Do you want to make your non-bird enthusiast friends start getting interested in bird watching? Then you should introduce them to the Red-headed Woodpeckers.
The Red-headed Woodpecker, Mother Nature’s little fashionista, is a striking-colored bird with incredible plumage outfits that make all the woodpecker enthusiasts go crazy over them.
From their feisty nature to their habit of storing food, they show off their bravado like no other species out there.
Knowing them on a personal level might not seem important to some people. However, just from learning their habits and habitats, you can have your feathered companions’ backs as well as keep the ecological balance in check.
So, in this article, we have gathered the info on their appearance, communication methods, nesting facts, and many more that will get you interested in our strong and charming species, the Red-headed woodpecker.
So, let’s peck away at the information and get to know these feathered buddies!
Contents
Red-Headed Woodpecker: How To Identify?
Source: @christophercarlimages
- Scientific Name: Melanerpes erythrocephalus
- Size: 19 to 25 cm (7.5 to 9.8 in)
- Wingspan: 42.5 cm (16.7 in)
- Weight Range: 56 to 97 g (2.0 to 3.4 oz)
- Wing Length: 12.7 to 15 cm (5.0 to 5.9 in)
- Tail Length: 6.6 to 8.5 cm (2.6 to 3.3 in)
- Bill Length: 2.1 to 3 cm (0.83 to 1.18 in)
- Tarsus: 1.9 to 2.5 cm (0.75 to 0.98 in)
- Status: Least Concern
The Red-headed Woodpeckers have a relatively large and rounded head compared to the rest of their body. The plumage on their belly is fuzzy-textured. The tails are short and non-flexible. The bills are long, slender, pointy, and powerful.
Adult Color
It is a mid-sized species with a distinctive tricolor on its body. Its back and tail are coal-black, while the belly and rump are bright snow white. The head and neck, on the other hand, are a vibrant crimson-red color.
Juvenile Color
The juveniles have similar color patterns on their head, except their head is greyish-brown. They also have small white patches on their overall black wings.
Red-Headed Woodpecker Male Vs. Female Comparison: Telling Them Apart
The Red-headed Woodpeckers are popularly known for being sexually monomorphic, meaning it’s challenging to distinguish between the male and female based on their physical attributes alone.
To determine their sexes, you have to look for their behavioral cues or anything related to their reproduction activities. From their sizes to the vibrancy of their plumage, everything is similar. So, in terms of their appearance, they don’t have any significant differences.
Male Vs. Female Comparison At A Glance
Here’s a short and easy table for you to quickly understand and compare the traits of a male Red-Headed Woodpecker and a female Red-Headed Woodpecker.
| Category | Male Red-Headed Woodpecker | Female Red-Headed Woodpecker |
| Vocalization | Active and Primary Singers | Less Frequent |
| Courtship Behavior | More Active | Relatively Less Active |
| Behavior During The Breeding Season | More Territorial and Vocal | Relatively Less Territorial |
How Do You Locate Them?
Source: @thebirdingsquad
The Red-headed Woodpeckers live all across temperate North America. Their breeding habitat includes all the open counties in southern Canada and the east-central United States.
These woodpeckers have a wide range of habitats, such as woodlands, open woodlots, savannas, and orchards.
In addition, they might also inhabit open pine plantations, tree rows in agricultural areas, standing timber in beaver swamps, other wetlands, and dead or decaying trees.
What Do They Eat?
Source: @lcfpd
Being an omnivore, the Red-headed Woodpecker has a wide array of complex dietary preferences.
Most of their diet, which is almost two-thirds, consists of plants. In addition, they usually feed on insects, spiders, earthworms, seeds, fruits, berries, barks, corn, acorns, pecans, and nuts.
From time to time, they can be seen munching on small rodents, even chicks of bluebirds, house sparrows, and eggs of other birds.
How Do They Eat?
One of the most interesting facts about the Red-headed Woodpeckers is that they are one of the only four North American woodpecker species that store their food and the only known species to cover their stored food with wood or bark. They typically do this so that other birds or animals don’t take away their hard-earned food.
They wedge the grasshoppers alive regularly so that they can not easily escape. Moreover, they store their food in tree cavities, crevices, as well as under tree bark to have backup during harsh weather. This behavior is known as “caching.”
In addition to storing food, the Red-headed Woodpeckers use their aerial hunting techniques or perching to catch their prey mid-flight. Their usual foraging habitat is on the ground or in shrubs.
Red-Headed Woodpecker: Communication
One of the most common territorial calls of this species can be transcribed as a “tchur-tchur” note or a drumming noise.
Mostly during the breeding season, the males tend to claim their territory and call and drum to attract their mating partners.
It is also the behavior that sets both sexes apart because, usually, the males initiate this behavior.
When coming across a predator or intruder, they often make “churring” calls. While nesting, they make a tapping sound to communicate. The males usually tap on the inside and the females on the outside of their nesting cavities.
If you want to search for this species, then you have to carefully look for them in their habitats and listen to their raucous, harsh “weah” calls that give away their location.
How Do They Reproduce?
Most Red-headed Woodpeckers pair with their mating partner and stay with them for several breeding seasons, which start in April and last till July. Sometimes, they participate in polygyny.
- Mating System: Monogamous and occasionally Polygamous
At first, the males establish their territories, and then they find their mates. To attract a breeding partner, they engage in courtship displays that include calling, flying, and demonstrating their striking plumage to their mating partners.
Afterward, both parents become extremely territorial in their breeding and nesting grounds.
Nesting Facts
Source: @corbyamos
The nesting sites are usually chosen by the females. When they find their nesting cavity, they tap on the site to let others know of their choice.
This nesting cavity can be a natural tree cavity, the wintering cavity of the male partner, a pre-used cavity, a fence post, utility poles, or a dead tree.
If their preferred nesting site does not have any cavities, then both males and females work together to drill out one, usually in dead trees or utility poles. The males tend to do most of the drilling work.
The cavities are typically 2.45 and 24.5 m (8.0 and 80.4 ft) above the ground with a width of almost 5 to 6 cm that gets wider and reaches 20 to 60 cm into the tree.
The males and females both separate their duties during incubation. During the day, the females incubate their eggs, while at night, the males take over the duty.
Let’s take a look at the basic nesting facts at a glance:
| Clutch Size | 4 to 7 eggs |
| Number of Broods | One to Two Broods |
| Egg Length | 2.5 cm (1 in) |
| Egg Width | 1.9 cm (0.8 in) |
| Incubation Period | 14 days |
| Nestling Period | 24 to 31 days |
| Egg Description | Pure Bright White |
Life Cycle
Maximum Lifespan (In The Wilderness): 9.9 years
The younglings become old enough to fledge at the age of 27 to 31 days, and they stay with their parents in the nest till then.
After this first brood becomes capable enough, the breeding partners may start another brood, and sometimes, they will find a whole new nesting cavity for them. They often raise two broods in a single nesting season.
The Red-headed Woodpecker can live up to almost nine years and eleven months. It is the oldest living woodpecker of this species till now.
However, the maximum life range can reach up to 12 years in their own habitat. It can only happen if the weather and food sources are in their favor.
How Do They Generally Behave?
The Red-headed Woodpeckers prefer living and hovering around in solitary while defending their territory all year round.
However, during the breeding season, they move around in pairs, especially when they are actively raising their nestlings.
They are highly protective of their nesting sites and foraging areas. They behave with hostility toward any kind of intruder, including other birds.
They sometimes tend to remove or destroy other birds’ eggs and their nesting boxes.
This diurnal species spends most of its time looking for food. Most of these species live in the same region all year round.
The Northern birds start their migration during Late October and fly over to the Southern parts of the world during winter. However, the Southern species do not usually migrate.
The migratory species usually return to their breeding site by late April. From time to time, they migrate in groups, especially if food resources are abundant.
Red-headed Woodpecker Similar Species
Several species share a resemblance with the Red-headed Woodpecker.
Nonetheless, the four species we are about to present bear the closest resemblance to this bird for being in the same family.
Therefore, let’s examine the commonalities and differences among them.
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Source: @jimgorum
- Scientific Name: Melanerpes carolinus
The Red-bellied Woodpecker is a mid-sized species with vibrant red caps on the adult males. They got their name from the reddish hues close to their bellies. However, the hues are difficult to see from afar.
Similarities
This species and the Red-headed Woodpeckers belong to the same genus and family, which is why they often get mistaken for one another.
They have a similar red color on their head, and they seem almost similar in size, with the Red-bellied Woodpeckers being slightly larger.
They are both part of the same range near North America with an overlapping distribution. It makes it harder for anyone to tell them apart.
Moreover, their habitats are similar as well. They both prefer to live in arboreal forests and nest and forage near these areas.
Differences
Both these species have red, white, and black on their body. However, the vibrancy and placement of these colors are different.
The Red-headed Woodpeckers and the Red-bellied Woodpeckers have different vocalizations.
In addition, their food preferences and nesting habitats are different as well.
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Source: @richard.wise.1946
- Scientific Name: Melanerpes aurifrons
The Golden-fronted Woodpecker seems sexually monomorphic except for the patterns on the females’ heads.
They are endemic to the southern United States, Mexico, and parts of Central America. It is a year-round resident through its range and inhabits mesic and xeric landscapes, especially the xeric one.
Similarities
Both the Red-headed Woodpecker and the Golden-fronted Woodpecker are almost similar in size, with a range of almost 19 to 26 cm (7.5 to 10 in)
These species exhibit similar wing patterns during flight and while perching. Moreover, both species have black markings on their bodies, especially on their wings and tails.
Differences
The head of the Red-headed Woodpecker is entirely red, whereas, in the case of the Golden-fronted Woodpecker, the red color is only part of their head.
They possess different facial markings, and their belly colors differ. The back and wing patterns are different as well. Moreover, they live in different ranges.
Pileated Woodpecker
Source: @brandigrahl
- Scientific Name: Dryocopus pileatus
The Pileated Woodpecker is a large species that is native to the deciduous forests of Eastern North America, the Great Lakes, the boreal forests of Canada, and parts of the Pacific Coast.
Similarities
The vibrant crimson red colors on the Pileated Woodpecker’s crest and the similar shaded color on the Red-headed Woodpecker’s head are what make them appear similar. Moreover, they have almost similar size ranges.
Differences
The face patterns of both these creatures are distinctively different. Moreover, the body, wing, and back patterns vary as well. In addition, the size of these two birds might be similar from afar, but the Pileated Woodpecker is relatively larger.
Red-breasted Sapsucker
Source: @chasingchickadees
- Scientific Name: Sphyrapicus ruber
The Red-breasted Sapsucker, a mid-sized species, thrives in the forests of the west coast of North America. They prefer mild weather as their preferred habitat. So, during winter, the northern species migrate to the south, and the inland species move toward the upland locals.
Similarities
The Red-headed Woodpecker and the Red-breasted Sapsucker are quite similar in their size and overall body shape. Moreover, both species have black, white, and red colors on their body. However, the location and the pattern of these colors might not be similar.
Differences
The main difference is in the color of their heads. The Red-headed Woodpeckers have an entirely red head, whereas it is only partial for the Red-bellied Sapsuckers.
The facial markings and the body color are contrasting. Moreover, the patterns on their wings and tails are distinctive.
Fascinating Facts About The Red-headed Woodpecker
The Red-headed Woodpeckers have experienced an almost 65.5% decline in their population, which placed them on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List of Endangered Species as “near threatened” in 2004.
Then, they again found their spot on the “least concern” species list in 2018. Due to heavy habitat management, they could claim their spot and stabilize their declining number.
Both bird enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts love this species equally. Consequently, they gained a lot of nicknames, such as half-a-shirt, shirt-tail bird, jelly-coat, flag bird, and the flying checker-board.
FAQ
We have listed a few answers to the frequently asked questions regarding Red-headed Woodpeckers to brush up your knowledge on this species.
Q: What is the legend of the Red-headed Woodpecker?
Ans: The legend of the Red-headed Woodpecker is that a spirit took an individual’s walking stuff while cracking it over another woman’s head. Consequently, the woman turned into a bird. As the blood was trickling down from her head, the head of this species became red.
Q: How can I attract Red-headed Woodpeckers to my yard?
Ans: Similar to other species, you can set up a nesting box to attract the Red-headed Woodpecker. Moreover, you can offer suet, sunflower seeds, fruits, etc, to attract them while maintaining an open space or forest nearby.
Q: Are Red-headed Woodpeckers beneficial to the environment?
Ans: Yes, they certainly are! Their dietary requirements include insects, which help humans in pest control. Moreover, they disperse seeds, which helps maintain a balanced ecosystem.
Thoughts
Learning about the Red-headed Woodpecker can be a rewarding experience that contributes to helping understand the biodiversity and understand the rich tapestry of the avian world.
Being aware of this species will lead to efforts that help protect and preserve the habitats of woodpeckers, ensuring they get to thrive in their own habitat.
Their ecological role in the avian world highlights the interconnectedness of all species in an ecosystem.
Their existence itself can add joy and satisfaction to the bird-watching activity. This bird-watching experience can inspire even casual nature lovers to foster an appreciation for the beauty and wondrous nature right in our own backyard and local environment.
So, be an informed steward of the woodpecker planet and get better equipped to protect and conserve it for our future generations.
Happy Woodpecker watching, everyone!
