1978 Walter D. Koenig 2 Melanerpes fomcicivorus El Batel, Durongu Hwy, Sinaloa, Mexico, elev. 5700 ft. 15 January We (Bar Williams and I) arrived here about 11:30 today after 4 1/2 days of traveling through Mexico. It was obvious from the start that the terrain here (beautiful but steep barrancas covered with layers of vegetation) was not going to be conducive for catching or following any Acorn Woodpeckers. Nonetheless, I walked along a jeep trail (wide footpath) for 1 1/2 hours checking out the trees and looking for birds. The main trees here consist of 2 species of pines, at least 2 species of oaks (one with big, wide leaves, other with smaller leaves), Madrone in a few areas, and some other less recognizable species. The phenology of the oaks is clearly quite interesting here: we found several trees with acorns (ripe) and one with lots of acorns below it as well (these were the species with big leaves). (This was still a small percentage of the trees). Also, I actually found one tree in full bloom bearing numerous columns of catkins! (This was the species with smaller leaves). Quite interesting. As for Acorn Woodpeckers, I finally saw one and heard a second, below me in a smallish dead pine. They were soon gone and did not reappear. While passing by the tree, I noted no sign of storage there (or anywhere else, for that matter). Maybe they don't store? or perhaps they store in the epiphytes, most everywhere in the oaks? Most of the pines were quite small, and there were almost no snags, leading me to suspect that there's been quite a lot of logging here.