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The Acorn Woodpecker is the most widely distributed breeding woodpecker in Sonoma County. This well-named woodpecker is a very obvious clown-faced resident of our mixed oak and evergreen forests. Without mature oaks, we would be missing one of our most colorfully-marked and vocal birds. Acorn Woodpeckers get their name from
their habit of drilling small holes in trees (and telephone poles)
into which they hammer acorns so tightly that even squirrels
can't extract them! They feed on insects (in addition to the acorns they store up for a "rainy day"), and are often seen "flycatching" insects in midair - a strange behavior for a woodpecker! They prefer ants in particular - in fact, their species name means "ant-eater". An Acorn Woodpecker family forms a close social unit of related individuals that share in all of the duties of incubating and feeding the young in a communal nest. Females sometimes compete to successfully deposit eggs in the nest. This can result in a clutch of three to five eggs, each with different parents! References: |
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 Length: 8 inches Adult male: Red cap extends back from white forehead Adult female: Red cap at rear of head separated from white forehead by black area at top of head White-headed Woodpecker lacks white
rump and has an entirely white face and crown, and a black  |
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