If you've never really been involved with nature for 25 years, there are many unusual encounters and animals waiting in the forest. Some you have never seen before, let alone know they exist. That's what happened to me with the black woodpecker.

The black woodpecker is the largest woodpecker in Europe and, at almost 60 cm, quite a large bird. I encountered it for the first time while mapping habitat trees for bats west of Rostock. I was cycling along a forest path when suddenly a large black animal flew past on my right. From just a few meters away, it stared at me and gave a shrill call. After just a few seconds, it was immediately out of sight. Just a few steps ahead, a second animal was sitting on a dead tree trunk looking for ants. This was the first opportunity to take a photo of the forest dweller.
In the following years I have seen or at least heard at least one specimen repeatedly near the first spot. They are always present and have their territory, which they regularly fly over. This bird is definitely one of the shy species and if it is not extremely busy, it keeps a good 100 m away.

When flying, the black woodpecker can be easily distinguished from crows. It has a comparatively longer neck and the narrow head is much more pointed with the beak. Particularly striking are the flight arcs, which are produced by the rapid backward flapping (similar to rowing), followed by a gliding phase in which the woodpecker places its wings against its body.

https://www.oamv.de/brutvogelatlas.html