Breeding Location:
Forests, coniferous, Mountains
Breeding Type:
Monogamous
Breeding Population:
Fairly common in coniferous range
Egg Color:
White
Number of Eggs:
3 - 7
Incubation Days:
14
Egg Incubator:
Both sexes
Nest Material:
Few wood chips in tree.
Migration:
Nonmigratory
Recommended Products:
Overview
White-headed Woodpecker: Medium-sized woodpecker, mostly black with large white wing patches. Head and throat are white; nape patch is red and narrow. Small black stripe behind the eye. Bill is black and small. Legs and feet are black. This is the only North American woodpecker with a white head.
Range and Habitat
White-headed Woodpecker: Resident from extreme south-central British Columbia, northeastern Washington, and Idaho, south to southern California and western Nevada. Some birds migrate down mountain slopes in the winter. Ponderosa pine belts in mountains are the preferred habitat.
Breeding and Nesting
White-headed Woodpecker: Three to seven white eggs are laid in a nest cavity in a pine stub or snag, often close to the ground. Both parents incubate eggs for about 14 days.
Foraging and Feeding
White-headed Woodpecker: Feeds on insects and conifer seeds. Peers into cracks of bark and probes crevices with tongue; generally forages on cones in late summer or winter.
Readily Eats
Suet, Sunflower Seed, Nuts, Sugar Water, Fruit
Vocalization
White-headed Woodpecker: Usually silent; call is a sharp "pee-dink" or a more prolonged "pee-dee-dee-dink."
Similar Species
White-headed Woodpecker: Acorn Woodpecker has white rump and belly, and black on face and crown.
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