| Three-toed Woodpecker Identification Tips |
| (Credit: U. S. Geological Survey) |
| General
Information - Medium-sized black and white woodpecker - Black head - Narrow postocular stripe widens towards rear of head and extends down neck - White moustachial stripe - White throat, breast, and belly - White flanks with black barring - White back barred with black (in most races) - Black wings marked with white spots on flight feathers - Black rump - Black tail with white outer tail feathers that are barred inwardly with black - Rocky Mountain subspecies (P. t. dorsalis) has an entirely white back - Eastern subspecies (P. t. bacatus) has a dark, heavily barred back - Western subspecies (P. t. fasciatus) has a whitish, sparsely barred back Adult male - Yellow cap at top of head with fuzzy edges Similar species Since Hairy Woodpeckers can have barred backs in the Maritimes provinces and Rocky Mountain Three-toed Woodpeckers have entirely white backs, it is best to concentrate on the barred flanks, much darker face, and narrow postocular stripe of the Three-toed Woodpecker there. Black-backed Woodpecker is distinguished from the Three-toed Woodpecker by the entirely black back, postocular stripe which does not extend down neck, and wholly white outer tail feathers. |
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