![]() Both are found through the United States, while the Acorn Woodpecker is found in a very limited area.Īctually there is one other woodpecker we should be able to spot in Northern Arizona – the Lewis Woodpecker. ![]() The Downy has a small, dainty bill, while the Hairy has a longer, chisel-like beak. They are very similar in appearance, but the Downy is much smaller – about seven inches long compared to the Hairy, which is about 10 inches long. Someone new to birding, and even old pros, find that it is hard to distinguish between a Hairy and a Downy. The two birds – probably male and female – quickly came and went. In Munds Park I first saw a pair of Hairy Woodpeckers this spring off our back deck. Because it is so small and can forage in small spaces among trees and their limbs, it uses food sources in its natural habitat that larger woodpeckers do not. The Downy Woodpecker has a black back with a broad white patch down the center, a white checker-board pattern on its wings, a white belly, and a small red spot on its crown. We don’t see them too often in Munds Park – but now and then I spot one on our property. This little bird, about seven inches in length, is common throughout the United States and a welcome sight with its bright red cap on a wintry white day. The second black and white bird with some red on its head is the Downy Woodpecker. These birds would be a real “find” for visitors from the Midwest or East because they only inhabit parts of the Southwest and California. The species has a clownish, comical face, with a bright red cap and a face that has a distinct white eye ring and black-white pattern. Their breeding behavior is quite unique – multiple males and females combine their efforts to raise young in a single nest. Acorn Woodpeckers live in year-round social units and depend on groups to build up and defend their stored supplies of acorns and insects. This bird’s back is mostly black, but when it flies from tree to tree or across your property, you can see the white under parts of its wings and belly. The Acorn Woodpecker is most prevalent here. These three species have black/white/red coloring, but they are distinctly different in other ways. So I thanked him for his interest and his suggestion, and that’s why we are going to discuss woodpeckers in Munds Park. ![]() One Friday night this summer I was sitting at a table in the Pinewood Country Club bar waiting for karaoke to begin and a member came up to me and said “Why don’t you write about the three woodpeckers we have here? We see the Acorn, Hairy, and Downy Woodpeckers all the time on our property”. ![]() Producer: John Kessler Executive Producer: Dominic Black © 2014 Tune In to Nature.Downy Woodpecker Courtesy of Gordon Karre 1981 Sanctuary Records Group Ltd, a BMG Company BirdNote’s theme music was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler. 2010, Ling Music Group 'Ace of Spades' by Motorhead, written by Edward Clarke, Ian Kilmister & Phil Taylor. Theme from 'A Summer Place' composed by Percy Faith. Hairy Woodpecker 'pik' call (49075) recorded by Kevin J Colver Hairy Woodpecker 'whinny call' (85105), Downy Woodpecker 'pik' call and Downy Woodpecker 'whinny' call (107281) all recorded by W. …loud and Hairy, like a heavy metal band: īird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. His Hairy cousin prefers hanging out in coniferous woods.īut even if you don’t see them, you can still tell them apart by those calls. It's the Downy you'll see most often at suburban feeders, especially in deciduous woodland: small, black and white, the male sporting a vivid red patch on the back of its head. And it doesn't have the black spots on its outer tail feathers like the Downy. The Hairy Woodpecker's the larger of the two, though, with a distinctly longer bill. Got that? Funny thing though, the Downy isn't particularly downy and the Hairy isn't particularly hairy. ![]() And that's the call of the Hairy Woodpecker. Downy and Hairy - Two Similar Woodpeckers ![]()
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