The Wonderful World of Woodpeckers
One of my favorite groups of birds, and certainly one of the most entertaining to watch, is the woodpecker family. The Picidae family is represented in North America by twenty-two extant species, and as of last year, I have managed to see them all! (Although, I have not successfully photographed them all yet!)
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| Acorn Woodpeckers on a granary tree, Pinnacles National Park |
Sixteen of these twenty-two species are found in California, though some are fairly rare or have a limited range within the state. Really, twelve species can be expected with a reasonable degree of confidence in the right habitat within California.
(*California's twelve most common species of woodpeckers are marked with an asterisk below.)
*Lewis's Woodpecker (California and the western U.S.)
One of our most unique-looking woodpeckers, the rosy pink and dark, oily green Lewis's Woodpecker is regularly spotted in California's blue oak woodlands around the edges of the Central Valley. In addition to exhibiting typical woodpecker behavior, Lewis's Woodpeckers also perch at the tops of trees, flying out from their perch to catch flying insects. With broad wings and somewhat floppy, crow-like flight, Lewis's Woodpeckers present a unique silhouette, even in poor light.
Where I saw my first Lewis's Woodpecker: Oak woodlands of eastern Stanislaus County, California
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| Lewis's Woodpecker |
Red-headed Woodpecker (Central and Eastern U.S.)
The iconic Red-headed Woodpecker inhabits deciduous woodlands across the central and eastern United States. They migrate irregularly over short distances and are somewhat nomadic, appearing in an area one year but not the next.
Where I saw my first Red-headed Woodpecker: Charleston County, South Carolina
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| Red-headed Woodpecker NOT my photo. Accessed from NPS.gov. Photo credit: Macaulay Library, CLO, Jeff Stacey |
* Acorn Woodpecker (California and the southwestern U.S.)
A specialty of oak woodlands in California and the Southwest, Acorn Woodpeckers are found in garrulous family groups where they cache masses of acorns in communal granaries. Like most woodpeckers, Acorn Woodpeckers are quite vocal, and their loud calls are often the first clue to the presence of this iconic southwestern species.
Where I saw my first Acorn Woodpecker: Calaveras County, California
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| Acorn Woodpecker, male |
Gila Woodpecker (Arizona and south into Mexico; also found in a small area near the Salton Sea and Colorado River in southeastern California)
The Gila Woodpecker has a limited range in the southeastern corner of California, but is found commonly in arid habitats across central and southern Arizona. At a glance, this species is similar in appearance to the Golden-fronted Woodpecker of Texas.
Where I saw my first Gila Woodpecker: Phoenix, Arizona. Read more about that trip here.
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| Gila Woodpecker, male |
Golden-fronted Woodpecker (Central Texas and south into Mexico)
Golden-fronted Woodpeckers inhabit the open woodlands and brushlands of Texas where they are regular visitors to bird feeding stations. This highly omnivorous species will eat a wide variety of insects and spiders, as well as fruit and nuts.
Where I saw my first Golden-fronted Woodpecker: Santa Ana NWR, McAllen, Texas. Read more about that trip here.
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| Golden-fronted Woodpecker, male |
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Central and Eastern United States)
Common and fairly abundant in wooded areas across much of the central and eastern U.S., the Red-bellied Woodpecker is a familiar sight in backyards as well as wilderness areas. The loud, shrill, rolling "churr" call of this species is sure to become quickly recognizable across its range.
Where I saw my first Red-bellied Woodpecker: Charleston County, South Carolina. Read more about that trip here.
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| Red-bellied Woodpecker, male NOT my photo. Accessed from NPS.gov. Photo credit: Macaulay Library, CLO, Carl Giometti |
American Three-toed Woodpecker (Alaska, Canada and parts of the Rocky Mountains and Cascade Range)
This somewhat elusive woodpecker is a resident of coniferous boreal and montane forests, where it prefers mature woods that have been damaged by fire, flooding or storms, resulting in a high proportion of standing dead snags. These dead and dying trees provide Three-toed Woodpeckers with food, in the way of wood-boring insect larvae, as well as cavities for nesting.
Where I saw my first American Three-toed Woodpecker: North Cascades National Park, Washington. Read more about that trip here.
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| American Three-toed Woodpecker (Pardon my rotten photo of a very cool bird!) |
*Black-backed Woodpecker (Limited range in California's Sierra Nevada; also found in Alaska and Canada, parts of the Cascades and Rocky Mountains, northern Minnesota and Maine)
Similar to the American Three-toed Woodpecker, the Black-backed Woodpecker also prefers recently burned patches of coniferous forests and areas containing an abundance of dead trees. According to Cornell's All About Birds.org, recently burned forests remain suitable for Black-backed Woodpeckers for about eight years, which is as long as wood-boring insects persist in the habitat after a fire, feeding on dead and decaying wood.
Where I saw my first Black-backed Woodpecker: Mammoth Lakes, California. Read more about that trip here.
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| Black-backed Woodpecker, male NOT my photo. Accessed from NPS.gov Photo credit: NPS photo |
*Hairy Woodpecker (Across California (absent from the Central Valley) and nearly all forested parts of the U.S. and Canada)
Similar in appearance to the smaller Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpeckers enjoy a large range across North America wherever there is suitable mature forest habitat. Listen for their sharp "pik" calls coming down from the trees as they move around tree trunks and limbs tapping at the bark.
Where I saw my first Hairy Woodpecker: Calaveras Big Trees State Park, California
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| Hairy Woodpecker, male |
*Downy Woodpecker (California and nearly all forested parts of the U.S. and Canada)
North America's smallest species of woodpecker, the Downy Woodpecker has perhaps the largest range of any of our woodpeckers, and is found in nearly any habitat with adequate trees. They are notably absent from the much of the Southwestern United States, including the desert regions of Southern California. As the photo below shows, the smaller size of the Downy Woodpecker allows it to forage for insects on the smallest branches and twigs of trees and shrubs.
Where I saw my first Downy Woodpecker: Merced National Wildlife Refuge, California
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| Downy Woodpecker, male |
*Nuttall's Woodpecker (California and northern Baja only)
Essentially endemic to California, the Nuttall's Woodpecker of California's oak woodlands is my personal resident backyard woodpecker species. Interestingly, though this species is linked to oak woodlands, it doesn't eat acorns, but rather feeds on the insects that are found on oaks and associated trees.
Where I saw my first Nuttall's Woodpecker: My hometown in Stanislaus County, California
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| Nuttall's Woodpecker, male |
*Ladder-backed Woodpecker (Southeastern California and the Southwestern U.S.)
While woodpeckers are more commonly associated with forests than with deserts, several species do inhabit the shrubby, arid habitats of the American Southwest. In the deserts of southeastern California and the Southwestern U.S., Ladder-backed Woodpeckers replace the very similar Nuttall's Woodpecker.
Where I saw my first Ladder-backed Woodpecker: Joshua Tree National Park, California
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| Ladder-backed Woodpecker, male |
Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Restricted to scattered patches of mature longleaf pine forests in the southeastern United States)
The loss of the specific longleaf pine forest habitat required by the Red-cockaded Woodpecker has contributed to it's steep decline in recent decades. It has been listed as Federally Endangered since the 1970's, but in 2024 was reclassified as threatened; it still remains listed as endangered in some states.
Where I saw my first: Caronia Sandhills NWR, South Carolina. Read more about that trip here.
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| Red-cockaded Woodpecker NOT my photo. Accessed from NPS.gov Photo credit: NPS photo |
*White-headed Woodpecker (Mountainous regions of California, Oregon and Washington)
This striking woodpecker, with its eponymous white head, is another western specialty, inhabiting mature coniferous forests in the Sierra Nevada and Cascade ranges, as well as the mountains of Southern California. White-headed Woodpeckers require standing dead trees and snags for nesting, and feed on pine seeds as well as insects.
Where I saw my first White-headed Woodpecker: Calaveras Big Trees State Park, California
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| White-headed Woodpecker, juvenile |
Arizona Woodpecker (Arizona and south into Mexico)
This uniquely brown woodpecker has a restricted range in the mountains of southeastern Arizona, where it can be found in oak woodlands. Arizona Woodpeckers feed largely on insects, and will visit feeders offering peanut butter as well!
Where I saw my first Arizona Woodpecker: Madera Canyon, Arizona (May, 2019)
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| Arizona Woodpecker, male |
*Pileated Woodpecker (California's Sierra Nevada and north coastal forests, the Pacific Northwest and Canada as well as the entire eastern U.S. Curiously absent from much of the Rocky Mountains.)
The Pileated Woodpecker is our largest species of woodpecker, and this crow-sized bird is always a striking sight to see! Though sometimes surprisingly elusive for so large a bird, signs of the presence of a Pileated Woodpecker include their large oval nest cavities in trees, and their loud, wild call that echoes through the forest. The primary prey of the Pileated Woodpecker is carpenter ants, though they eat other types of insects and berries as well.
Where I saw my first Pileated Woodpecker: Sequoia National Park, California
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| Pileated Woodpecker, male |
*Northern Flicker (California and all of the U.S. and Canada, as well as Alaska)
Where I saw my first Norther Flicker: On one of my very first dedicated birding outings, in my hometown in Stanislaus County, California
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| Northern Flicker (Red-shafted), male |
Gilded Flicker (Deserts of extreme southeastern California, as well as Arizona and south into Mexico)
The Gilded Flicker is quite similar in appearance to the Northern Flicker, with a few subtle distinctions. In their limited range, they are found commonly associated with forests of saguaro cacti.
Where I saw my first Gilded Flicker: Saguaro National Park, Arizona
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| Gilded Flicker, female |
*Williamson's Sapsucker (Limited range in California's Sierra Nevada; mountains of the Western U.S.)
As their name suggests, sapsuckers are a specialized group of woodpeckers that feed on the sap of living trees by drilling rows of small holes, or wells, in the bark. As these sap wells fill, sapsuckers lap up the sap and any insects that might have become trapped in the wells. Williamson's Sapsuckers inhabit coniferous forests, where they drill their sap wells exclusively in conifers (other species of sapsuckers tap into deciduous trees as well).
Where I saw my first Williamson's Sapsucker: Mammoth Lakes, California
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| Williamson's Sapsucker, male NOT my photo. Accessed from NPS.gov Photo credit: Sally King, NPS |
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Canada and the eastern U.S., but this species does occasionally show up as a vagrant in California during the winter)
The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is the only sapsucker found east of the Rocky Mountains, where it inhabits mixed woodlands with a strong deciduous component.
Where I saw my first Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Santa Clara County, California (a rare find!)
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| Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, male |
Red-naped Sapsucker (Limited range east of the Sierran crest; may show up elsewhere in California. Expected range is mountainous parts of the western U.S.)
The heart of the range of the Red-naped Sapsucker is the Rocky Mountains, where it prefers mixed coniferous forests with plenty of aspen trees present. The photo below shows an excellent example of a series of sapsucker wells drilled into a living birch tree.
Where I saw my first Red-naped Sapsucker: Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
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| Red-naped Sapsucker NOT my photo. Accessed from NPS.gov Photo credit: NPS photo/Andrea Putnam |
*Red-breasted Sapsucker (California and the Pacific Northwest)
Similar in habitat preference to the Yellow-bellied and Red-naped Sapsuckers, Red-breasted Sapsuckers are found throughout California and the Pacific Northwest in mixed coniferous and deciduous forests. In the winter, this species moves to the low-lying valleys and coastal regions of California.
Where I saw my first Red-breasted Sapsucker: Stanislaus County, California
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| Red-breasted Sapsucker |
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