American Three-toed Woodpecker

Left: American Three-toed Woodpecker female. Right: American Three-toed Woodpecker male.

NPS Photo / Rachel Ames

Size: 8-9”
Description: Mostly black with white barring and a white patch on the back. Males have a yellow crown patch.
Migratory Status: Year-round residents of Rocky Mountain National Park.
Habitat: Live in dense spruce-fir and other coniferous forests to 11,500 feet. They are also common in forests that have recently burned or been disturbed.
Diet: Forage by scaling the bark of trees in search for bark and wood-boring beetles and larvae.

 

• American Three-toed Woodpecker (drum)

  
  

  American Three-toed Woodpecker drum recorded on the Emerald Lake Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  06/29/2015

  Audio Transcript

  Transcript due 4/1/2025

 

• American Three-toed Woodpecker (drum)

  
  

  American Three-toed Woodpecker drum recorded on the Green Mountain Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that a Ruby-crowned Kinglet can be heard singing in the background.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  06/23/2015

  Audio Transcript

  Transcript due 4/1/2025

 

• American Three-toed Woodpecker (drum)

  
  

  American Three-toed Woodpecker drum recorded at the Beaver Ponds in Rocky Mountain National Park.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  05/30/2017

  Audio Transcript

  Transcript due 4/1/2025