The Red-Headed Woodpecker is a medium-sized bird immediately recognizable by its striking, entirely crimson head. Unlike many of its relatives, this bird is considered perhaps the most omnivorous woodpecker, displaying remarkable dietary flexibility. This adaptability allows the species to thrive across a wide range of habitats, consuming a diet that varies extensively with season and geography.
Primary Diet: Insects and Animal Sources
Animal matter forms a substantial portion of the Red-Headed Woodpecker’s diet, especially during the warmer months and the breeding season when protein needs are highest. They consume a variety of terrestrial invertebrates, including beetles, ants, spiders, and earthworms. Unlike woodpeckers that primarily drill into wood for sustenance, this species readily forages on the ground and will even consume wood-boring larvae when encountered.
The woodpecker is also a highly capable aerial hunter, frequently engaging in fly-catching. It will perch on an exposed branch or utility pole, watch for flying insects like grasshoppers and midges, and then swiftly dart out to snatch the prey in mid-air. This tactic allows them to capture insects inaccessible to most other woodpecker species. On occasion, they also consume small vertebrates, including mice, and have been documented raiding the nests of smaller birds to eat eggs or nestlings.
Essential Winter Stores: Nuts, Seeds, and Acorns
The Red-Headed Woodpecker relies heavily on hard mast crops—seeds and nuts produced by woody plants—during the late autumn and winter. These high-calorie plant materials are fundamental for survival in colder months and often influence their migratory movements. The presence of a large mast crop in an area can determine whether a population remains resident or moves south for the winter.
Acorns, especially from oak trees, form a major component of this winter diet. Other important hard plant foods include beechnuts and pecans, which provide the concentrated energy necessary for maintaining body temperature. The bird gathers these resources by plucking nuts directly from the tree or collecting them from the ground. This specialized diet of durable, high-fat plant foods enables the species to sustain itself when insect activity is low.
Seasonal Variety: Fruits and Other Soft Foods
Beyond the foundational diet of insects and hard nuts, the Red-Headed Woodpecker incorporates a wide array of softer plant foods into its seasonal menu. These items are typically consumed during the spring and summer when they are readily available and provide moisture and simple sugars. They regularly seek out various wild fruits and berries, which offer a useful nutritional supplement.
Common examples of these soft foods include wild cherries, grapes, pokeberries, and sumac fruits. The bird consumes these directly from the source, often without the need for storage. While they primarily feed on wild sources, the woodpeckers also take advantage of cultivated crops, occasionally foraging in orchards for fruits like apples or cherries. Grains, such as corn kernels, are sometimes utilized as a food source.
Unique Feeding Strategies and Caching
The Red-Headed Woodpecker employs unique feeding strategies, primarily food caching, where the bird stores large quantities of food for later consumption. They wedge these provisions, which include acorns and insects, into natural tree crevices, under loose bark, or into man-made structures like fence posts and utility poles.
This species is the only North American woodpecker known to cover its stored food with pieces of bark or wood chips. This concealment protects the cache from scavengers and helps preserve the contents. The bird has also been observed wedging live insects, such as grasshoppers, into tight crevices to immobilize them for future use. The woodpecker uses specific spots, sometimes called “anvils,” to hammer and break larger nuts into manageable pieces before consumption or storage.