In this edition of Very Niche!, meet Paul Bannick - an author and wildlife photographer.

And more specifically, a student of all things related to the North American woodpecker.

Oh yes, very niche indeed.

After reading a published excerpt of his new book, I was intrigued enough to attend his talk and book launch earlier this month — an evening I’ll think of as the night of nesting niches, no pun intended.

I'll explain.

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First up, Paul is a niche expert himself.

One of thirteen children (!!), he found peace early on in the quiet of the forest here in Washington state.

His love for the intricacies of the natural world continued to grow over time, and now he’s the de facto expert on North American owls and woodpeckers, having studied and photographed thousands of them over decades.

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Next up, his favorite bird — the woodpecker — takes on a pretty fascinating niche of its own.

Characterized by us humans as a source of unwanted holes and pesky noise pollution, turns out woodpeckers play a critical role in a forest’s ecosystem.

Sometimes dubbed “tree doctors”, woodpeckers trim away diseased bark and root out invasive insects to preserve the health of the tree.

The role further expands, as they carve out ‘cavities’ in trees in which they build nests and nurture their young.

Interestingly, they use their special skill to carve out extra cavities for other non-migratory birds to nest in through the winter.

That light hammering you might hear on your hike, or while out camping?

That’s the woodpecker - the neighborhood house-builder hard at work for himself and his broader community.

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But the niching doesn’t stop there.

Even within the woodpecker family, there are 41 species of woodpeckers, just in North America.

Through his hour-long talk, Paul walked through each species, calling out their unique locales, traits and behaviors.

And it’s not just geographic specialization.

He said that even in the same square mile, it’s not uncommon to see many different woodpecker species, each specializing by canopy height, tree type, and even tree width.

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So, you say you’ll get bored if you niche down as a consultant?

Remember, there’s always one (or forty-one) more levels to dig into.

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And you think you’ll go too narrow and niche yourself out of a market?

Tell that to the 300+ folks who showed up enthusiastically on a rainy Wednesday night to hear a man talk about woodpeckers.

💡

-Wes

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P.S. Struggling to find your niche? Or to articulate your unique expertise?

Book a free consult to get out of the mud.