The active, multi-family nest tree out in the marsh. Wrentham, MA. June 2, 2023. All photographs by Bonnie Tate.

In June 2023, I was privileged to follow a beautiful pair of Pileated Woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus) as they raised their young in a protected marsh. These parents produced two amazing chicks, a male and a female. I had witnessed this beautiful spectacle before on a few occasions, but this experience was quite different. The Pileated pair had excavated their hole in a dead tree in this popular marsh that is known for its heron rookery and occasional Osprey and Great Horned Owl nests. This tree, however, was the focus of the summer’s dynamics as things rarely seen before began to unfold.