Get a Landscaping or Gardening Quote
put down your zip code
peckerwood are one of the most enthralling avians you may find in your backyard – and did you know that there are8 coinage in Louisiana ?
There ’s a unspoiled opportunity that if you have more than one pecker visit you , you may actually be playing horde to a few different species !
Legend for the following woodpecker migration and range maps
Although the list below contains all the common woodpecker institute in Louisiana , it ’s possible to find a vagrant species of pecker that ’s not aboriginal to this peculiar state . If you do see a vagrant species , it should be considered an highly rarified sighting !
The come after fable can be used for each woodpecker species map to determine what time of year you’re able to see each pecker in your area .
8 woodpecker species are found in Louisiana , include the Northern Flicker , Yellow - Bellied Sapsucker , Red - Cockaded Woodpecker , Red - Headed Woodpecker , Pileated Woodpecker , Hairy Woodpecker , Downy Woodpecker , and Red - Bellied Woodpecker . Several of these woodpecker species are permanent residents , while others are much rarer and can be only spotted seasonally .
Legend for the following woodpecker migration and range maps
The 8 Woodpecker Species in Louisiana
Northern Flicker
genus Colaptes auratus
Order : Piciformes
Family : Picidae
Size:11.0 – 12.2 in ( 28 – 31 cm )
This Picidae is jazz by many , many different names – and you may well have seen it referred to as the Yellow or Red - shafted Flicker . It ’s a fairly common Bronx cheer and is also one of the large woodpeckers living across the states . Unlike most peckers , however , they tend to feast in the main on ground insects – emmet , in particular ! This Flicker will choose to hop around to eat , but may even pick out to site itself on branches occasionally when it go for a fruit treat or two .
The Northern Flicker has plume color that can variegate ( hence its many names ) , but you’re able to commonly distinguish these hiss thanks to their flecked rear and wings . They often have black markings around their face and crests , and you ’ll be capable to severalize them asunder from other Picidae on sheer size alone .
Northern Flickers tend to know out east but can be found high up in the northwest reaches of Alaska , and even down towards the west coast – that apply to the yellow - shafted variety , in any grammatical case ! Flickers of this genus run to be fairly common across the US , with almost ten million specimens estimated at present in North America .
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Sphyrapicus varius
Size:7.1 – 8.7 in ( 18 – 22 cm )
This woodpecker is a multifariousness of bird that will happily drill holes to drink tasty sap from within , something that ’s very welcoming to other species . These birds are jolly standardized to other sapsuckers in terms of demeanor and in terms of feeling . Yellow - bellied sapsuckers incline to be very unique drillers – you will belike make out their staggered pecking if they come about upon Grant Wood or metal near your one thousand . These birds are known for pecking and making nest extremely high up – over 6,000 feet in the line .
As the name suggest , you will normally be able to blob a yellow - belly sapsucker for its bright belly , however , it often has a reddish crown and scruff , with stunning black and blank bars and blob down its consistence , tail end , and wings .
The Yellow - bellied Sapsucker is the most migrant woodpecker in the world , breeding as far northwards as easterly Arkansas and the northern boreal forest , and wintering as far south as Panama and the Caribbean . Much like other US native sapsucker , this bird will unremarkably be found in woods spots , though this mintage will migrate from the fundamental plain stitch and low midwest S towards the Rebecca West of the Appalachians .
Red-cockaded Woodpecker
Dryobates borealis
Size:7.9 – 9.1 in ( 20 – 23 centimetre )
The red - cockaded pecker is n’t actually all that red to reckon at – but we ’ll arrive to that . It ’s a rare Picidae in that it wo n’t flock to burnt or numb tree . They prefer safety in bit and tend to peck away at living plants and tree . Sadly , these woodpeckers are some of the rarified to rule in the US , if not the man . They are a rare treat to spot . This bird is roughly robin - sized , and will normally make a distinguishable call – you ’ll be golden to hear it . They tend to exercise forth at pine bark in lowly groups .
Small to mid - sized , these fuzzy - look woodpeckers tend to have all - over brown measure on their flank and after part , with strike smuggled and white facial markings . You ’ll normally see them scale true pine Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree .
You will normally only find the red - cockaded woodpecker in the southeast of the US , and even then , there are only imagine to be 15,000 specimens in the state of nature . Conservation and study are ongoing for this endangered species .
Red-headed Woodpecker
genus Melanerpes erythrocephalus
Size:7.5 – 9.1 in ( 19 – 23 cm )
This large , boldly - colored bird is a wonderful wad for many , and while you might not hear it call too often , its rattles and drumming on trees will in all likelihood be a common sound across its native states . However , it does n’t in reality peck at at Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree for food – it snatch up fly brute as they flicker past tense . This woodpecker has unhappily fallen in numbers over the eld due to food scarcity . However , when it ca n’t nobble a hemipteran or two , it merrily feasts on nuts and acorn .
Their name is a game show – they have bright red crowns and heads , with white consistence feathers and monochrome wing and tails . You probably wo n’t hear their call too loudly .
These acorn - forage birds shop at the eastern to central states , stretch out up as far as outer Canada . They tend to savor the warmer reaching , however , as they will frequent spots in Florida and down in New Mexico .
Pileated Woodpecker
Dryocopus pileatus
Size:15.8 – 19.3 in ( 40 – 49 cm )
expectant and forte , this woodpecker is fairly easy to notice – peculiarly as their mating cries are so discrete ! Rather tragically , this burly Picidae is sometimes false for a woodpecker that ’s thought to now be nonextant – the tusk - billed woodpecker , which has n’t been witness in the US for many years . The pileated woodpecker , almost crowlike in stature , be given to feast on ants and minibeasts found deep in decaying trees . This species ’ hole - making can assist give protection to other animals – reach it a welcome sight .
Beyond their loud cries and wood rapping , the pileated woodpecker has a shocking red crown , with monochromatic torso and long , thin pecker . The male of the specie is easy to spot as it has a facial marking rather like a moustache .
The pileated woodpecker does n’t tend to be too fickle about where it likes to live . However , you ’ll in the main find it living out in eastern states , though as far northwards as Nova Scotia ! If you ’re a California native , it ’s also not unheard of to spot this common family Picidae .
Hairy Woodpecker
Dryobates villosus
Size:7.1 – 10.2 in ( 18 – 26 curium )
If there is a probability you ’re go to spot a woodpecker in your backyard somewhere in the states , then it ’s belike get going to be a haired species ! The Dryobates villosus is super vernacular , but it ’s really middling timid and pull away . They have very elementary call but will be happy to drill and drum on just about anything . They are also prize self-seeker – they ’ll steal sap from holes drilled by other birds ! The hairy peckerwood is also known for its mighty peck – it calculate small , but it drills forte !
The hairy peckerwood course has a somewhat hirsute appearance , though it ’s also renowned for its comparatively long , pointed banknote , as well as its decided black and white coloring . Some species , however , can carry a brownish tincture . They are generally white to the chest of drawers and are speckle to the wings .
Where to start up ? This Picidae does n’t tend to be fussy about climate , though you ’ll normally see it amongst conifers . There are more than eight million of these birds across the continent , and their numbers are growing – there are no particular states where they are most prolific .
Downy Woodpecker
Dryobates pubescens
Size:5.5 – 6.7 in ( 14 – 17 cm )
genuinely tiny , the cunning downy woodpecker is a Picidae that ’s common across the magnetic north to central state . In fact , they are the smallest native pecker in the land . They tend to favour milder climates on the whole but are make out to travel around . They use sharp , single margin call , and be given to enjoy feed on seeds in feeders . If you have any woodpeckers in your backyard , there is a very full luck it is a Dryobates pubescens . They are just bigger than your common garden sparrow .
Exceptionally small but unabashedly noisy , the pubescent pecker is largely black and white with spot , and the males tend to have red crowns . They have varying muscae volitantes and stripes across their offstage and feather – think of that neither one nor two may ever seem the same !
The downy woodpecker live just about everywhere across the United States , with sightings across states as diverse as Florida and Alaska ! If the climate is mild enough – and not too sunny – then there ’s every probability you ’ll descry this skirt in your grounds . There are around 13 million of them across the continent .
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Melanerpes carolinus
Size:9.4 in ( 24 atomic number 96 )
Increasingly common , the cerise - belly out woodpecker tend to enjoy flocking to backyard feeders and has a call you might just make out . They only ever drum during conjugation or draw , and if you ’ve ever tried to tell these birds aside in terms of gender – it ’s almost impossible on glance alone . This is a mid - sized bird that does n’t tend to do too much damage to trees , it ’s one of the gentle peckerwood you ’ll find out in the US wilds . They run to prefer pecking away at hardwoods and will flock to forests when they are n’t at the feeder .
The carmine - belly out pecker , of course , has a blood-red tum , but you will mainly know it for its red - tinged tip and its streak - coated feather , as well as a brown - coloured front and face . Again , it ’s hard to recount the male and female person apart .
These woodpeckers tend to be plebeian pile out towards the east and southeast states , from Texas out to Florida . They do n’t tend to move around too much , particularly as they will steal nesting office from other bird !
How to Attract Louisiana Woodpeckers to Your Yard
Want to see more woodpeckers in your backyard ?
As you may see , there are more than a few wonderful pecker species to look out for across Louisiana . Some may not constellate to gardens and backyards in favour of forests and woodland reaches – however , there ’s a luck a rare bird or two may make its means to you .
If you ’re bully to start spotting woodpeckers in your yard , why not take a look at our guide onhow to appeal peckerwood ? That ’ll give you the BASIC of what ’s required to draw peckerwood .
Then , we ’d recommend reading our buyer ’s guide onchoosing the good peckerwood feeder . dress up a woodpecker feeder or two is the estimable room to guarantee that woodpecker will gossip your yard . While you ’re at it , do check that to register our full guide onwhat to feed woodpeckers , too – as getting their diet right will make a lot of difference !
There are a lot of other way to appeal woodpeckers such asgetting a snort bathand planting native tree that woodpecker get laid .
All State Woodpeckers
need to see what woodpecker species are find in other states ? Here ’s our consummate list of woodpecker found in each state :
