Melanerpes carolinus
Table of Contents
Common Name: Red-bellied Woodpecker
Scientific Classification
| Kingdom: Animalia |
| Phylum: Chordata |
| Class: Aves |
| Order: Piciformes |
| Family: Picidae |
| Genus: Melanerpes |
| Species: Melanerpes carolinus |
Conservation Status
Identifying Features
Red-bellied woodpeckers are 9" long with 16" wingspans. They have a black and white barred back, white with faint red ches, and bright red on the top of their heads and neck.
Habitat & Range
Red-bellied woodpeckers live in forests across most of the eastern half of the United States year-round.
Behavior
They nest in cavities of dead trees and sometimes fence posts. They feed off of fruits, seeds, and insects.
Their song is a rolling “quirrr”.
Featured image by Chris Breeze.
Related
Picoides pubescens
Downy Woodpecker
Accipiter striatus
Sharp-Shinned Hawk
Agelaius phoeniceus
Red-winged Blackbird