I dealt the cards, watched them intently. I pointed to his hand, “Sixteen.”
He wafted a hairy hand over the cards.
I bust. While I was paying their winnings, the man continued. “Got them both with one shot,” he said with a smile, looking at me when he said it, like he was expecting congratulations or something. I blanked him, continued dealing, already hatching a plan to kill him.
It took a few years for me to avenge the birds. I wrote a short story called Cardinal Sin about the two woodpeckers. In the story, he didn’t live to regret it.
The short story won second place in a national short story competition years later, but that wasn’t the end of the saga. I never forgot the man, often turned the story over in my mind. And over time the idea for this book grew.

The Supporting Cast

The other characters in William's adventures are drawn from real-life inspirations.

Each character represents real behaviors and relationships I've researched and observed in nature. The innate skills that different species have, their particular habits and the intricate social structures of bushveldt communities all play roles in William's world.

The Conservation Message

While creating William's adventures, I realized how important it was to share not just entertainment, but education and inspiration. Many children today grow up with limited exposure to nature, and I wanted William to serve as an ambassador for the natural world.

Through William's eyes, young readers can discover the wonder of the African bushveldt, the importance of biodiversity, and the joy of observing wildlife. Every adventure contains subtle lessons about ecology, conservation, and our responsibility to protect these magnificent creatures and their habitats.

William Woodpecker's story is ultimately about finding one’s place in the world. It is also about the the magic that happens when we take time to really observe the world around us. I hope that William's adventures inspire young readers to become nature detectives themselves, discovering their own magical encounters in forests, parks, and backyards everywhere.

William Woodpecker's bushveldt is home to many fascinating feathered friends, each with their own unique personalities and behaviors. Let's meet the real-life counterparts of the characters that populate William's world and learn about their amazing adaptations and behaviors.

The Cardinal Woodpecker

Cardinal Woodpecker (William's Species)

• Difficult Name: Dendropicos fuscescens
• How Big they Are: 13–15 cm (about a tall pencil)
• Where they Live: Woodlands, savannas, gardens across sub-Saharan Africa
• What they Eat: Insects hiding under bark, tiny spiders, ants
• Super Skill: Can hammer a tree 20× per second without a headache—its brain fits inside a skull that works like a tiny crash helmet!
• Call: Fast, squeaky “tsee-tsee-tsee” plus drumming sounds
• Did you know? Its “cardinal” name comes from the male’s bright red crown, like a cardinal’s cap

Cardinal Woodpeckers are notable for their red caps and spotted backs. These adaptable birds are excellent problem-solvers, known to cache food in tree bark crevices and even use tools to extract insects. They're also surprisingly vocal, with over a dozen different calls in their repertoire.

The Other Birds

Southern Masked Weaver

• Difficult Name: Ploceus velatus
• How Big they Are: 11–14 cm (about the size of a lemon)
• Where they Live: Savannas, grasslands, wetlands, and urban parks
• What they Eat: Seeds, insects, and nectar
• Nest: The male builds multiple woven nests out of grass to impress females—if she doesn’t like it, she tears it down!
• Colours: The adult male has a black face, throat and beak, red eye, bright yellow head and underparts, and a plain yellowish-green back.
• Did you know? These birds are some of nature’s best architects! Their upside-down nests hang like ornaments from trees.

Southern Masked Weavers are brilliant architects. Males weave intricate hanging nests from grass to woo females—who won’t hesitate to rip a bad one down! Their bright yellow plumage and black face mask stand out in trees. These birds are common in towns and wetlands and chirp loudly in chorus.

Malachite Kingfisher

• Difficult Name: Corythornis cristatus
• How Big they Are: 13 cm (as long as a crayon)
• Where they Live: Slow rivers, ponds, reeds—anywhere with clear water in Africa
• What they Eat: Mini-fish, tadpoles and water insects, caught by high-speed dives
• Super Skill: Eyes have built-in “goggles” (a nictitating membrane) so it sees clearly underwater during a dive.
• Colours: Shimmering blue-green back, fiery orange belly, electric-blue crest
• Did you know? A kingfisher can judge water refraction—so the fish it sees is exactly where it strikes!

Tiny but dazzling, Malachite Kingfishers flash electric blue as they dart over water. Expert hunters, they perch patiently before plunging for fish with pinpoint accuracy. Their sharp eyesight and built-in goggles help them see underwater. Despite their size, they’re fierce and territorial, often chasing away much larger birds.

Greater Double Collared Sunbird

• Difficult Name: Cinnyris afer
• How Big they Are: 15–17 cm (body of a sparrow, tail extra long)
• Where they Live: Flower-rich fynbos, gardens & forest edges in South Africa
• What they Eat: Nectar (long curved beak = built-in straw) plus tiny insects for protein
• Super Skill: While sipping nectar it dusts its head with pollen, pollinating flowers like a “flying paintbrush.”
• Colours: Two glowing chest bands—scarlet and iridescent blue-green—like superhero stripes
• Did you know? Males perform aerial dance battles—zig-zag flights to impress females and chase rivals.

Shimmering like a living jewel, this sunbird sips nectar with its curved beak and helps pollinate flowers in return. Males have vivid red and green chest bands and perform aerial dance battles to attract mates. Fast and agile, they hover like hummingbirds and feed from flowers or garden feeders.

Cape Sparrow

• Difficult Name: Passer melanurus
• How Big they Are: 14–15 cm (similar to a house sparrow)
• Where they Live: Town parks, farms, dry scrublands in southern Africa
• What they Eat: Seeds, crumbs, insects—will visit picnic tables for freebies
• Nest: Grass dome with side-door, often wedged in thorn trees for safety
• Colours: The male has a black head and throat with a white crescent going from the eye around the ear.
• Did you know? Cape Sparrows act as “early-warning alarms” for other birds—when they scold, everyone dashes for cover.

Cape Sparrows are clever, social birds often found in flocks near homes, farms, and picnic spots. Males sport striking black-and-white facial markings and chirp out cheerful calls. They build dome-shaped nests in thorn trees and act as nature’s alarm bells—warning other birds of approaching danger with sharp, scolding calls.

Other Characters

Tree Snake (Boomslang)

• Difficult Name: Dispholidus typus
• How Big they Are: 1–2 meters long (up to 6 feet)
• Where they Live: Trees in savannas and woodlands across sub-Saharan Africa
• What they Eat: Chameleons, birds, eggs, and small mammals
• Their Poison: Extremely potent, but they rarely bites humans unless provoked
• Colour: Green (They have excellent vision and camouflage and move silently through the trees)
• Did you know? Despite being deadly, the boomslang is shy and prefers to avoid people. Its name means “tree snake” in Afrikaans.

The Boomslang is a shy, tree-dwelling snake with huge eyes and a slender, agile body. It hunts birds and lizards with precise strikes and a potent venom, though it rarely bites humans. Its leaf-like green or brown pattern helps it vanish into branches while it waits patiently to ambush prey.

Building Forest Communities

What makes William's forest so special is the intricate web of relationships between all these species. Woodpeckers create nesting cavities that other birds use, squirrels inadvertently plant trees by forgetting cache locations, and owls help control rodent populations that might otherwise damage trees.

By learning about these real forest friends, young readers can develop deeper appreciation for the complexity and beauty of natural communities. Every walk in the woods becomes an opportunity to spot William's neighbors and observe their fascinating behaviors firsthand.

Remember, the best way to help these forest friends is to protect their habitats, avoid using pesticides that might poison their food sources, and create bird-friendly spaces in our own yards and communities. William would want all his friends, both real and human, to thrive together!