Woodpecker

Woodpeckers are birds that live in nearly every region of the world except for New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, Australia, and both the North and South Poles. The family Picidae includes approximately 240 to 241 recognized species of woodpeckers. Approximately 20 of these species are at risk of extinction.

An Amazing Bird: Woodpecker Facts

• A woodpecker’s tongue is typically twice the length of its beak, able to reach into crevices for insects. The bird’s tongue or its saliva is sticky, too, so it can cling to its prey.
• The woodpecker’s tongue wraps around the back of its head between the tissue and the bone, acting as a shock absorber when the bird is drumming.
• Woodpeckers are birds with feathers on their noses that keep wood debris out of the birds’ nostrils while they are boring holes.
• Woodpeckers use their jackhammer-like beaks to dig out bugs, but they also drum their bills to create rhythms for attracting mates, staking a claim, and sometimes, just for fun.
• Woodpeckers can grow to incredible sizes. The largest woodpecker ever, the imperial woodpecker, was nearly 23 inches in length but is potentially extinct today.

Where to Find Woodpeckers

Woodpeckers live almost everywhere in the world, wherever there are wooded habitats. A small number of species prefer rocky areas instead, and one species, the Gila woodpecker, subsists on a diet of cacti in its desert habitat. These birds do not live in the extreme polar regions of Australasia or Madagascar.

Classification and Scientific Name

Although experts disagree on the total number of woodpecker species, the International Ornithological Congress recognizes approximately 240 to 241 species, all of which belong to the Picidae family. They are divided into 36 genera within this family.

Evolution and Origins

Woodpeckers are a fascinating group of birds known for their unique behavior of drilling into trees and other wooden structures with their powerful bills. These birds belong to the family Picidae, comprising approximately 240 – 241 species worldwide.

The earliest known fossil of a woodpecker-like bird dates back to the late Eocene period, approximately 35 million years ago. This fossil, known as Eopicius, was discovered in Wyoming and is believed to be an ancestor of modern woodpeckers. Over time, woodpeckers have evolved specialized adaptations that enable them to excavate wood and feed on insects found within it.

One of the most distinctive features of woodpeckers is their powerful bills, which are used for drilling into trees and other wooden structures. The bills are made of a hard material called keratin, which is the same material that makes up human hair and nails. The bill is also shaped like a chisel, with a sharp edge that is used to chisel away wood. In addition to the bill, woodpeckers have a long, sticky tongue that they use to extract insects from deep within the wood.

Woodpeckers have also evolved a unique way of perching on trees, which involves using their stiff tail feathers to support themselves. These feathers, known as rectrices, are located at the base of the tail. They are used to provide support and stability when the bird is drilling into wood.

Common Types of Woodpeckers

Here are some of the most common woodpeckers:

• Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens): The downy woodpecker is the smallest type of woodpecker in North America, measuring up to 7 inches long. They generally live in forested areas within tree cavities that are hollowed out by nesting pairs.
• Gila Woodpecker (Melanerpes uropygialis): The Gila woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker that inhabits the southwestern United States and western Mexico and ranges from 8 to 10 inches in size. These woodpeckers prefer to nest in saguaro cacti in the low desert scrub of the Sonoran Desert.
• Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus): The hairy woodpecker grows to approximately 10 inches in length and is similar in appearance to the downy woodpecker. These birds are known to follow pileated woodpeckers and pick through insects that the larger birds may have missed.
• Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus): The pileated woodpecker is a large species that can grow up to 19 inches in length and is native to North America. These birds prefer mature forests and excavate large holes within dead trees to roost at night.
• Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius): The yellow-bellied sapsucker ranges from 7 to 8 inches in size and inhabits Canada and the northeastern United States. These birds are migratory, traveling as far south as Panama in the summer months.

Size, Appearance & Behavior

Ranging in size from the tiny piculet, which measures less than three inches from tip to tail, to the pileated and great slaty woodpeckers, which measure up to 20 inches in length, the size of these distinctive birds varies significantly.

With a few exceptions, all woodpeckers share distinctive features, such as:

• A chisel-tipped beak
• Zygodactyl feet with opposing toes
• A contrasting crest or feathery tuft on the crown
• Strong short legs
• Stiff tail for balance
• Exceptionally long, sticky tongues
• Shock-absorbing skull bone
• Nostril feathers to prevent inhaling debris

Woodpeckers are not songbirds, but both males and females do vocalize to express warnings, attraction, and territorialism. Their range of calls includes:

• Twitters
• Trills
• Whistles
• Chattering
• Shrieks
• Wails
• Rattles

Each species sounds somewhat different, but the sounds they make are loud enough to travel in densely forested habitats. Even baby nestlings communicate with their parents with sounds.

Most species do not migrate but remain in their chosen habitat year-round. Two North American woodpeckers that do migrate are the northern flicker (Colaptes auratus), including its yellow-shafted subspecies, and the yellow-bellied sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius), which is a full migrant.

Diet

Insects and their larvae are the mainstays of the woodpecker’s diet, but they eat other foods too. Birds’ eggs, baby birds, small rodents, or reptiles are all part of a woodpecker’s diet if they are available. As omnivores, woodpeckers eat fruit, nuts, and even tree sap.

Like most birds, the woodpecker plays a crucial role in maintaining the health of the natural environment. By boring holes in trees and extracting insects with its long, sticky tongue, this bird helps prevent potentially harmful insect damage. For example, woodpeckers eat the larvae of the emerald ash borer beetle, which was responsible for the destruction of millions of ash trees in North America.

In turn, three woodpecker species have also benefited. Populations of some woodpecker species, particularly the red-bellied woodpecker, have increased in areas affected by the emerald ash borer beetle, as these birds feed on the beetle’s larvae.

Predators and Threats

Loss of habitat due to human encroachment is the most significant threat to woodpeckers worldwide. For example, insecticides used by large agricultural companies to eliminate crop-eating pests wipe out a major food source for the local woodpecker population.

In the natural environment, woodpeckers are under threat from predators even before they hatch. Snakes and birds like grackles steal in and eat the eggs in an unprotected nest. Feline predators of adult birds include feral cats, bobcats, and mountain lions. Some of the canine threats include foxes and coyotes. Larger birds of prey, such as hawks, may also consider woodpeckers to be part of a balanced diet.

Reproduction, Babies, and Lifespan

Woodpeckers will nest in existing holes in tree trunks, but when necessary, they will excavate their own. Some woodpeckers will even nest in a telephone pole or a human dwelling. Most species use a nesting site for a single breeding season and then move on.

Woodpeckers are monogamous with a few exceptions. For example, acorn woodpeckers may establish a breeding group of up to 12 birds and then raise the nestlings together.

Females lay two to five eggs. Because they are protected within the tree trunk, woodpecker eggs have a better chance of hatching into live chicks than those in more exposed nests. Both parents take turns keeping the eggs warm during the 12-14-day incubation period.

Once a baby first hatches, it develops quickly and is ready to leave the nest in about 30 days. On average, woodpeckers live between four and 12 years. Some can live up to 30 years if environmental conditions are just right.

Population

Of the approximately 240 recognized woodpecker species, nearly 20 are threatened with extinction, mainly due to habitat loss. The Bermuda flicker is extinct. The ivory-billed and imperial woodpeckers are generally considered extinct or possibly extinct, while the Okinawa woodpecker is critically endangered.