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pecker are one of the most engrossing avians you’re able to find in your backyard – and did you know that there are8 species in Virginia ?
There ’s a good opportunity that if you have more than one peckerwood visiting you , you may actually be playing boniface to a few dissimilar species !
Legend for the following woodpecker migration and range maps
Although the lean below contains all the common woodpecker found in Virginia , it ’s possible to find a aimless species of woodpecker that ’s not aboriginal to this particular res publica . If you do see a vagrant species , it should be considered an passing rarified sighting !
The following legend can be used for each woodpecker species map out to learn what prison term of year you could see each woodpecker in your area .
8 woodpecker specie are receive in Virginia , including the Hairy Woodpecker , Red - cockaded Woodpecker , blood-red - headed Woodpecker , Northern Flicker , Downy Woodpecker , Pileated Woodpecker , Red - bellied Woodpecker , and the Yellow - bellied Sapsucker . Several of these woodpecker species are permanent residents , while others are much rarer and can be only blot seasonally .
Legend for the following woodpecker migration and range maps
The 8 Woodpecker Species in Virginia
Hairy Woodpecker
Dryobates villosus
Order : order Piciformes
kin : Picidae
Size:7.1 – 10.2 in ( 18 – 26 cm )
If there is a fortune you ’re going to spot a woodpecker in your backyard somewhere in the states , then it ’s believably going to be a hirsute mintage ! The Dryobates villosus is extremely vulgar , but it ’s actually middling shy and retiring . They have very bare phone call but will be well-chosen to drill and drum on just about anything . They are also prime opportunists – they ’ll steal sap from hollow drill by other boo ! The hairy peckerwood is also known for its mighty peck – it look small , but it drills loudly !
The hirsute peckerwood of course has a fairly hairy coming into court , though it ’s also famous for its relatively longsighted , pointed bill , as well as its decided black and white coloring . Some coinage , however , can carry a dark-brown shade . They are generally bloodless to the bureau and are speckle to the wings .
Where to initiate ? This Picidae does n’t tend to be crabbed about climate , though you ’ll normally see it amongst conifer . There are more than eight million of these birds across the continent , and their issue are grow – there are no particular states where they are most prolific .
Red-cockaded Woodpecker
Dryobates borealis
Size:7.9 – 9.1 in ( 20 – 23 atomic number 96 )
The crimson - cockaded pecker is n’t actually all that ruby to look at – but we ’ll come to that . It ’s a rarefied Picidae in that it wo n’t flock to burnt or drained Tree . They prefer rubber in numbers and tend to peck aside at hold out plants and trees . woefully , these woodpeckers are some of the rarified to find in the US , if not the world . They are a rarefied treat to discern . This hiss is more or less robin - sized , and will normally make a distinct call – you ’ll be lucky to hear it . They lean to work away at pine bark in small groups .
modest to mid - sized , these fuzzy - looking woodpeckers incline to have all - over browned legal community on their wing and tails , with striking black and ashen facial markings . You ’ll normally see them scaling pine tree diagram .
You will ordinarily only obtain the scarlet - cockaded woodpecker in the southeast of the US , and even then , there are only recollect to be 15,000 specimens in the wild . Conservation and work are ongoing for this endangered species .
Red-headed Woodpecker
Melanerpes erythrocephalus
Size:7.5 – 9.1 in ( 19 – 23 cm )
This big , boldly - colored bird is a tremendous raft for many , and while you might not hear it call too often , its rattles and swot up on trees will belike be a common audio across its native states . However , it does n’t actually pick at trees for solid food – it snatch flying beasts as they flitter past . This woodpecker has sadly fallen in numbers over the years due to food scarceness . However , when it ca n’t snatch a bug or two , it happily feasts on egg and acorns .
Their name is a giveaway – they have bright ruby-red crowns and promontory , with white-hot consistency feathers and monochrome wing and bum . You likely wo n’t find out their calls too loudly .
These acorn - foraging birds patronize the eastern to fundamental state , stretching up as far as outer Canada . They incline to enjoy the warmer reaches , however , as they will frequent patch in Florida and down in New Mexico .
Northern Flicker
genus Colaptes auratus
Size:11.0 – 12.2 in ( 28 – 31 centimetre )
This Picidae is be intimate by many , many different names – and you may well have seen it referred to as the Yellow or Red - shafted Flicker . It ’s a fairly uncouth bird and is also one of the largest woodpeckers living across the country . Unlike most cock , however , they tend to feast primarily on ground insects – pismire , in particular ! This Flicker will prefer to hop-skip around to wipe out , but may even take to site itself on branches from time to time when it visualise a yield kickshaw or two .
The Northern Flicker has plumage semblance that can vary ( hence its many name ) , but you’re able to commonly blob these birds thanks to their blot tails and wings . They often have black markings around their face and top , and you ’ll be capable to tell them aside from other Picidae on vaporous size alone .
Northern Flickers tend to live out east but can be found high up in the northwest reaches of Alaska , and even down towards the west coast – that applies to the yellow - shaft sort , in any case ! Flickers of this genus run to be clean common across the US , with almost ten million specimens estimated at present in North America .
Downy Woodpecker
Dryobates pubescens
Size:5.5 – 6.7 in ( 14 – 17 centimetre )
really midget , the cute downy peckerwood is a Picidae that ’s common across the N to central states . In fact , they are the modest aboriginal pecker in the country . They tend to favor milder climates on the whole but are known to travel around . They habituate shrill , individual call , and lean to delight feeding on seeds in feeders . If you have any pecker in your backyard , there is a very good chance it is a Dryobates pubescens . They are just bigger than your vernacular garden Prunella modularis .
Exceptionally small but unabashedly noisy , the downlike peckerwood is largely calamitous and white-hot with blot , and the Male tend to have red poll . They have varying topographic point and stripe across their wings and feathers – think that neither one nor two may ever look the same !
The downy woodpecker live just about everywhere across the United States , with sighting across states as divers as Florida and Alaska ! If the climate is mild enough – and not too cheery – then there ’s every chance you ’ll spot this bird in your yard . There are around 13 million of them across the continent .
Pileated Woodpecker
Dryocopus pileatus
Size:15.8 – 19.3 in ( 40 – 49 atomic number 96 )
Large and loud , this woodpecker is fairly easy to discover – peculiarly as their mating shout are so decided ! Rather tragically , this burly Picidae is sometimes misguided for a pecker that ’s thought to now be extinct – the ivory - billed woodpecker , which has n’t been seen in the US for many year . The pileated peckerwood , almost crowlike in height , tend to junket on ants and minibeasts found deep in decaying Tree . This mintage ’ muddle - making can assist give tax shelter to other animals – making it a welcome sight .
Beyond their loud cries and wood rapping , the pileated woodpecker has a shocking red crown , with monochromatic body and prospicient , thin bill . The male of the species is easy to recognise as it has a facial scoring rather like a moustache .
The pileated woodpecker does n’t tend to be too fickle about where it likes to endure . However , you ’ll mainly find it living out in eastern states , though as far northerly as Nova Scotia ! If you ’re a California aborigine , it ’s also not unheard of to spot this common Picidae .
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Melanerpes carolinus
Size:9.4 in ( 24 centimetre )
more and more usual , the red - belly peckerwood tends to enjoy flocking to backyard bird feeder and has a call you might just know . They only ever drum during mating or attractor , and if you ’ve ever tried to tell these doll apart in full term of gender – it ’s almost inconceivable on coup d’oeil alone . This is a mid - sized birdie that does n’t tend to do too much impairment to trees , it ’s one of the gentler woodpecker you ’ll bump in the US wilds . They be given to favour pecking away at hardwoods and will flock to forests when they are n’t at the feeder .
The red - belly out woodpecker , of course , has a reddened stomach , but you will mainly know it for its red - tinged crown and its bar - coat feathers , as well as a chocolate-brown - colored front and aspect . Again , it ’s hard to severalize the male and females apart .
These woodpeckers run to be uncouth sights out towards the east and southeastern body politic , from Texas out to Florida . They do n’t be given to move around too much , specially as they will steal nesting spots from other shuttle !
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Sphyrapicus varius
Size:7.1 – 8.7 in ( 18 – 22 atomic number 96 )
This peckerwood is a form of bird that will happily drill hole to drink tasty sap from within , something that ’s very welcoming to other species . These skirt are jolly similar to other sapsucker in terms of behavior and in terms of looks . sensationalistic - bellied sapsucker tend to be very unequaled drillers – you will likely recognise their staggered pecking if they happen upon wood or metal near your thou . These birds are know for pecking and making nest extremely gamy up – over 6,000 fundament in the air .
As the name suggests , you will normally be able-bodied to spot a yellow - bellied sapsucker for its undimmed stomach , however , it often has a ruby peak and nape , with stunning black and white bars and fleck down its trunk , fag end , and wings .
The Yellow - belly Sapsucker is the most migratory woodpecker in the world , breeding as far north as eastern Arkansas and the northerly boreal forest , and wintering as far south as Panama and the Caribbean . Much like other US aboriginal sapsuckers , this bird will normally be discover in forest patch , though this species will transmigrate from the fundamental plains and lower midwest S towards the west of the Appalachians .
How to Attract Virginia Woodpeckers to Your Yard
Want to see more woodpeckers in your backyard ?
As you could see , there are more than a few wonderful woodpecker coinage to look out for across Virginia . Some may not flock to garden and backyard in favour of forests and woodland reaches – however , there ’s a chance a rarefied razzing or two may make its way to you .
If you ’re incisive to start spotting woodpecker in your yard , why not take a spirit at our guide onhow to attract peckerwood ? That ’ll give you the basics of what ’s required to attract woodpeckers .
Then , we ’d recommend say our vendee ’s guide onchoosing the good woodpecker feeder . ready up a woodpecker feeder or two is the practiced way to guarantee that woodpeckers will visit your grand . While you ’re at it , do check that to read our full guide onwhat to feed in woodpecker , too – as getting their dieting right will make a lot of difference of opinion !
There are a bunch of other ways to attract woodpeckers such asgetting a bird bathand planting aboriginal trees that woodpeckers lie with .
All State Woodpeckers
Want to see what woodpecker species are discover in other states ? Here ’s our complete listing of woodpeckers found in each state :
