Acorn Woodpecker Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  Acorn Woodpeckers are medium-sized woodpeckers with straight, spike-like bills and stiff, wedge-shaped tails used for support as the birds cling to tree trunks.

  Relative Size

  Smaller than a Northern Flicker; larger than a Downy Woodpecker.

  robin-sized

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 7.5-9.1 in (19-23 cm)
    • Weight: 2.3-3.2 oz (65-90 g)
    • Wingspan: 13.8-16.9 in (35-43 cm)

  © Kyle Blaney / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  These striking birds are mostly black above with a red cap, creamy white face, and black patch around the bill. In flight, they show three patches of white: one in each wing and one on the rump. Females have less red on the crown than males.

• Behavior

  Acorn Woodpeckers are very unusual woodpeckers that live in large groups, hoard acorns, and breed cooperatively. Group members gather acorns by the hundreds and wedge them into holes they’ve made in a tree trunk or telephone pole. Acorn Woodpeckers also spend considerable time catching insects on the wing. They give raucous, scratchy waka-waka calls frequently.
• Habitat

  These woodpeckers live in oak and mixed oak-evergreen forests on slopes and mountains in the Southwest and West Coast. They’re tolerant of humans, and you can find them in towns where there are acorns and suitable places to store them.