Bird GuideWoodpeckersGolden-fronted Woodpecker

At a Glance

The common open-country woodpecker of eastern Mexico and northern Central America. It crosses the border mainly in southern Texas, where it is very common, noisy, and conspicuous. Similar in appearance and behavior to its relative, the Red-bellied Woodpecker. Where their ranges meet in Texas and Oklahoma, the two species aggressively defend territories against each other, and they sometimes interbreed.
Category
Picidae, Woodpeckers, Tree-clinging Birds
Conservation
Low Concern
Habitat
Desert and Arid Habitats, Forests and Woodlands, Shrublands, Savannas, and Thickets, Urban and Suburban Habitats
Region
Plains, Texas
Behavior
Flap/Glide, Undulating
Population
5.300.000

Range & Identification

Migration & Range Maps

Permanent resident, with some local movements, concentrating at good feeding areas in winter. A lone male once strayed to western Florida and remained several months, mating with a local Red-bellied and raising two young.

Description

9 1/2" (24 cm). Black and white bars on back. Chest and head buffy brown, with orange-yellow nape, yellow over bill; male has red cap. (Red-bellied Woodpecker sometimes has orange replacing red on head.) In flight, white patches flash in wings and on rump.
Size
About the size of a Crow, About the size of a Robin
Color
Black, Red, Tan, White, Yellow
Wing Shape
Broad, Rounded
Tail Shape
Multi-pointed, Wedge-shaped

Songs and Calls

Loud churrrr. Call a burry chuck-chuck-chuck.
Call Pattern
Falling, Flat
Call Type
Chirp/Chip, Drum, Rattle, Scream

Habitat

Mesquites, stream woodlands, groves. In its limited North American range, found in most open woodlands, especially along rivers; also around orchards, stands of mesquite along dry washes, groves of trees in open country. In Central America, also around edges of tropical forest.

Behavior

Eggs

Usually 4-5, up to 7. White. Incubation is by both sexes (with male incubating at night and part of day), 12-14 days.

Young

Both parents feed nestlings. Young leave nest about 30 days after hatching, may associate with parents for some time thereafter. 1-2 broods per year, rarely 3.

Feeding Behavior

Searches for insects on tree trunks and limbs, gleaning them from bark or probing below surface. Clambers about in branches of trees or shrubs to pick nuts, berries, or fruits. May forage on ground, and sometimes catches insects in flight. Cracks open mesquite pods to eat the seeds.

Diet

Omnivorous. Feeds on a wide variety of insects. Also eats nuts, berries, fruits, and seeds of many plants; will eat many acorns where they are available.

Nesting

Advertises nesting territory with loud calls, sometimes with drumming. Nest site is a cavity in trunk of tree (live or dead) such as mesquite or oak, or in telephone poles or fence posts. Cavities are usually fairly low, typically less than 20' above ground. Both sexes help excavate the cavity, which may be used for more than one season.

Climate Vulnerability

Conservation Status

Was once persecuted as a pest because of its excavations in telegraph poles; many were shot in Texas in early part of 20th century. Current population apparently stable.

Climate Map

Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect the range of the Golden-fronted Woodpecker. Learn even more in our Audubon’s Survival By Degrees project.

Climate Threats Facing the Golden-fronted Woodpecker

Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.

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