Saw this dead tree yesterday - some thing has been eating it from the ground upwards and a wood pecker has made a nesting hole further up. It's leaning on its neighbour. We've had some gusty winds overnight so it may be gone by now.
Yes, very strange damage...I know that western North American forests are being devoured by bark-eating beetles, but they don't eat from the ground up. Hope you're not witnessing the start of some plague...
