Species guide
Red-bellied Woodpecker: how to recognise it
A bird of North America. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Jen Goellnitz · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Melanerpes carolinus
- Family
- Woodpeckers
- Size
- About 22–27 cm
- Habitat
- Woodland and suburban gardens
- Found in
- North America
The key marks
A black-and-white zebra-barred back, a red cap and nape (red down to the bill in males) and a pale belly with a faint red tinge.
Voice
A rolling, churring “churr-churr”.
Good to know
Its tongue is long enough to reach insects deep inside a tree hole, and it often visits suet feeders.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in woodland and suburban gardens. It is especially common in Florida. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.