Illustration © David Allen Sibley.
Learn more about these drawings.
Text © Kenn Kaufman, adapted from
Lives of North American Birds
Photo: Rob Curtis/Vireo
Arizona Woodpecker
Dryobates arizonae
| Conservation status | Numbers seem stable in its limited U.S. range. |
|---|---|
| Family | Woodpeckers |
| Habitat | Oaks in mountains, pine-oak canyons. In its United States range (Arizona and New Mexico only) found exclusively in oaks of foothills and mid-levels of mountains, up into mixed pine-oak woods. |
Photo Gallery
Feeding Behavior
Forages by climbing oaks, pines, other trees, tapping and probing, flaking off bits of bark, searching for insects. Also climbs acrobatically among branches, sometimes hanging upside down, and probes at flowers of agaves and other plants. Male (slightly larger and longer-billed than female) spends more time foraging on trunk, female does more on branches and twigs.
Eggs
3-4. White. Incubation is by both sexes, about 14 days. Young: Both parents feed nestlings. Age at which young leave nest is not well known; young may follow parents for several weeks after fledging.
Young
Both parents feed nestlings. Age at which young leave nest is not well known; young may follow parents for several weeks after fledging.
Diet
Mostly insects. Feeds on a variety of insects, especially larvae of wood-boring beetles; also some berries and small fruits, a few acorns.
Nesting
Birds may pair up and begin working on nest cavity by mid-winter. Members of pair may drum and tap near potential nest site, and make short gliding display flights nearby. Nest site is cavity in dead stub of large tree, usually 9-50' above ground, sometimes lower in agave stalk. In Arizona, nest cavity is often in walnut (easier to excavate than oak). Excavation is by male or by both sexes.
