Woodpeckers are among our most-loved birds, but how much do you really know about them? There are 22 types of woodpecker in North America1North America Audubon Guide to North American Birds: Woodpeckers – can you guess which one inspired Woody Woodpecker?
Hint: it’s not what you probably think…read on to find out the truth.
Woodpeckers are tree-dwelling birds that belong to the family Picidae, which also includes sapsuckers, flickers, yellownapes, wrynecks, flamebacks and piculets.
Only woodpeckers, flickers and sapsuckers are found in North America.
Pileated woodpecker excavating a hole in a tree.
As cavity nesters, Woodpeckers are considered “keystone species” (meaning that other wildlife depend on them) partly because their nest holes become homes for small mammals and many other species of birds including small owls and cavity-nesting ducks such as the Bufflehead.
There are 22 living species of woodpecker in Canada and the U.S., plus one other species, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, which was considered extinct until the early 2000s.
Learn more: Is the Ivory-billed Woodpecker really extinct?
Woodpecker Evolution and Classification
Woodpeckers – in fact, birds in general – are poorly represented in the fossil record, which makes tracing their origins difficult.
However, the few fossils we do have seems to indicate that the Picidae (woodpecker family) are thought to have evolved about 50 million years ago2Woodpeckers of the World: The Complete Guide, by Gerard Gorman; A&C Black, Jun. 19, 2014 in Eurasia.
The earliest woodpecker fossil is thought to be over 25 million years old and was found in France.
The oldest New World woodpecker fossil is a Piculet feather fragment preserved in amber from the Dominican Republic, about 23 million years old3Woodpeckers of the World: The Complete Guide, by Gerard Gorman; A&C Black, Jun. 19, 2014.
Most other woodpecker fossils come from times much closer to the present day.
The most recent woodpecker fossil find was in Africa in 2012 and dates to 3 to 5 million years ago. It was related to present-day North America and European woodpeckers.
This is the oldest woodpecker ever found in Africa, and was named Australopicus nelsonmandelai to honor Nelson Mandela4Woodpecker fossil named for Mandela on the eve of his birthday, July 17, 2012, Science X as seen on www. phys.org March 14, 2018..
Definitive scientific classification of woodpeckers has proven to be a slippery and contentious problem5 Woodpecker By Gerard Gorman; Reaktion Books Litd, 2017. For example, scientists can’t agree on how many species of woodpeckers exist, but the total number is around 230 worldwide.
However, we can say that woodpeckers belong to:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Piciformes
Family: Picidae
Classification based on appearance/anatomy, behavior and ecology has been used in the past but modern DNA sequence studies have thrown a wrench into all that.
DNA studies indicate that even though they may have similar plumage and make their living in very similar ways, woodpeckers that appear to be closely related most likely evolved their attributes independently based on similar ecological selection pressures.
Today members of the woodpecker family are found all over the world except for polar regions, the oceanic islands New Guinea, New Zealand, Australia and Madagascar6Woodpeckers of the World: The Complete Guide, by Gerard Gorman; A&C Black, Jun. 19, 2014.
Largest and Smallest Woodpecker
Smallest Woodpecker
The smallest member of the woodpecker family is the Bar-breasted Piculet, Picumnus aurifrons.
Native to South America the Bar-breasted Piculet is only 8 cm (3.5 in) long and weighs only 7 grams7 Woodpeckers: An Identification Guide to the Woodpeckers of the World by Hans Winkler, David A. Christie & David Nurney. Houghton Mifflin.
There's a hummingbird bigger than that! The Giant Hummingbird Patagonia gigas, also South American, is about the size of a starling.
Biggest Woodpecker
Bar-breasted piculet, the smallest woodpecker. Image by Joe Tocias courtesy of the Internet Bird Collection
The majestic Pileated woodpecker in flight.
The Pileated Woodpecker Drycopus pileatus, at up to 49 cm or 19 inches long and weighing up to 400 grams (almost a pound), is the largest woodpecker in eastern North America, the Great Lakes area, Canada’s northern forests and parts of the Pacific coast.
It is about the size of a crow.
Two very similar looking species were larger – the Imperial Woodpecker and the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, but both are considered most likely extinct.
Woodpeckers in North America
Largest Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker Drycopus pileatus
Smallest Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker Picoides pubescens
Most Widespread Woodpecker
Northern Flicker Colaptes auratus
Most Unusual Woodpecker
Lewis’s woodpecker Melanerpes lewis
Lewis’s Woodpecker spends about 75% of its time in summer catching insects on the fly instead of excavating for boring insects as other woodpeckers do.
In fall, it gathers corn (but not other grains) and picks acorns and other nuts right off the tree. These are its primary food for the winter and spring until insects are available again.
But you won’t see it much in winter (unless you live in California, Oregon or the Four Corners area) – it’s one of the few woodpeckers that migrate.
Funniest Woodpecker
Woody Woodpecker!
The beloved cartoon character “Woody Woodpecker” is often thought to be based on the Pileated woodpecker but according to his creator Walter Lantz 8Woody the Acorn (Not Pileated) Woodpecker, March 10, 2009 by Julie Zickefoose, National Public Radio, as seen on www.npr.org March 10, 2018 , Woody was in fact inspired by the acorn woodpecker, which looks nothing like Woody.
Unique Characteristics of Woodpeckers
What makes a woodpecker a woodpecker? They are distinguished from other birds by:
- Extra long tongues – and I do mean EXTRA long!
- Pick-like beaks, short legs and stiff tails which they use to brace themselves while pecking.
- Distinctive pecking, drumming and drilling behaviors and sounds.
- Most woodpeckers have two toes facing forward and two facing backward.
Woodpecker Tongues
Woodpeckers mostly have (very) long tongues that are very stiff and barbed at the end like miniature fishing spears9 Peterson Reference Guide to Woodpeckers of North America, by Stephen Shunk, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, May 10, 2016.
When they use their tongues to explore their excavations, their extra-sticky saliva helps hold onto their prey.
What do I mean by “long tongues”?
Long enough that when not in use it wraps right around the bird’s heads – inside their skulls!
Okay, technically most of it’s not their tongue. It’s actually the hyoid bone, and you can see how it works in this short video by Larry Witmer. (Note – this bird died naturally and was provided by a wildlife rehab facility.)
Woodpecker Beaks
Since the woodpecker’s feeding strategy depends on being able to pierce wood and bark, all woodpeckers have straight, sharp beaks well-suited to their purpose.
Their beaks strike wood with up to 1500 times the force of gravity (1500G) without harming the bird. By comparison, a mere 100G would kill a human being. So why doesn’t it kill the woodpecker?
The bird’s skull shape and angle help the force of impact spread over a larger area of the brain instead of focusing in one place. Strong neck muscles help absorb the shock10 Why woodpeckers can hammer without getting headaches by Eldon Greij, 2013, Birdwatching as seen on www.birdwatchingdaily.com March 15, 2018. .
Research has also shown that the woodpecker’s skull and lower jaw change shape at the microscopic level to help absorb the impact of its drilling11 Wang L, Cheung JT-M, Pu F, Li D, Zhang M, Fan Y (2011) Why Do Woodpeckers Resist Head Impact Injury: A Biomechanical Investigation. PLoS ONE 6(10): e26490. .
Interestingly, a woodpecker’s lower beak has more hard tissue than its upper beak. This harder tissue helps direct kinetic energy down through the lower beak and into the powerful neck muscles12 Why woodpeckers can hammer without getting headaches by Eldon Greij, 2013, Birdwatching as seen on www.birdwatchingdaily.com March 15, 2018 .
Distinctive Woodpecker Sounds
Woodpeckers do have various calls but they are not songbirds. While songbirds use their actual songs (not calls) to claim territory and attract mates, woodpeckers use a distinctive type of pecking to accomplish the same things.
It’s called “drumming” – a rapid hammering on anything that will make a good noise, including metal signs and poles, house gutters, siding and chimneys.
Each species has its own specific drumming style, and there is evidence that woodpeckers may be able to recognize individual birds by the way they drum13Why woodpeckers can hammer without getting headaches by Eldon Greij, 2013, Birdwatching as seen on www.birdwatchingdaily.com March 15, 2018 .
Woodpeckers look for prominent, exposed places from which to drum and call. Drumming can be heard for long distances and some creative woodpeckers make pests of themselves by finding extra loud methods, like this one (make sure you have your speakers turned on…)
Woodpeckers, both male and female, start drumming for mates and territory in late winter. Drumming can carry on until about the end of June.
Woodpecker vocalizations range from sharp, high-pitched squeaks to chatters, twitters, screams and wails.
Woodpecker Toes
Most woodpeckers are “zygodactylous”, meaning that that they have have two toes facing forward and two toes facing backward, an arrangement that helps them get a strong grip on branches 14 Peterson Reference Guide to Woodpeckers of North America, by Stephen Shunk, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, May 10, 2016 .
They can also rotate their outer back toes to the side in order to climb up a tree.
Black-backed woodpeckers and American three-toed woodpeckers are exceptions to the four-toes rule: these woodpeckers have only three toes.
Sketch of 4-toed woodpecker feet.
They’ve lost the inner rear toe, and the remaining back toe doesn’t rotate.
Woodpecker Tails
It takes a lot of force to peck a hole into the wood and bark of a tree, and woodpeckers use their legs and tails to brace for the impact.
Since bird tails aren’t long and muscular, a woodpeckers’ tail feathers need to be much stiffer than normal feathers to provide strong support.
Typical bird feathers have a hollow rachis or central spine but the feathers in a woodpecker’s tail are filled with a foam-like form of the keratin that makes up the whole feather.
Interestingly, the melanin that makes their tail feathers dark also makes the feathers more resistant to wear and tear15 Peterson Reference Guide to Woodpeckers of North America, by Stephen Shunk, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, May 10, 2016 .
Woodpeckers use their tails to brace themselves when feeding and may prefer feeders that have tail boards.
Woodpecker Plumage
Yellow shafted Flicker in flight.
Most North American woodpeckers are black, red and white.
Flickers, the Colaptes group, usually have brown or green back and wings with black bars and a beige to yellowish underside with black spotting or barring and gorget.
Some flickers also have bright yellow or orange on the undersides of their wings and tails.
Woodpecker plumage does not change for breeding season. Male woodpeckers are usually more colorful than female woodpeckers but in most species the differences between male and female plumage are small.
One notable exception is the Williamson’s sapsucker, in which the male and female are, er, markedly different. They are shown below, with the male on the left.
Williamson’s sapsuckers: Male (left) and female (right).
Photos by Sally King, US National Park Service
Some woodpeckers exhibit minor color changes as they age from juveniles to adults. The changes mainly take the form of movement or expansion of red head markings.
Juvenile molting occurs over an unusually long period of time, and can take up to four years for all of the flight feathers to be replaced with their adult forms.
Unlike other birds, woodpeckers do not have downy feathers16Peterson Reference Guide to Woodpeckers of North America, by Stephen Shunk, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, May 10, 2016. .
Woodpecker Diet
A woodpecker’s natural diet is beetle larvae, spiders, ants including carpenter ants, and other bothersome insects17 Woodpeckers of the World: The Complete Guide, by Gerard Gorman; A&C Black, Jun. 19, 2014. .
Woodpeckers have proven to be particularly valuable for keeping the invasive emerald ash borer under control18Native bark-foraging birds preferentially forage in infected ash (Fraxinus spp.) and prove effective predators of the invasive emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire), Charles E. Flower, Lawrence C. Long, Kathleen S. Knight, Joanne Rebbeck, Joel S. Brown, Miquel A. Gonzalez-Meler, Christopher J. Whelan, Forest Ecology and Management 313 (2014) 300–306 .
They are also known to eat small vertebrates such as frogs, lizards, small fish, nestling birds and bird eggs and have been known to crack open beehives in search of honey19 Woodpeckers of the World: The Complete Guide, by Gerard Gorman; A&C Black, Jun. 19, 2014..
Most woodpeckers will spend their lives spiraling up and down trees in search of insects. The northern flicker is the only woodpecker that regularly probes the ground for ants and other yummy items.
Some woodpeckers will excavate large holes to expose carpenter ants, but other foraging methods including scaling bark, probing crevices and plucking insects from the ground or from leaves.
Feeding Woodpeckers
Woodpeckers will come to bird feeders, especially feeders with a place to brace their tails against. They enjoy suet, peanuts, tree nuts, mealworms, sunflower seeds, fruit and – hummingbird nectar.
See Also: How to Attract Woodpeckers
Woodpecker Lives
Mating and Breeding
Most woodpeckers are loners outside the breeding season and monogamous while breeding, with one pair tending each nest. But Acorn and Red-cockaded woodpeckers are different: they breed in clans and nest communally with non-breeding adult relatives helping to raise the young20 Ecology and Evolution of Cooperative Breeding in Birds, Edited by Walter D. Koenig, Janis L. Dickinson, Cambridge University Press, Apr. 22, 2004. .
Woodpecker mating usually begins with courtship, including dancing. Woodpecker dances involve a little wing and tail flicking and a lot of pointing, in which the beak is raised up and waved about like a miniature conductor’s wand. Here’s a couple of downy woodpeckers going at it (ignore the corny music):
Nesting
Most woodpeckers will excavate a new nest every year and normally raise only one brood. Nesting season runs from early March through early August with slight variations depending on species.
Males excavate the nest cavity, incubate the eggs overnight and help with feeding the nestlings. Both sexes work to keep the nesting chamber clean by taking fecal sacs away from the tree for disposal.
Although a very few woodpeckers will use a nesting box if you offer one, the Yellow-bellied sapsucker and Pileated woodpecker still need a nice tree to call home.
Woodpecker Eggs
Woodpecker eggs are pure white, laid in clutches of 3 to 8 eggs and are incubated for about two weeks21The Cornell Lab of Ornithology Birds of North America and Birds of the World websites, various pages and dates..
Nestlings
Woodpecker nestlings hatch stark naked22Peterson Reference Guide to Woodpeckers of North America, by Stephen Shunk, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, May 10, 2016 , with closed eyes.
But that doesn’t stop them from being noisy! Their frequent chugging calls can be heard outside the nest chamber.
These babies have a better chance of survival than the young of birds that nest in the open, thanks to the deep, snug hidden nest cavities that deter most predators.
Migration
Most woodpeckers don’t migrate, but the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker breeds and summers across Canada, eastern Alaska and the northeastern United States, then heads to the southeastern United States and further south for winter.
The north-most populations of the northern flicker, red- breasted and red-naped sapsuckers, Lewis’ woodpecker and Williamson’s sapsucker all move south for the winter23The Cornell Lab of Ornithology Birds of North America and Birds of the World websites, various pages and dates .
Despite the fact that most woodpeckers and allies stay put for the winter, they are all protected under the Migratory Birds Treaty Act.
Woodpeckers Play a Critical Role in Forest Biodiversity
Woodpecker activities, especially those of the Pileated woodpecker Drycopus Pileatus, help other species in their habitat by providing foraging opportunities, controlling insect populations, speeding up the process of forest decay/nutrient recycling, and spreading the important heart-rot fungus Phellinus tremulae24The Pileated Woodpecker as a Keystone Habitat Modifier in the Pacific Northwest by Keith B. Aubry and Catherine M. Raley, USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-181. 2002. .
This fungus creates hollows in live trees and softens wood, which is essential for other cavity-nesting birds that excavate, such as nuthatches, chickadees and other woodpeckers.
Old woodpecker nests (especially northern flicker nests) provide new homes to many generations of other cavity-nesting birds, mammals and invertebrates that aren’t equipped to excavate wood.
Other species also use old woodpecker nests to store food. Even woodpecker foraging can produce deep enough cavities to benefit other species.
Woodpecker predation is also key to controlling bark beetles (reducing their occurrence by as much as 98%) and wood-boring beetles.
In Texas, woodpecker predation has significantly reduced populations of the southern pine beetle, and in the East and Midwest, they are gobbling up about 85% of emerald ash borers, an introduced species that has destroyed thousands of ash trees25Native bark-foraging birds preferentially forage in infected ash (Fraxinus spp.) and prove effective predators of the invasive emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire), Charles E. Flower, Lawrence C. Long, Kathleen S. Knight, Joanne Rebbeck, Joel S. Brown, Miquel A. Gonzalez-Meler, Christopher J. Whelan, Forest Ecology and Management 313 (2014) 300–306 .
Red-naped sapsuckers drill sap wells into spruce, aspen and shrubby willow trees and the accumulating sap feeds over 40 other species including hummingbirds.
Research26 Miller, Richard S. and Nero, Robert W., Hummingbird–sapsucker associations in northern climates,Canadian Journal of Zoology, 1983, 61:1540-1546 suggests that the closely-related Yellow-bellied sapsuckers foraging determines the northern breeding limits and the spring arrival of both the ruby-throated and rufous hummingbirds
When woodpecker populations disappear, so do many other species27 Virkkala, Raimo, Why study woodpeckers? The significance of woodpeckers in forest ecosystems, Ann. Zool. Fennici 43: 82–85, April 2006 , 28 Vizcarra, Natasha; Lorenz, Teresa. 2017. Woodpecker woes: the right tree can be hard to find. Science Findings 199. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 5 p which is why woodpeckers can be used as general indicators of forest biodiversity.
Habitat changes have a huge impact on woodpeckers, most of whom rely on trees living and dead for foraging and excavating cavities. Modern forestry practices such as removing dead wood and fire suppression, along with firewood cutting, road construction and urban and agricultural development reduces the amount of suitable woodpecker habitat and causes their decline.
USA Woodpecker Species by Region
North East
- Downy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Northern Flicker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
Midwest
- Downy woodpecker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Northern Flicker
- Red-bellied woodpecker (uncommon)
- Hairy woodpecker
Southeast
- Hairy woodpecker
- Downy woodpecker
- Red-cockaded woodpecker
- Red-bellied woodpecker (uncommon)
- Red-headed woodpecker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
- Ivory-billed woodpecker?
South West
- Acorn woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Downy woodpecker
- Ladder-backed Woodpecker
- Red-cockaded woodpecker
- Red-headed woodpecker
- Red-bellied woodpecker
- Lewis’ woodpecker
- Arizona woodpecker
- Gila woodpecker
- Golden-fronted woodpecker
- Northern flicker
- Gilded flicker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
- Red-naped sapsucker
- Williamson’s sapsucker
Mountain
- Downy woodpecker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Nuttall’s woodpecker
- Northern Flicker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Arizona woodpecker
- Ladder-backed Woodpecker (southern area)
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Williamson’s sapsucker
- Red-naped sapsucker
Pacific (West)
- Pileated woodpecker
- Northern Flicker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Acorn woodpecker
- Downy woodpecker
- Red-breasted sapsucker
- Lewis’ woodpecker
- Black-headed woodpecker
- White-headed woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Williamson’s sapsucker
- Red-breaster sapsucker
- Red-naped sapsucker
Alaska
- Northern flicker
- Downy woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
Canadian Woodpecker Species by Region
Maritimes
- Northern Flicker
- Downy woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
Central Canada
- Northern Flicker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Downy woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
Prairies
- Northern Flicker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Downy woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Red-naped sapsucker
Pacific Region
- Northern Flicker
- Downy woodpecker
- Pileated woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Red-breasted sapsucker
- Red-naped sapsucker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker (far north only)
Northern Territories
- Northern Flicker
- Downy woodpecker
- Hairy woodpecker
- Three-toed woodpecker
- Black-backed woodpecker
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
Woodpecker Conservation Status
Although some woodpecker populations are decreasing, most woodpeckers are doing fine conservation-wise. A few species are considered ‘Near Threatened’, which is only two short steps from ‘Endangered’ on the IUCN29 The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, Version 2019-3. https://www.iucnredlist.org conservation scale.
These troubled species are:
The Red-cockaded Woodpecker Leuconotopicus borealis, a native of the southeastern USA, considered already Endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
The Red-headed Woopecker Melanerpes erythrocephalus, once common in southern Canada and the east-central United States.
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