Woodpeckers are an essential part of our ecosystem. They help keep trees healthy and insects that would otherwise damage the bark of trees.
However, there are many types of woodpeckers in Arizona! Here’s what you need to know about them:
1. Acorn Woodpecker
The acorn woodpecker is a large bird with a black body and long beak. It has red eyes and a red patch on its head that connects to the back of its neck. These types of woodpeckers in Arizona can be found in Arizona forests, grasslands, and deserts.
They usually stay near trees, feeding on insects like ants, beetles, caterpillars, and spiders (they also eat fruit).
Acorn woodpeckers have powerful tongues that help them pry loose tree bark for access to insects inside; this makes them one of the few animals capable of eating through hardwood trees!
The acorns are stored in their crop until fall, when they start eating again; these birds will travel up to 50 miles from their nest site during migration season.
2. Arizona Woodpecker
The Arizona Woodpecker is a medium-sized bird found in Arizona and parts of Mexico. It has a stocky body, black head, and face with white feathers around the eyes. Its tail is dark brown with white bars that appear on both sides when it flies or runs through vegetation.
The male has an orange throat patch when he flies or perches on trees during courtship displays. The female does not have this patch, but she does have other markings on her face, like streaks down her cheeks (female).
These woodpeckers in Arizona are medium-sized birds found in Arizona and parts of Mexico. It has a stocky body, black head, and face with white feathers around the eyes.
Its tail is dark brown with white bars that appear on both sides when it flies or runs through vegetation. The male has an orange throat patch when he passes or perches on trees during courtship displays.
3. Black-backed Woodpecker
The black-backed woodpecker is one of the most common woodpeckers in Arizona. It has a dark stripe on its back and white tips to its feathers. The male has a red face, while the female has more muted coloring, but both sexes have bright blue crowns.
The black-backed woodpecker is also known as the Picoides arcticus or sometimes just Picoides for short (several other species called Picoides).
They are found throughout Arizona but are most common in the northern part of the state. The bird is also found in other parts of North America and Mexico.
These types of woodpeckers are one of the most common birds in Arizona. It has a dark stripe on its back and white tips to its feathers. The male has a red face, while the female has more muted coloring, but both sexes have bright blue crowns.
The black-backed woodpecker is also known as the Picoides arcticus or sometimes just Picoides for short (several other species called Picoides). They are found throughout Arizona but are
4. Gila Woodpecker
The Gila Woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker with a wingspan of about two inches. It has a long neck and black and white head stripes. These types of woodpeckers in Arizona have red eyes, black cheeks, and white bands around their eyes.
It also has an orange face mask that extends back to its throat; this banding pattern can help determine whether you’re looking at this species or another closely related species, such as the White-eyed or Red-throated Woodpeckers (Melanerpes formicivorus). This species breeds pine forests on both sides of Arizona’s Mogollon Rim region.
However, they may be found anywhere within their range where suitable nesting sites are available (elevation between 1500–2000 m).
They build their nests out of sticks covered with mud pellets, which provide insulation for their eggs during the cold winter when food sources become scarce due to lack of sunlight exposure. During summer, when temperatures rise above 20° Celsius.
5. Hairy Woodpecker
The Hairy Woodpecker is a species of bird in the family Picidae. They are found throughout much of Central and South America, including Mexico and the southern United States. These types of woodpeckers in Arizona have an average length of about 11 centimeters (4 inches).
Their upper parts are brown with white lines on the head and back; they also have black patches at the base of their wings that extend onto their tails.
Their underparts are white with brown streaks that run along their flanks from neck to tail tip, giving them their name (the “hairy” part comes from these streaks).
They have long pointed beaks for pecking seeds out from trees or crevices in rocks where they live; this helps them find food sources such as acorns or figs during winter when there aren’t many other things available due to cold temperatures outside! Hairy Woodpecker is very small in size.
The body of this bird is about 11 centimeters (4 inches) long with a wingspan of up to 20 inches (50 centimeters). The upper parts are brown, with white lines on the head and back. A patch of black at the base of their wings extends onto their tails.
6. Ladder-backed Woodpecker
Ladder-backed woodpeckers are among the most common species of woodpeckers in Arizona. They have a distinctive look, with their long tail feathers and large size.
These woodpeckers in Arizona are also known as ladderbacks because they often perch on top of trees to feed on insects and other small prey that are tree bark.
Ladder-backed woodpeckers can be found in many habitats throughout Arizona, including desert scrubland, chaparral shrubland, and oak woodland.
They live in forested areas such as pinyon pine forests, ponderosa pine forests, and open grasslands such as riparian corridors near streams or riverside habitats along creeks (streams).
Their habitat is usually at low elevations, but they will also inhabit mountain habitats up to 10,000 feet (3,050 meters).
7. Lewis’s Woodpecker
Lewis’s Woodpecker is a large, medium-sized bird with a long tail and blackish-brown back. It has white wing patches on its shoulders and chest but lacks other markings.
The bill is thick and straight, with a dark tip that helps it excavate wooded holes for food. These woodpeckers in Arizona can be found in oak forests or riparian areas with trees with bark at least three inches thick; they also like to nest in old buildings or hollows of large trees (about four feet deep).
They may be solitary during winter but often gather together year-round to roost communally during warmer weather when they need protection from predators such as snakes, hawks, or owls who prey upon them.
At the same time, they sleep through much of their day sleeping after eating late into the night hours before sunrise. Hence, their bodies are ready for another day’s work!
8. Nuttall’s Woodpecker
The Nuttall’s Woodpeckers are medium-sized woodpeckers in Arizona, southern California, and Baja California. It has gray upperparts with black on the tail end and white underparts with black streaks or spots.
The male has a black head and chin, while females have a lighter-colored neck area than males. These types of woodpeckers in Arizona prefer to nest in tree cavities but use abandoned woodpeckers’ holes for their nests if needed.
Nuttall’s Woodpeckers may be seen feeding on insects such as beetles or ants from high in tall trees during spring through fall months.
9. Red-breasted Sapsucker
The red-breasted sapsucker is a large woodpecker with an unusually long tongue. It has black and white feathers, and the head and neck are black. The male has a red cap on its head, while females do not have this feature.
These types of woodpeckers in Arizona can be found in southwestern Arizona, including in the Tucson area at lower elevations during the winter months (January–March), when food sources are plentiful for them to feed upon.
This type of woodpecker is a small bird with no red markings on its head; instead, it has black wings that are white at the tips. Its name refers to how this species feeds by pecking holes into trees and extracting sap from them; however, other woodpeckers also do this.
The sapsucker’s long tongue (with bristles on one side) allows it to reach deep into woody plants where it can more easily get at insects hidden within.
While Arizona has several species of woodpeckers in residence, one that is most common and easy to identify as it flies overhead is the Red-breasted Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber).
These types of woodpeckers in Arizona are large woodpeckers with unusually long tongues. It has black and white feathers, and the head and neck are black; the male has a red cap on his head, while females do not have this feature.
10. Red-cockaded Woodpecker
The Red-cockaded Woodpecker is a large woodpecker found in the East and West Indies, Mexico, Central America, and South America. It has dark red coloring on its head and neck. Its black/brown back has white stripes that look like a Mohawk haircut!
The male looks like he’s wearing a hat with long feathers sticking out from under it to form an impressive crest. His body shape is also different from other birds: he’s much taller than other birds, so you can tell by looking at photos of scientists who study these creatures’ movements (that’s why we say this bird doesn’t fly).
These types of woodpeckers in Arizona are large woodpeckers. It has dark red coloring on its head and neck, and its black/brown back has white stripes that look like a Mohawk haircut! The male looks like he’s wearing a hat with long feathers sticking out from under it to form an impressive crest.
11. Red-headed Woodpecker
The red-headed woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker with a black back, white underside, and redhead. The male has a red cap on the top of his head, which may or may not be visible from above.
In flight, it appears to have two white bars at the wingtips, but only one bar extends onto both sides of the bird’s body.
The females look much like males, except they tend to be slightly smaller and lighter in coloration. These woodpeckers in Arizona also do not have noticeable markings on their heads or necks (although some females will show up with small patches of bare skin).
Red-headed woodpeckers are common in Arizona and can be found year-round throughout the state. They prefer open forests or woodlands but also inhabit areas of human development such as golf courses and city parks.
12. Red-naped Sapsucker
The red-naped sapsucker is one of the few woodpeckers in Arizona. The male and female look very similar, but the male has a black cap and nape feathers, while the female’s head is white on top with black at the back. Both sexes have red patches on their necks and bright red sides to their faces (hence their common name).
Red-naped sapsuckers usually nest in dead branches or logs but also use holes created by other birds. They can be found throughout the western United States and Canada.
