Woodpeckers

Red-headed Woodpecker, Melanerpes erythrocephalus

Family Picidae (Woodpeckers)

Size: 9"

Season: Summer

Habitat: Woodlands, areas with standing dead trees, suburbs

The red-headed woodpecker has a striking bright-red head and a powerful, tapered bill. It is black above with a large patch of white across the lower back and secondaries and white below. The juvenile has a pale-brown head and incomplete white back patch. In all woodpeckers the tail is very stiff with sharp tips to aid in support while clinging to a tree trunk. To feed, it pecks at bark for insects but may also fly out to snatch its prey in midair. Nuts will also be taken and stored in tree cavities for winter. This species has been losing nesting cavities since the introduction of the European starling. The adult is illustrated.