Birding at MOSI Outside: Downy Woodpecker

Female Downy Woodpecker

MOSI Outside is home to several species of woodpeckers. While Red-Bellied Woodpeckers are probably the most common, Downy Woodpeckers (Picoides pubescens) run a close second in numbers. This tiny bird is the smallest woodpecker in North America at about 7 inches tall, and one of the most agile and acrobatic. They take advantage of their small stature, poking around for food that bigger woodpeckers can't reach. They are small enough to perch on plants and new-growth branches that won't support larger birds, and catch plenty of insects that larger birds would miss.

Downy Woodpeckers are year-round non-migratory residents throughout their range. It's easy to tell males from females, as males have a distinctive red patch at the back of their heads. (Juveniles have an extended red patch that reaches most of the way to their bill in front.) It's more challenging trying to tell this bird apart from its very close relative, the Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus). These birds are nearly identical, with the Hairy Woodpecker being larger and having a longer bill (nearly as long as their entire head) - Downy Woodpeckers have very short, sharp bills.

Fun Fact: Downy Woodpecker tongues are twice as long as their entire heads, with barbs on the end for spearing insects.

Downy Woodpeckers are known to visit seed and suet feeders, but here at MOSI Outside we mainly see them foraging in the oaks and elms for insects among the bark. Look for them in the Dick Bowers Live Oak in the early mornings, usually in pairs and often with other woodpecker species.


(Male Downy Woodpecker, left: Photo by Ken Thomas via Wikimedia Commons)