When it comes to species of birds that, upon seeing, it is all but impossible not to stop and gape in unrestrained, unapologetic astonishment, the birds of paradise are right near – if not actually at – the top of the list. Similarly, regarding fascinating avian behavior, few can best the bowerbirds in their feats of enticement through architectural and design skills.
Living in the Pacific Northwest, some of the first birds I learned to identify were woodpeckers. After all, in Oregon alone there are twelve different species to be found; over half the total number of species listed for all of North America. Indeed, the region is so strongly identified with woodpeckers that Paradise Birding calls one of its tours “Woodpecker Wonderland.”