Redhead wood pecker

Description Red-headed woodpecker Melanerpes erythrocephalus populations have declined in the United States and Canada over the past 40 years.  Skip to Bottom Navigation.  The introduced Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris may also be a threat as they act as competitors for nest sites with Red-headed Woodpeckers J. Decreasing numbers were also noted in other annual bird counts in the Northeast and it became evident that the red-headed woodpecker had suffered significant population declines in the past century.  Red-headed Woodpeckers start nesting in late April or early May, which is later than other Tennessee woodpeckers. 

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The home range of red-headed woodpeckers varies from year to year, depending on food availability.  Red-headed Woodpecker easily moves upwards, sidewise or backwards, but never with head downwards, as Nuthatches.  They are birds of semi-open country, and can often be found in and around isolated shelterbelts and groves in the state.  During migration, Red-headed Woodpeckers fly very high above trees, far apart.  To choose a place, male taps out of a cavity, and if female accepts it, she taps on the tree or pole that contains it. 

Only subscribers are able to see the bibliography.  Red-headed woodpeckers also lose nest sites when people cut down old dead trees.  In winter, red-headed woodpeckers also live in forests that have large, old trees.  Red-headed woodpeckers raise one or two broods a year.  Red-headed woodpeckers are widely distributed throughout most of North America. 

Click on the map below for a higher-resolution view South Dakota Status: Both adults care for the young until they fledge in about 30 days.  An important part of the ecosystem, woodpeckers help control insect populations and create nest cavities that are used by other birds and mammals who cannot excavate the cavities themselves.  The bird migrates by day, but short-distance migrations are not known to occur in the southern part of the US.  Woodpeckers are well adapted to maneuvering around tree trunks searching for insects and spiders.