![]() ![]() ![]() The male and female select a nest site together. ( Shackelford, et al., 2000)īreeding pairs begin forming any time between early winter and late spring, and nesting usually begins in March and April. Breeding pairs do not appear to stay together for more than one season. Mutual tapping is an important part of communication between the pair and in nest-site selection, which may be an important part of establishing a pair bond. Males attract females with a combination of tapping, "kwirr" calls, and drumming. Pairs form any time from early winter to late spring. Red-bellied woodpeckers are thought to be monogamous. ( "Chipper Woods Bird Observatory: Red Bellied Woodpecker", 2001 Shackelford, et al., 2000) Unlike many birds, red-bellied woodpeckers do not show seasonal variation in the coloration. Juvenile red-bellied woodpeckers are similar in appearance to adults, but have a horn-colored bill and lack any red on their heads. The legs and zygodactyl feet (two toes forward, two toes back) are dark gray, and the chisel shaped bill is black. Females have red only on the napes of their necks. Male red-bellied woodpeckers have a bright red cap that covers from the forehead to the nape of the neck. The face and belly are a dull grayish color. Two characteristics that distinguish red-bellied woodpeckers from woodpeckers native to North America are the black and white zebra pattern on their backs, and the red belly found in a small section of the ventral region. Males are about 8-9% larger, on average, than females. Adults weigh about 72.5 grams (range 56 to 91 g), and are 22.9 to 26.7 cm long. Red-bellied woodpeckers are medium sized birds with a distinctive black-and-white patterned back and a long, chisel-shaped bill. Range elevation 900 (high) m 2952.76 (high) ft.They usually live below 600 m elevation, but can be found at up to 900 m in the Apalachian mountains. Though they are most commonly associated with mature hardwood forests, they also thrive in mixed pine-hardwood forests, mesic pine flatwoods, heavily timbered bottomlands, swampy woods, and riparian forests. Red-bellied woodpeckers are adaptable to a variety of forested habitats. Their range extends east from the wooded portion of the Great Plain states to the Atlantic coast and from the Gulf of Mexico to southern portions of Ontario and northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New York. ![]() Red-bellied woodpeckers are found in the eastern half of the United States. ![]()
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