Getting down to the end of the alphabet, here come the woodpeckers. Except for their sizes, the Downy

Woodpeckers and Hairy Woodpeckers look almost the same. The Hairies are larger and their bills are

very obviously larger. In both species, the males have a patch of red on the back of the head. Notice

the differences between the two males in the photos below. You can see the size difference of the two

species by comparing each to the size of the suet feeder. And you can also see how much smaller the

Downy Woodpecker’s bill is. The Hairy bill is significantly larger even in relation to the size of the head.

You can really see the size difference in

this shot of the two species on the same

feeder on 21 February 2008. In this

case the size difference is even more

pronounced, since the Downy on the left

is a female, and the Hairy on the right

is a male.

Hairy Woodpecker male

(Picoides villosus – 22 JAN 2009)

Downy Woodpecker male

(Picoides pubescens – 17 DEC 2008)

Hairy Woodpecker female – 9 JAN 2009)

Downy Woodpecker female – 29 JAN 2009)

And here are side-by-side shots of the females of each species,

where the difference in the size of the bill is easy to see.

So...now if I gave you a quiz, you would have no trouble

distinguishing this woodpecker as a Hairy...

...and this one as a Downy, right?

...and, Downy...

...Hairy. By George, you’ve got it!

© Bob Vuxinic

21 Jan 2012

© Bob Vuxinic

9 Jan 2008

© Bob Vuxinic

9 Jan 2010

© Bob Vuxinic

31 Oct 2011