Adult Male showing detail of tongue.
Once the woodpecker has located grubs or other insects, it skewers the prey with its tongue.
The tip of the tongue is hard with a sharp point. After the tip penetrates the soft body of a grub or soft insect, the tiny rear-facing barbs grab hold as the woodpecker withdraws its tongue with the insect impaled on it.
(Courtesy of and to see more detail see http://www.hiltonpond.org/thisweek030308.html)
Banded and released unharmed by certified master bird bander, Fred Bassett, Fort Morgan, Alabama