Downy Woodpecker Foraging Ecology Downy Woodpecker Foraging Ecology Jeffrey S. Palmer, Rachelle DeBeer, and Amy Tvedt Many studies indicate sexual differences in the foraging behavior of Downy Woodpeckers. Males tend to forage on smaller branches, higher in the tree, and at a faster rate than do females. Niche partitioning may be the result male dominance and may serve to decrease competition between the sexes and hence facilitate pair bond formation during the early breeding season. We have investigated the average patch residence times of male and female Downy Woodpeckers foraging in winter at artificially placed suet patches.
Males consistently exhibit shorter patch residence times than do females.