Few birds in Ohio make quite as bold a fashion statement as the red-headed woodpecker.
With a unmistakable scarlet head, bright white belly and black-and-white wings, the red-headed woodpecker is one of those birds that even novice birders can identify with confidence. When it takes flight, the blocks of black and white on its wings have even earned it a nickname: The Flying Checkerboard.
The red-headed woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) measures bill-to-tail from seven to nine inches long, about the same size as an American robin, but with a larger wingspan, which reaches roughly 16 inches. Adults have a completely red head, neck and throat. Its back and tail are black, while the belly and large wing patches are white.
Not your everyday woodpecker
Although woodpeckers are famous for clinging to tree trunks and hammering away at bark in search of insects, the red-headed woodpecker has a few other tricks as it can catch insects on the wing, much like a flycatcher. It also drops to the ground to search for food, with grasshoppers being a favorite snack.
But red-headed woodpeckers are omnivores, and much of their diet actually comes from plants. Seeds, fruits, corn, acorns and beechnuts are important foods, in addition to insects. They will make visits to backyard bird feeders and are especially attracted to suet cakes.
Red-headed woodpeckers are among the few North American woodpeckers known for regularly storing food for later as they will tuck nuts and seeds into crevices in trees and hide food beneath pieces of bark.
In Ohio, red-headed woodpeckers favor open woods, groves, woodland edges, farm country, and areas containing standing dead trees. Dead trees, commonly called snags, are especially valuable because they provide places for woodpeckers to excavate nesting cavities.
Country roads can offer good viewing opportunities. Utility poles and dead branches give the birds convenient lookout posts from which they can watch for insects and defend their territory. They can be noisy, bold and highly territorial, particularly around nesting sites and will aggressively defend a nesting cavity against other birds trying to move in.
A bird facing challenges
The red-headed woodpecker remains widespread enough that it is not considered globally endangered, but its population has undergone a substantial long-term decline because of the loss of suitable habitat, namely dead or dying trees which are often removed for aesthetic reasons. Where it is safe to do so, leaving standing dead trees can provide valuable wildlife habitat, not just for red-headed woodpeckers, but also for other birds and animals.
For Ohio birders, spotting a red-headed woodpecker is worth taking a few moments to enjoy.
