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Woodpeckers are one of the most entrancing avians you’re able to find in your backyard – and did you know that there are8 specie in South Carolina ?
There ’s a right chance that if you have more than one woodpecker confab you , you may in reality be play server to a few unlike species !
Legend for the following woodpecker migration and range maps
Although the list below contains all the usual woodpeckers see in South Carolina , it ’s possible to detect a drifting species of woodpecker that ’s not native to this particular Department of State . If you do see a vagrant species , it should be view an extremely rare sighting !
The following legend can be used for each woodpecker species map to find what meter of class you’re able to see each peckerwood in your area .
8 woodpecker species are found in South Carolina , include the Red - Headed Woodpecker , Northern Flicker , Downy Woodpecker , Red - Bellied Woodpecker , Pileated Woodpecker , Hairy Woodpecker , Red - Cockaded Woodpecker , and the Yellow - Bellied Sapsucker . Several of these woodpecker species are lasting resident , while others are much rarer and can be only spotted seasonally .
Legend for the following woodpecker migration and range maps
The 8 Woodpecker Species in South Carolina
Red-headed Woodpecker
Melanerpes erythrocephalus
Order : Piciformes
class : family Picidae
Size:7.5 – 9.1 in ( 19 – 23 cm )
This large , boldly - colored bird is a wonderful sight for many , and while you might not get wind it call too often , its rattles and drumming on trees will likely be a common sound across its aboriginal states . However , it does n’t actually peck at Tree for food – it kidnap fly beasts as they flitter past . This woodpecker has sadly fallen in numbers over the years due to food scarcity . However , when it ca n’t snatch a bug or two , it happily feast on nuts and acorns .
Their name is a giveaway – they have bright red crown and heads , with white-hot body feathers and black and white wings and shadower . You believably wo n’t see their calls too loudly .
These acorn - foraging birds patronise the eastern to central states , stretching up as far as outer Canada . They be given to bask the warmer reaches , however , as they will frequent post in Florida and down in New Mexico .
Northern Flicker
genus Colaptes auratus
Size:11.0 – 12.2 in ( 28 – 31 cm )
This Picidae is known by many , many dissimilar name – and you may well have seen it referred to as the Yellow or crimson - shafted Flicker . It ’s a fairly vulgar snort and is also one of the largest woodpecker live across the state . Unlike most nib , however , they tend to feast in the main on ground dirt ball – pismire , in particular ! This Flicker will choose to hop around to eat , but may even choose to site itself on branches occasionally when it fancies a fruit treat or two .
The Northern Flicker has plumage colouration that can vary ( hence its many names ) , but you could commonly spot these dame thanks to their blot tails and wings . They often have bleak marking around their faces and crests , and you ’ll be capable to secern them apart from other Picidae on unmingled sizing alone .
Northern Flickers tend to live out east but can be base luxuriously up in the northwestern stretch of Alaska , and even down towards the west coast – that applies to the yellow - shafted variety , in any pillow slip ! Flickers of this genus run to be fairly common across the US , with almost ten million specimens judge at present in North America .
Downy Woodpecker
Dryobates pubescens
Size:5.5 – 6.7 in ( 14 – 17 cm )
really tiny , the cute downy pecker is a Picidae that ’s common across the magnetic north to central state . In fact , they are the lowly native peckerwood in the country . They be given to choose milder climates on the whole but are know to move around around . They utilize acute , single call , and incline to enjoy feeding on seeds in feeder . If you have any peckerwood in your backyard , there is a very estimable chance it is a Dryobates pubescens . They are just bigger than your plebeian garden Prunella modularis .
Exceptionally small but unabashedly noisy , the downlike woodpecker is largely black and blank with spots , and the males lean to have red crowns . They have varying spotlight and stripe across their wings and feathers – have in mind that neither one nor two may ever look the same !
The downy woodpecker lives just about everywhere across the United States , with sightings across states as diverse as Florida and Alaska ! If the climate is balmy enough – and not too gay – then there ’s every prospect you ’ll spot this bird in your yard . There are around 13 million of them across the continent .
Red-bellied Woodpecker
genus Melanerpes carolinus
Size:9.4 in ( 24 centimetre )
Increasingly usual , the red - bellied peckerwood tend to savor cluster to backyard feeders and has a call you might just recognize . They only ever drum during conjugation or drawing card , and if you ’ve ever tried to tell these birds apart in terms of grammatical gender – it ’s almost inconceivable on glance alone . This is a mid - sized bird that does n’t lean to do too much impairment to tree , it ’s one of the gentler woodpeckers you ’ll line up in the US wilds . They tend to prefer pecking out at hardwood and will cluster to timber when they are n’t at the self-feeder .
The red - bellied woodpecker , of line , has a red stomach , but you will mainly know it for its red - tinged crownwork and its measure - coat feathers , as well as a brown - biased front and look . Again , it ’s hard to severalize the male and females asunder .
These woodpeckers run to be coarse lot out towards the east and southeast states , from Texas out to Florida . They do n’t tend to move around too much , particularly as they will slip nesting spots from other birds !
Pileated Woodpecker
Dryocopus pileatus
Size:15.8 – 19.3 in ( 40 – 49 cm )
turgid and loud , this woodpecker is jolly easy to notice – specially as their conjugation cries are so distinguishable ! Rather tragically , this strapping Picidae is sometimes mistaken for a peckerwood that ’s thought to now be out – the off-white - billed woodpecker , which has n’t been seen in the US for many years . The pileated pecker , almost crowlike in stature , tends to feast on ants and minibeasts found late in decaying trees . This species ’ hole - making can help give shelter to other brute – make it a welcome sight .
Beyond their loud call and Mrs. Henry Wood rapping , the pileated woodpecker has a shameful red crown , with monochromatic bodies and longsighted , lean beak . The male person of the species is easy to fleck as it has a facial marking rather like a mustache .
The pileated woodpecker does n’t run to be too fickle about where it wish to live . However , you ’ll chiefly observe it living out in eastern Department of State , though as far northward as Nova Scotia ! If you ’re a California native , it ’s also not unheard of to spot this common Picidae .
Hairy Woodpecker
Dryobates villosus
Size:7.1 – 10.2 in ( 18 – 26 atomic number 96 )
If there is a chance you ’re going to spot a peckerwood in your backyard somewhere in the land , then it ’s probably going to be a hairy mintage ! The Dryobates villosus is extremely common , but it ’s actually fair shy and retiring . They have very wide-eyed calls but will be glad to bore and get up on just about anything . They are also meridian self-seeker – they ’ll steal sap from fix exercise by other birds ! The hairy woodpecker is also fuck for its mighty mint – it looks small , but it drill clamorously !
The hairy woodpecker naturally has a fairly hirsute appearance , though it ’s also famous for its comparatively long , pointed handbill , as well as its distinct black and blanched coloring . Some coinage , however , can bear a brownish tint . They are generally white to the dresser and are stipple to the wing .
Where to take up ? This Picidae does n’t lean to be crabby about climate , though you ’ll ordinarily see it amongst conifer . There are more than eight million of these birds across the continent , and their numbers are grow – there are no finicky states where they are most fertile .
Red-cockaded Woodpecker
Dryobates borealis
Size:7.9 – 9.1 in ( 20 – 23 cm )
The red - cockaded pecker is n’t actually all that reddish to look at – but we ’ll come to that . It ’s a rare Picidae in that it wo n’t clump to burn or dead Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . They choose safety in telephone number and tend to peck by at living plants and trees . woefully , these woodpeckers are some of the rare to retrieve in the US , if not the cosmos . They are a rarefied treat to spot . This bird is approximately robin - sized , and will usually make a distinct call – you ’ll be prosperous to find out it . They tend to work out at pine bark in modest groups .
Small to mid - sized , these fuzzy - looking peckerwood tend to have all - over browned bars on their wing and butt , with come to black and white facial markings . You ’ll normally see them scaling true pine trees .
You will normally only find the crimson - cockaded woodpecker in the southeast of the US , and even then , there are only thought to be 15,000 specimens in the wild . Conservation and studies are on-going for this endangered metal money .
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Sphyrapicus varius
Size:7.1 – 8.7 in ( 18 – 22 cm )
This woodpecker is a mixture of bird that will merrily drill fix to tope tasty sap from within , something that ’s very welcoming to other species . These birds are fairly similar to other sapsuckers in condition of behavior and in terms of looks . sensationalistic - bellied sapsucker tend to be very alone drillers – you will likely recognise their staggered pecking if they pass upon Sir Henry Joseph Wood or metal near your yard . These hoot are have it off for pecking and make nests passing high up – over 6,000 feet in the airwave .
As the name suggests , you will normally be able to spot a yellow - bellied sapsucker for its burnished abdomen , however , it often has a scarlet crown and scruff , with stunning black and ashen bars and flecks down its body , tail end , and flank .
The Yellow - belly out Sapsucker is the most migratory pecker in the mankind , breeding as far northerly as easterly Arkansas and the northerly boreal forest , and wintering as far to the south as Panama and the Caribbean . Much like other US native sapsucker , this snort will normally be found in forest spots , though this species will migrate from the central knit and low midwest S towards the west of the Appalachians .
How to Attract South Carolina Woodpeckers to Your Yard
Want to see more peckerwood in your backyard ?
As you’re able to see , there are more than a few wonderful woodpecker species to await out for across South Carolina . Some may not clump to garden and backyard in favor of woodland and woodland reaches – however , there ’s a luck a rare shuttle or two may make its way to you .
If you ’re keen to start spotting woodpeckers in your K , why not take a looking at at our usher onhow to pull peckerwood ? That ’ll give you the basics of what ’s need to attract peckerwood .
Then , we ’d recommend study our vendee ’s guide onchoosing the good woodpecker feeder . countersink up a woodpecker feeder or two is the best way to guarantee that woodpeckers will visit your yard . While you ’re at it , do check that to say our full guide onwhat to course woodpeckers , too – as develop their dieting right will make a lot of deviation !
There are a lot of other ways to pull in woodpeckers such asgetting a bird bathand planting native trees that woodpecker love .
All State Woodpeckers
Want to see what peckerwood species are found in other states ? Here ’s our arrant list of woodpeckers recover in each country :
