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Birdaday Field Notes

Species profile

Downy Woodpecker: identification, the Hairy Woodpecker test, food and nesting

The Downy is the small black-and-white woodpecker on the suet cage: where it occurs, the woodpecker most likely to visit a backyard feeder, and the subject of one of the first ID puzzles new birders learn, telling it from the larger Hairy Woodpecker (Cornell). A shorter profile sits on common backyard birds.

Quick facts

Fact Downy Woodpecker
Scientific name Dryobates pubescens, family Picidae (Cornell); formerly Picoides, moved after a 2015 molecular study (Wikipedia)
Length 5.5–6.7 in (Cornell); 5–7 in (Audubon)
Weight 0.7–1.0 oz (Cornell, Audubon)
Wingspan 9.8–11.8 in (Cornell, Audubon)
Population 13 million (Partners in Flight, via Cornell; Audubon); stable 1966–2015 (Cornell)
Status Low Concern (Cornell); Least Concern (IUCN, via Audubon)
Oldest known At least 11 years 11 months: a male banded in California in 1985 and recaptured there in 1996 (Cornell)

How to identify a Downy Woodpecker

Cornell describes a small version of the classic woodpecker shape: a straight, chisel-like bill that looks small for the body, a blocky head, wide shoulders, and a posture that leans on the tail. It is checkered black and white, with a boldly striped head and a broad white stripe down the center of the back. Males have a small red patch on the back of the head. Audubon calls it the smallest woodpecker in North America.

Male Downy Woodpecker clinging to a thin tree trunk against a deep blue sky, seen from behind and the side: red patch on the back of the head, black-and-white striped face, short pointed bill, white stripe down the back and black wings with rows of white spots Female Downy Woodpecker in close-up beside a tree trunk, facing right against a blue sky: black-and-white striped head with no red, short pointed bill, white throat and breast, black wings with a few white spots
Two Downy Woodpeckers, as identified by the photographers. Left: male, with the small red patch on the back of the head, the broad white stripe down the center of the back and a bill clearly shorter than the head. Right: female, with no red on the head and the same short bill, about one-third of the head (Cornell, Project FeederWatch).
Photos: Joshua J. Cotten (left) and anish lakkapragada (right) on Unsplash

Regional differences. Western Downies are darker with less white on the wings; Pacific Northwest birds look dusky (Cornell). Hairy Woodpeckers vary the same way, so tone doesn't separate them (Cornell).

Downy vs Hairy Woodpecker

The two look nearly identical (Audubon) but are not closely related; Wikipedia describes the resemblance as convergent evolution. Both have red on the back of the male's head and a white back stripe, so those marks don't help (FeederWatch). Use these instead:

Field mark Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker
Length 5.5–6.7 in (Cornell); 5–7 in (Audubon); about 6.5 in (FeederWatch) 7.1–10.2 in, about robin-sized (Cornell, Audubon); averages 9.25 in (FeederWatch)
Weight 0.7–1.0 oz (Cornell) 1.4–3.4 oz (Cornell)
Bill Shorter than the head (Cornell Bird Academy); about one-third the distance from bill base to back of head (FeederWatch); "almost thornlike" (Cornell) About as long as the head (Bird Academy, FeederWatch); nearly as long (Cornell, Audubon); at least twice as long as a Downy's (Sialis)
Outer tail feathers White with black bars or spots, best seen from below; may look white from above (FeederWatch, Cornell, Audubon) Completely white in most of the eastern US. Pacific and Newfoundland birds can show bars (FeederWatch, Bird Academy)
Black "comma" from shoulder to breast Often faint or poorly defined Well developed, reaching onto the breast (FeederWatch, Bird Academy)
Common call Sharp pik Peek, slightly lower and often more emphatic (Cornell)
Whinny or rattle Descends in pitch toward the end; about 2 seconds (Cornell) Does not drop in pitch at the end (Cornell)
Where it feeds Small branches, weed stems and galls; more acrobatic (Cornell) Trunks and main branches; sometimes tree bases, logs or the ground (Cornell)
Habitat Open deciduous woodland, weedy edges, orchards, parks and yards (Cornell) Mature forest and woodlots; needs larger trees, less likely in suburbs and city parks, usually less common in the East (Audubon)

How much bigger? Cornell's Downy page says the Downy is about two-thirds the size of a Hairy; its Hairy page says the Hairy is about a third bigger. FeederWatch calls size reliable but hard to judge; some participants mark feeder poles to measure against.

Juveniles of both species may show a red, orange or, rarely, yellow wash on the crown (FeederWatch), so a red-capped young bird is not a third species.

Downy vs Hairy Woodpecker: bill, outer tail feathers and lengthTwo simplified woodpecker heads facing left. The smaller Downy head on the left has a short bill about one-third as long as the head; the larger Hairy head on the right has a bill about as long as the head. Both have a red patch on the back of the head, as males do. Below each head, three tail feathers seen from below: the Downy's white outer feathers carry black bars, the Hairy's are plain white. At the bottom, two bars drawn to the same scale compare average lengths of 6.5 inches for the Downy and 9.25 inches for the Hairy on a 0 to 10 inch axis. 0510 in 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
  1. Downy bill: short, about one-third the distance from bill base to the back of the head (FeederWatch).
  2. Red patch on the back of the head: males of both species (FeederWatch), so it doesn't separate them.
  3. Downy outer tail feathers: white with black bars, clearest from below (FeederWatch, Cornell).
  4. Hairy bill: about as long as the head (FeederWatch, Cornell Bird Academy).
  5. Hairy outer tail feathers: plain white in most of the eastern US; some Pacific and Newfoundland birds are barred (FeederWatch).
  6. Downy length: about 6.5 in (FeederWatch, Bird Academy).
  7. Hairy length: averages 9.25 in (FeederWatch, Bird Academy).
Drawn for Birdaday Field Notes as generic woodpecker shapes, following Cornell's All About Birds and Bird Academy and Project FeederWatch, cited below. Heads, bills and tails not to scale; the two length bars (6, 7) are drawn to the same scale.

Other look-alikes

Species Where (Cornell) How it differs (Cornell)
Nuttall's Woodpecker California oak woodlands, year-round Slightly larger (6.3–7.1 in); black-and-white horizontal bars across the back instead of a white stripe
Ladder-backed Woodpecker Deserts, desert scrub and pinyon-juniper of the arid Southwest Larger than a Downy; back barred like the rungs of a ladder
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Hardwood and conifer forests; winters in open woodland Larger (7.1–8.7 in); long white stripe on the folded wing, red forehead, black chest shield

Audubon says the Downy avoids the arid Southwest.

Calls and drumming

Food and feeders

Insects make up most of the diet, especially beetle larvae, ants and caterpillars; plant foods such as berries, acorns and grains are about a quarter (Cornell). Downies also peck goldenrod galls for the fly larvae inside (Cornell).

Food What the sources say
Suet Preferred feeder food (Cornell). Can go rancid in hot weather unless specially processed (FeederWatch); see suet recipes and heat limits
Black-oil sunflower Taken at feeders (Cornell); woodpeckers eat it "on occasion" (FeederWatch)
Peanuts and chunky peanut butter Eaten (Cornell). Peanuts can carry aflatoxins: keep them dry and use them up quickly (Cornell seed guide)
Millet Listed among feeder foods (Cornell)
Nectar Occasionally sips from hummingbird and oriole feeders (Cornell)

Compare feeder types and what to feed backyard birds; keep feeders clean.

Nesting

Both sexes dig the cavity, usually in a small dead stub about 7 in across that leans from vertical, with the entrance facing down. Digging takes 1–3 weeks; the entrance is about 1–1.5 in wide, the cavity 6–12 in deep and lined only with wood chips (Cornell). Audubon puts nests usually 12–30 ft up (sometimes 5–60 ft). Sources differ on the details:

Stage Cornell Lab Audubon Other sources
Clutch 3–8 white eggs 4–5 (sometimes 3–6) Usually 4–5, up to 7 (Wikipedia)
Incubation 12 days About 12 days, both sexes About 12 days; male at night (Wikipedia)
Nestling period 18–21 days Leave at about 20–25 days Look fully grown by day 17–18 (Wikipedia)
Broods 1 1, possibly 2 in the south —
Hairy Woodpecker, for comparison 11–12 days incubation; 28–30 days in the nest About 14 days incubation; leave at 28–30 days —
Downy and Hairy Woodpecker nest timelines, in daysA timeline from day 0 to day 45 with five rows. Downy incubation lasts 12 days; Downy nestlings stay 18 to 21 days according to Cornell, or leave at about 20 to 25 days according to Audubon. Hairy incubation lasts 11 to 12 days and Hairy nestlings stay 28 to 30 days, per Cornell. A dashed line marks hatching at day 12. Dark bars show the shortest stated span, pale bars the longer end of the range. 010203040 days 1 2 3 4 5
  1. Downy incubation: 12 days (Cornell, Audubon). Dashed line: hatching.
  2. Downy nestlings: 18–21 days in the nest (Cornell).
  3. Downy nestlings: leave at about 20–25 days (Audubon).
  4. Hairy incubation: 11–12 days (Cornell).
  5. Hairy nestlings: 28–30 days in the nest (Cornell, Audubon).
Drawn for Birdaday Field Notes from the sources in the list, to scale in days. Both nestling rows start at day 12 for comparison; real nests vary. Dark bars show the shortest stated span, pale bars the longer end.

Nest boxes. The Sialis.org author has not heard of a Downy nesting in a box, though Downies often roost in them and may chip out the inside or enlarge the hole. Cornell notes that metal fence posts replacing wooden ones may have cost them nest sites. Box sizes for other species: birdhouse dimensions.

For your Bird-a-Day streak

A permanent resident in many areas (Audubon), the Downy makes a dependable reserve bird. In winter, check mixed flocks of chickadees and nuthatches, where it is easy to overlook (Cornell; see our chickadee comparison). The whinny counts by ear (challenge guide). A Hairy is a separate day; plan both with the species planner.

Downy-or-Hairy checklist

Sources