How to Identify aRed-bellied Woodpecker
Melanerpes carolinus · 9.4 in (24 cm)
Male vs. female
Male
Red runs from the bill over the crown to the nape; pale gray-buff face and underparts; faint red belly wash.
Female
Red only on the nape and a patch above the bill, with a gray crown between.
Male photo: Ken Thomas / Wikimedia, Public domain · Female photo: Kozarluha / Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Field marks
- Zebra-barred black-and-white back
- Red cap/nape (extent differs by sex)
- Pale grayish face and underparts
- Faint reddish belly patch (hard to see)
Similar species
What it sounds like
A rolling, throaty "churr" and a repeated "cha-cha-cha", both carrying well through woodland.
Behaviour that gives it away
Wedges large nuts into bark crevices and hammers them apart, and stores food for later in the same way.
Habitat & range
Deciduous woods, wooded suburbs, and feeders across the eastern U.S.
When you'll see it
Present all year in eastern, central and southeastern North America.
What it eats
Insects, nuts, seeds, and fruit; readily takes suet and sunflower seeds.
Did you know?
The name confuses many — the reddish belly is subtle, while the red head leads people to the wrong species.
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