1978 Walter D. Koenig Melanerpes formicivorus El Batel, Sinaloa Mexico, elev. 5700 (21 January) canyons (where he initially lead us) despite the fact that their granaries are far up the hill sides. The birds were certainly not in any one area the way one can (usually) count on them being in California. The second way these birds cope may be through the rather interesting phenology of the oaks, as well as the abundance of the acorn crop (there are many many acorns on the ground in numerous spots here) providing, at least this winter, what would seem to be a good supply of acorns in the trees at least through February-March, and possibly later. An alternative to this is that these birds (or relicts, as the case may be) might not be resident at all any more, and may have moved here for the winter from some other area where the acorn crop popped out this year. In any case it will be interesting to look at whatever notes the Old Farts (Davis, Ritelka, Leopold) might have taken on the abundance and/or distribution of AW in this area--because now, with their granaries all down, they are clearly fast approaching extinction here.