Picoides villosus

Description

The hairy woodpecker is large and has a black and white striped face and wings, a white front, a black back with a large white patch in the center, and a mostly black tail with plain white outer feathers. These woodpeckers have a large dark bill with a white tuft of feathers at its base. The male has a red patch on the back of his head.

Voice

The hairy woodpecker has two calls. One is a strong "peek" and the other call sounds like a whinny. Woodpeckers also make noise when they drum against trees. Hairy woodpeckers have a very fast drum, but they repeat it less than ten times per minute.

Breeding

April to July

Habitat

These birds will live in any wooded area. They are so large, they can only feed on the trunks and large branches of trees.

Diet

Hairy woodpeckers usually make holes in trees looking for beetles and ants. They also eat caterpillars, fruit, corn, and nuts.

Range

You can find these birds year-round in most of Canada and the United States.

Other Useful Information

Woodpeckers have very special tails with strong feathers that help to brace the bird against the tree. They also have special feet designed for climbing with two toes facing forward and two toes facing backward.

Similar Species

The downy woodpecker is almost identical to the hairy woodpecker except it is more common and it is smaller with a smaller bill. Also, the white feathers on the downy woodpecker's tail have black stripes and the downy has a different voice and drumming pattern than the hairy woodpecker.