OMG! It's a . . .

. . . Red-breasted Sapsucker, sunning itself just across the green way from our deck. I have mistakenly identified this creature as a Downy Woodpecker for some time now and to find out it's true identity after a bit of scrutiny has sent me into a tither. I always thought of a Red-breasted Sapsucker as a fictional character with special powers.

The RBS has a bit of magic though too, because it drills wells or strips bark to produce sap, usually toward the top of a tree, either on the trunk or an upper branch. It then returns again and again to feed by licking the sap. It also eats insects that are attracted to the sap, and generally works around a tree trunk in horizontal lines or a checkerboard pattern.