I noticed a bizarre female downy woodpecker on our suet feeder in N. Seattle today. She looked normal in all respects except that her upper mandible was long (I'd guess about 2 inches), thin, and curved downward (lower mandible looked normal). She was having an awkward time at the suet feeder but seemed to be getting some of it. I'm strictly a novice birder but couldn't find anything like this in Sibley's. Is this a common condition in these birds? I know there are red-tailed hawks with an overgrown beak syndrome, but on this bird it looked perfectly natural - no obvious growths, scaling, deformities etc. Unfortunately she was gone when I returned with my camera. Thanks, any information would be appreciated.

Donald McCall
Seattle, Washington
mailto: dmccall at earthlink.net