Red-naped Sapsucker Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  The Red-naped Sapsucker is a medium-sized woodpecker with a slight peak to the back of the head. It clings vertically to trees giving it an elongated appearance. The bill is stout and sharply pointed.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Downy Woodpecker, smaller than a Northern Flicker.

  robin-sized

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 7.5-8.3 in (19-21 cm)
    • Weight: 1.1-2.3 oz (32-66 g)
    • Wingspan: 16.1-16.9 in (41-43 cm)

  © Mark Chavez / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  Red-naped Sapsuckers are black and white overall with a red cap, nape, and throat. They have a long white bar on the folded wing. A black stripe through the eye is bordered by white stripes. The belly is mottled black and white, with a dingy or yellowish cast. Female Red-naped Sapsuckers have a white patch on the chin while males have entirely red chins. Juveniles have a brown cap and an overall brown wash on their belly and head.

• Behavior

  Red-naped Sapsuckers climb up and down trees, leaning against their stiff tail feathers for support. They drill rows of parallel circular holes known as sap wells in tree bark to get the tree sap flowing which they lap up with their tongues. Like other sapsuckers, they drum on trees in a slow and irregular pattern.
• Habitat

  Red-naped Sapsuckers breed in mixed forests of willow, aspen, birch, ponderosa pine, juniper, or Douglas-fir. They tend to avoid oak or pine-oak forests during the breeding season, but use them during migration and winter, along with orchards and woodlands near streams.