Description: 10" (25 cm).
Whole head red, wings and tail bluish black, with large white
patch on
each wing; white
underparts; white rump, conspicuous in flight. Immature resembles
adult, but has brown head, 2 dark bars on white wing patch.
Voice: A loud churr-churr and yarrow-yarrow-yarrow.
Habitat: Open country, farms, rural roads, open park-like woodlands,
and golf courses.
Nesting: 5 white eggs placed without nest lining in a cavity in
a tree, telephone pole, or fence post.
Range: Breeds from Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Quebec south to
Florida and Gulf Coast. Scarce in northeastern states. Winters
in southern part of breeding range.
Discussion: These woodpeckers are fond of open agricultural country
with groves of dead and dying trees, particularly orchards. They
often fly-catch, swooping low across a highway or along the shoulder
of a road after flying insects. They store nuts and acorns, hiding
them in holes and crevices. Red-headed Woodpeckers frequently are
driven off by aggressive European Starlings, which occupy their
nest holes, and by the removal of dead trees.
