Red-headed Woodpecker

The red-headed woodpecker is a pretty easy bird to identify, with its black and white body and bright red head and throat there are few birds around that it can be mistaken for. Unfortunately because of declining populations many people have not seen this type of woodpecker so they may not recognise it at first glance. Fortunately they still have a healthy population of red-heads at Necedah NWR, in Wisconsin, where I took these photographs.

The red-headed woodpecker is native to the eastern half of the United States. It is a year round resident through out much of its range however during the winter it will migrate south from the northern portions of its range, like Minnesota. The reason that they are in decline, they are currently considered a Species of Greatest Conservation Need, is due to habitat destruction. Red-headed woodpeckers look for open woodlands with a lot of dead trees for their habitat. They are cavity nesters that typically nest in dead trees, preferably ones that have been stripped of bark. They are true omnivores eating everything from berries, seeds and nuts, to insects, and bird eggs. They will often cache their food in the crevices of dead trees, including live insects which they wedge into cracks, and cover it with pieces of bark. Unfortunately many people still remove dead trees from what little wooded areas are still around, for protection from fire or for aesthetics, leaving very little habitat for these beautiful birds to live and breed.