A spectacular medium-sized woodpecker with metallic-green back, pink belly, and silver-gray collar. Catches insects in midair like flycatchers — unusual for a woodpecker.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
Lewis's woodpecker is a large North American species of woodpecker which ornithologist Alexander Wilson named after Meriwether Lewis. Lewis was one of the explorers who surveyed the areas bought by the United States of America as part of the Louisiana Purchase and first described this species of bird.
Source: Wikipedia — Lewis's woodpecker Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Dark greenish-black above with a silvery-gray collar and breast, a deep red face, and a pinkish-red belly. Broad-winged and crow-like in flight.
Similar species. No other woodpecker is dark with a pink belly and gray collar; the flycatching behavior and crow-like flight are distinctive.
Voice. Generally quiet; gives soft churrs and a weak 'chee-ur' near the nest.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Insects (especially wood-boring beetle larvae), some fruits and seeds.
Behavior. An unusual woodpecker that flycatches insects on the wing like a small crow and stores acorns; flies with slow, steady, crow-like wingbeats rather than the typical woodpecker bounding.
§ Range
Western US in summer; winters Mexico, SW US
§ Habitat
Open pine and pine-oak woodlands, riparian forests
§ Threats
Loss of open pine habitat, fire suppression, dead-tree removal.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the lewis's woodpecker is currently classified as Near Threatened.
§ What helps
Support open western woodland habitats. Use prescribed fire. Leave dead trees standing where safe.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Lewis's woodpecker
- www.allaboutbirds.org — authoritative profile of Melanerpes lewis
- IUCN Red List — search for Melanerpes lewis
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Melanerpes lewis
§ Sources cited
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology — All About Birds
- National Audubon Society
- iNaturalist
- IUCN Red List
