Today's featured feathered friend is the Red-Headed Woodpecker. Adult male and female Red-Headed Woodpeckers are identical. Their head and neck is Crimson red, their back and tail is black and their underparts are snowy-white. The wings are black with white secondary feathers. Juveniles are similar but, are mottled with brown. The Red-Headed is a medium-sized Woodpecker measuring about 9 1/2 inches in length, with a 16 1/2 inch wingspan and weighs about 3 ounces.
Their conservation status is Near Threatened. Once common, their numbers are in decline due to habitat loss and changes in their food supply. They are year-round Florida residents and their range includes most of the eastern United States, however, they are difficult to find. We had asked several local birders where to locate them. With the location in hand, we still only managed to find them after an exhaustive search. We've also searched for them at known "hotspots", with no luck.
Non-birders often misidentify the Red-Bellied Woodpecker as a Red-Headed. Both are the same size and have red on their heads but, the similarity ends there. The Red-Headed's "entire" head is a crimson red, while the Red-Bellied has a bright red stripe on it's nape and crown (back and top of the head). The Red-Headed has solid colors while the Red-Bellied has black and white barring on it's wings and back. Enjoy these photos of the gorgeous and elusive Red-Headed Woodpecker.....tweet.....tweet!!
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Red-Headed Woodpecker
(Taken 4/5/13, Clay Gully Road, Myakka City FL)  |
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| Male Red-Bellied Woodpecker (for comparison) (Photo taken 2/21/13, Alligator Creek Preserve, Punta Gorda FL) (Red stripe on white head, also note the red belly) http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/red-headed_woodpecker/id |
Beautiful
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