16 Amazing Types of Woodpeckers In The World

Belonging to the family of Picidae, woodpeckers are one of the most amazing types of bird species. Commonly found perching on tree trunks or chiseling wood in search of their favorite foods, woodpeckers are widely spread across the world. With nearly 200 species around the world, woodpeckers are mainly clustered around wooded areas of tropical and subtropical countries of South East Asia, south and Central America, and Equatorial Africa. So here is a list of the top 16 amazing types of woodpeckers in the world.

Types of Woodpeckers

1. Red-bellied Woodpecker

Red-bellied woodpeckers are medium-sized woodpeckers of Ohio that come with Stripped colouration on their backs, gleaming red cap, plain buffy breast and face, a long tail and a long pointed bill. These are commonly found in eastern Woodlands and forests hitching along branches and trunks of large trees preferably old stands of oak.

However, red-bellied woodpeckers of Michigan are noisy Birds and make a variety of calls (males tend to make calls more frequently than females). Also, like other woodpeckers, red-bellied woodpeckers used their bill for foraging as a chisel drilling into bark or probing cracks on tree trunks, feeding mostly on insects, seeds, nuts etc.

Also Read:10 Beautiful Black And White Birds (Pictures And Info)

2. Red-headed Woodpecker

The red-headed woodpecker in Florida is a gorgeous bird species with red on its head and has an entirely crimson head, snowy white body, black-white wings. Also, both adult males and females are indistinguishable by plumage but males are slightly larger than females.

Moreover, red-headed woodpeckers are commonly found in eastern North America and inhabit open plants and wetland forested areas, preferring dead or dying trees and sparse undergrowth. Also, they feed on a variety of foods such as chestnuts, fruits, seeds, berries, corns, and catch insects while in flight.

3. Rufous-bellied Woodpecker

Rufous-bellied Woodpecker is a medium-sized brownish Woodpecker commonly found in south and south-east Asia specifically in India, Nepal Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and China. It has a short crest, short black bill, dark eye strip with small red patches. Males have a reddish patch near the eye, missing in females. Also, Rufous-bellied Woodpecker forages in pairs, feeding specifically on ant nests on trees, fallen logs, dung heaps etc. However, their population is continuously declining due to habitat destruction.

Image Source: Wikimedia

4. Downy Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker has a straight, chisel-like bill, blocky head, wide shoulders, and straight-backed posture. Also, Downy Woodpeckers smallest black and white animal widely spread Woodpecker in North America and also one of the popular birds of Iowa.

Also, these types of woodpeckers found in Arkansas are commonly found chiselling in forested areas mainly deciduous and also in residential areas and City parks. It is a social bird often found in flocks of chickadees, nuthatches. They are very fond of black oil sunflower seeds, millets, peanuts. Also, they are seen hammering at goldenrod galls to extract the fly larvae inside.

5. Great-spotted Woodpecker

Most commonly found in Europe, North America and most of Eurasia, the great spotted Woodpecker is a stout bird with black and white spotted plumage and a red patch under the tail. This highly distinct Woodpecker is one of the most striking bird species. They are commonly found hopping in almost all types of forest, Woodland, Parkland, gardens and even farmlands with hedges and scattered large trees. Also, great headed woodpeckers change into trees to find food, excavate nest holes, extract seeds from pine cones, insect larvae from inside trees etc.

6. Green-Barred Woodpecker

Green bird Woodpecker is a bird species found in East and Central South America, Brazil, Bolivia and Central Argentina. They have a yellow-green body with black-spotted Bars on the wings, back and tail, black forehead and red hind crown. Moreover, males have a red moustache ( which is black in females). Ranging from lowland forest to Andean desert scrub, they are found in a variety of habitats including forested habitats and more open areas with scattered trees.

Image Source: Wikimedia

7. Acorn Woodpecker

Reminiscent of a troupe of wide-eyed clowns, acorn woodpeckers are very unusual woodpeckers that prefer to live in large groups most commonly in western oak Woodlands. Acorn woodpeckers have a brownish blackhead, white forehead and white eyes. Adult males have a red cap on the forehead whereas females have a black area between the forehead and the cap. Also, they have a fascinating social life and highly complicated breeding behaviour. Moreover, Acorn woodpeckers are very pretty and easily spotted in open oak or pine-oak forest.

Image Source: Nagarajan Kanna

8. Crimson mantled Woodpecker

Commonly found in subtropical and temperate zones in the Andes, Venezuela and Bolivia, Crimson mantled Woodpecker are bright red with olive wings and scaled breast that grades into yellow in the lower parts. Also, adult males are easily identified by their red crown n a dark red malar while females have a both black Malar and crown. Moreover, a day for ages along with moss and lichen-cover trees in the habitats of subtropical and tropical moist montane forest.

Image Source: Wikimedia

9. Yellow-fronted Woodpecker

Yellow-fronted woodpeckers are multicoloured, gregarious and one of the most exotic species of the bird. With black wings, tail, yellow forehead eye-ring, white rump, and red belly bordered with dark bars, yellow fronted Woodpeckers look even more fascinating.

Moreover, yellow fronted woodpeckers are native to eastern South America, Southeastern Brazil, Argentina. Also, their preferred habitats are subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests and heavily degraded former forests. Yellow-fronted woodpeckers are non-migratory species that prefer to live in places with isolated trees.

Image Source: Nick Athanas

10. Ivory-billed Woodpecker

Native to the bottom line hardwood forest and temperate coniferous forest, Ivory-billed Woodpecker is the third-largest Woodpecker in the world and the largest Woodpecker of North America. Also, Ivory-billed Woodpecker was known as the “Lord God Bird” in the United States. Ivory-billed woodpeckers are mostly black with two white stripes and large white panels in the upper wings.

Also, males have a red crest and females have a black crest. Moreover, Ivory-billed Woodpeckers feed on large trees and fallen logs, stripping away Bark to search for large beetle larvae and inhabits untouched bottomlands and swamps. Also, Ivory-billed woodpeckers make a unique double knocking noise when packing at trees and this sound makes them easy to identify.

11. Gilded Woodpecker

The gilded woodpecker scientifically known as Colaptes chrysoides loves to thrive in regions of the Sonoran desert, Arizona and Baja, and California. The cute colorful birds look similar to the red-shafted Northern flickers. It preys on insects, fruits, and seeds. It can grow between 11 to 14 inches and the average wieght is between 3.3 to 4.5 oz. The main diet of gilded woodpeckers is ants and other insects such as beetles, termites, and caterpillars. The lifespan of the Gilded flicker is not known in the wild.

Image Source: Wikimedia

12. Northern Flicker Woodpecker

The northern flicker woodpecker scientifically known as Colaptes auratus is a woodpecker species native to North America and Canada. The bird species prey on ants, insects, berries, seeds, and nuts. It can be in length between 11 to 12 inches and the avarage wieght is between 3.8 to 5.6 oz. The pair of northern flickers mate for life and the avarage lifespan of the woodpecker species is between five to seven years. The diet mainly consists of ants and is also seen eating worms, butterflies, insects, snails, and moths found on the ground.

13. Eurasian Three-Toed Woodpecker

The Eurasian three-toed woodpecker scientifically known as Picoides tridactylus is mostly seen in the regions of northern Europe starting from northern Asia to Japan. The diet includes insects, insect larvae, spruce bark beetles, and wood-boring beetle larvae. Talking about its appearance, the adult species has a black and white plumage along with a unique yellow crown for the male. The back of the bird species is white with black bars and the tail is black with the white color. The diet includes fruit and tree sap.

Image Source: Stefan Berndtsson

14. Red-Cockaded Woodpecker

The red-cockaded woodpecker scientifically known as Leuconotopicus Borealis is a woodpecker species endemic to the southeastern United States. The diet of the bird species feeds on ants, beetles, cockroaches, caterpillars, wood-boring insects, and spiders. The nesting season of the bird runs from April to late June and it lays an avarage of one to five eggs per season. The avarage lifespan of a red-cockaded woodpecker is upto 12 years in the wild. It is one of the most beautiful types of woodpeckers in the world.

Image Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Southeast Region

15. Black-Backed Woodpecker

The black-backed woodpecker scientifically known as Picoides arcticus is medium-sized woodpeckers species mostly seen in the forests of North America. It is also known as the Arctic three-toed woodpecker described by the English naturalist William John Swainson in the year 1832. Talking about its appearance, the plumage of the bird species is black on the head, back, wings and rump. The tail and white outer feathers are white in color. It can grow upto 9.1 inches in length and wieght between 2.1 to 3.1 oz. The avarage lifespan of the species is between 6 to 8 years in the wild.

Image Source: Kurayba

16. Arizona Woodpecker

The Arizona woodpecker is scientifically known as Leuconotopicus Arizona native to the region of Southern Arizona, New Mexico, and the Sierra Madre Occidental of western Mexico. It loves to thrive at an elevation of 4,000 to 8,000 ft in mountains in Mexico. The male and female species can be distinguished with the help of the red patch on the nape of the head of males. The diet of the species includes insects and beetle Larvae. It can grow between 7 to 8 inches in length and wieght between 1.2 to 1.8 oz. The lifespan in the wild is unknown but in captivity, it is upto 10 years. It is one of the most amazing types of woodpeckers in the world.