NCRS - The Changing Midwest Assessment

The Downy Woodpecker, Picoides pubescens, is a member of the Family Picidae (Woodpeckers). It is a very small black and white woodpecker with a very short bill. It has a mostly black head that is set off by broad white supercilium and lower border to auriculars. The male has a red spot at the rear of the head. It has a black nape, white back, and black wings with white spotting on coverts and flight feathers; white under parts, a black rump, and a black tail with white outer tail feathers that are barred with black.

The downy woodpecker is a permanent resident that lives and breeds in woodland habitat. It is a cavity nester and has a diet consisting primarily of insects and lesser amounts of fruit and seeds. Identification and life history data compiled by Gregory Gough, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i3940id.html