Facts About Woodpeckers

There are more than 200 species of woodpecker in the world, grouped in the family Picidae.

The Downy Woodpecker, at about 6 to 7 inches long, is the smallest woodpecker in North America, though it is not the smallest in the world.

The world's smallest woodpecker is the bar-breasted piculet of South America, which measures only about 3 inches (7.5 cm) long.

The Great Slaty Woodpecker of South and Southeast Asia, at up to 23 inches long, is generally considered the largest living woodpecker.

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker, roughly 20 inches long, is one of the largest woodpeckers ever recorded, but its status in the wild remains uncertain and it may be extinct.

Woodpeckers have strong, chisel-like beaks that they use to drill into wood in search of insects and to excavate nest cavities.

A woodpecker's tongue can be several inches long and, in many species, wraps around the back of the skull when not extended, which helps cushion the brain.

Most woodpeckers have zygodactyl feet, with two toes pointing forward and two pointing backward, which helps them grip vertical tree trunks.

Woodpeckers are mostly insectivorous but also eat fruit, nuts, seeds, tree sap, and sometimes small vertebrates or eggs.

Woodpeckers drum on trees, and sometimes on metal surfaces, to communicate with other woodpeckers and to mark territory rather than only to find food.

Woodpecker drumming can carry for a considerable distance through forest, though claims of it carrying a full mile depend heavily on species and conditions.

Woodpeckers have several skull adaptations, including spongy bone and a flexible hyoid apparatus, that help absorb and redirect the shock of repeated pecking.

Several species, such as the Red-bellied Woodpecker and the Pileated Woodpecker, have bright red crests or patches that make them easy to identify.

Many woodpecker species form monogamous pairs during the breeding season, and some pairs remain together across multiple seasons.

Male woodpeckers often drum and call to attract mates and to defend territory from rivals.

Woodpeckers can wedge food, such as nuts or insects, into bark crevices to eat later.

Woodpeckers benefit forest ecosystems by controlling wood-boring insect populations and by creating tree cavities later used by owls, other birds, and small mammals.

The Acorn Woodpecker stores acorns in holes it drills into trees, utility poles, and other wooden structures, creating communal caches called granaries.

The Northern Flicker is unusual among North American woodpeckers for often feeding on the ground, especially on ants.

Woodpeckers live in a wide range of habitats, including forests, deserts, and urban parks and neighborhoods.

Arizona's official state bird is the Cactus Wren, not the Gila Woodpecker, though the Gila Woodpecker is a common and important species in the Sonoran Desert.

The Red-headed Woodpecker, known for its solid crimson head, is found across the central and eastern United States.

The Hairy Woodpecker closely resembles the Downy Woodpecker but is larger overall and has a proportionally longer bill.