- Picoides pubescens
Identification
Length: 5.75 inches (smallest woodpecker in North America.)
- Very small black and white woodpecker
- Very short bill
- Mostly black head set off by broad white supercilium and lower border to auriculars
- Black nape
- White back
- Black wings with white spotting on coverts and flight feathers
- White underparts
- Black rump
- Black tail with white outer tail feathers barred with black
Adult male: Red spot on nape
Distribution
Resident from Alaska across Canada, south throughout United States except Southwest. Can also be found east of Newfoundland and Labrador, on the islands of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 6 subspecies[1]:
Eastern
- P. p. pubescens:
- Kansas to North Carolina, south to eastern Texas and Florida
- P. p. medianus:
- Central Alaska to Newfoundland and central US (east of Rocky Mountains)
- Central Alaska to Newfoundland and central US (east of Rocky Mountains)
Rocky Mountains
- P. p. leucurus:
- P. p. glacialis:
- Coastal south-eastern Alaska
- Coastal south-eastern Alaska
Pacific
- P. p. gairdnerii:
- Coastal western British Columbia to north-western California
- P. p. turati:
- Interior Washington, Oregon and California
Habitat
Their breeding habitat is forested areas, mainly deciduous, across most of North America to Central America.
The Downy is a familiar bird in its range, especially in winter, when many move into the suburbs and feed on suet at bird feeders. It is often seen in the mixed flocks of chickadees, nuthatches, creepers, and kinglets that gather in the woods during migration and winter.
Behaviour
Diet
As with other woodpeckers, the male is larger than the female and chisels deep into wood with its longer, stronger bill, whereas the female pries under the bark with her shorter bill. Thus a pair is able to share the food resources without competing with one another.
Breeding
They nest in a tree cavity, excavated by the nesting pair in a dead tree or limb.
Vocalisation
A quiet pik or a descending rattle.
Gallery
Click on image to enlarge
Artwork by fishercl
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2012. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2012. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Downy Woodpecker. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 18 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Downy_Woodpecker
External Links
