Storytelling: The Woodpecker's Tail

Have you ever looked at a woodpecker before? I mean really looked at one. They’re pretty intriguing if you ask me. They have beautiful red heads and white bodies. Their backs and wings have black splotches or stripes, making each one unique and special in its own way. Each one really does look so different and distinguished from the next, but one thing they all have in common is their stubby tail. It really doesn’t match the rest of their stylish look. Would you be surprised if I told you that long ago they used to have a brilliantly long, embellished tail? Well, sit back and relax because I am going to tell you exactly how this transformation occurred.

Once, long ago, in the plains of Texas, there was a very large pond surrounded by tons of grasslands and trees. About every ten years a heavy, long-lasting rain would come through and flood the lands, wiping out everything in its path. For the animals living on the ground, this was a big issue. They had to prepare for these floods and plan their course of action before the rains occurred. The animals living in the waters on the other hand were much better off, excited even, when they heard a heavy rain was coming. This meant a replenished water source and no Indians out potentially catching them on a hook to eat for dinner. It had been a long while since the last major storm had blown through. So all the animals knew it would only be a matter of weeks.

 One day, a frog came hopping and splashing through the waters in a panic telling all the animals that a flood was a-coming and that everyone should run for their lives. All of the fish gathered together, looked up, and watched as all of the land animals scrambled to find their families and get to higher ground. As the fish were watching they turned to each other in excitement and imagined all of the new water coming their way. Knowing how rough the waters could be during these storms, they decided to all try and stick together and protect one another until the winds calmed down. It’s not fun in the slightest to get knocked to and fro up against the side of the pond during these storms. Each fish grabbed a buddy to make sure they were always together and they all huddled close as they watched the sky turn from bright blue to green and finally to black.

There was one small fish that could not find a buddy! He was the only young fish without any siblings and he could not find his parents. He was very much a loner and did not have any close friends so he just decided to stick very close to the large pack and crossed his fins that he would be okay. When the storm first started it really wasn’t too bad. The waters swayed, but it wasn’t anything too rough to handle. As the hours dragged on, though, the pack was really getting tossed around. The winds were savage and not letting up at all.

At one point the little fish could not take it anymore and tried to swim deeper into the water, hoping this would help get him farther from the rough waters. As soon as he broke away he was swept into a current and tossed up towards the surface of the water and thrown against the edge of the pond. The little fish had no idea what to do and had never experienced such rough waters. He looked around for something, anything, for him to grab and anchor himself onto. Surprisingly, he saw something just above his head, but he couldn’t tell exactly what it was. It was definitely not seaweed or moss, but it was something for him to hold on to so he went for it. He shot himself upward and grabbed onto the mysterious item. It was a soft and a bit slippery, but if he could just hold on for a little bit he would be okay. He immediately felt a strong tug, which caused him to bite down tighter. When he did this, he went spiraling though the water spitting out the soft, slippery item as he tumbled through the water. 

This right here is exactly how the woodpecker lost its tail. This bird had decided not to hop high into the trees like the others and when the waters rose, a little fish tried to grab onto his tail dangling in the water to steady himself. Had he been smarter and hopped higher into the trees, he would not have been so close to the water and the fish would not have been able to bite off his tail. Now don’t worry, the little fish ended up fine and his parents found him just after this little incident. The woodpecker, on the other hand, was extremely sad for his loss and decided for the rest of time, he would peck as loud and as hard as possible and do his best to annoy every fish nearby.

Author's Note: This story is originally from a Tejas Indian legend. As the name suggests, the story takes place in Texas and gives a great description of the different natural aspects that the state has. The story is called The Woodpecker's Stumpy Tail and it was written by Florence Stratton. The original story is from the woodpecker's point of view and tells how his tail got to be so short and stumpy. Like my story, there is a flood coming and all of the animals have been warned. One woodpecker does not take this warning seriously and decides not to take precautions. He regrets this when he cannot climb higher than the flooding waters and a fish takes a bite out of his tail. My story is from the fish's point of view, but has the same story line. I thought it would be interesting to give the fish a background story since he sounds like the bad guy in the original story. I also wanted to tell it from this point of view to show the importance of perspective. Originally it sounds like the fish is the bad guy for biting off the woodpecker’s tail. In my story you can see that the fish was simply trying to survive the harsh storm. I chose this specific image because when I originally read this story I was not exactly sure what a woodpecker looked like. Of course, I have seen them before, but I could not remember all of the details. I thought it was important for readers to see a good picture of their beautiful bodies and stumpy tails in order to get the full effect of the story. I added this story to my portfolio because it includes a story about animals I have not used yet in my other stories.

Bibliography: The Woodpeckers Stumpy Tail by Florence Stratton

Woodpecker