Melanerpes formicivorus
Melanerpes formicivorus, commonly known as the Acorn Woodpecker, is a strikingly patterned, medium-sized woodpecker famed for its unique communal caching behavior. Adults measure 21-23 cm (8.3-9.1 in) in length with a wingspan of about 43 cm (17 in) and weigh between 65-90 g (2.3-3.2 oz). Their plumage features a glossy black back, tail, and upper breast, contrasting sharply with a white belly and rump. Distinctive field marks include a bold 'clown face' pattern: a bright red cap (extending t...
Found predominantly in oak woodlands, mixed oak-conifer forests, and riparian zones, typically at moderate elevations ranging from sea level up to 3000 meters.
Their diet primarily consists of acorns, which they meticulously store, supplemented by insects (especially ants and beetles), sap, fruits, seeds, and occasional nectar. They forage by drilling, gleaning, and fly-catching.
Acorn Woodpeckers are highly diurnal and renowned for their complex social structure, living in cooperative breeding groups of up to 15 individuals, often consisting of related adults and their offspring from previous years. They roost communally in excavated tree cavities, usually within their g...
The Acorn Woodpecker exhibits a widespread, though somewhat patchy, distribution across western North America, Mexico, and Central America, extending into parts of South America. In the United States, their breeding range includes southwestern Oregon, California (west of the Sierra Nevada), south...
Least Concern
- Acorn Woodpeckers are one of the few species in the world that practice communal food storage, creating 'granary trees' with thousands of individual holes. - A single granary tree can contain up to 50,000 acorns, representing an astonishing collective effort by the family group. - They are coop...