Ladder-backed woodpecker facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ladder-backed woodpecker |
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| Adult male outside cavity | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Dryobates
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| Species: |
scalaris
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| Synonyms | |
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Dendrocopos scalaris |
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The ladder-backed woodpecker (Dryobates scalaris) is a small bird found in North America. It is a type of woodpecker, known for pecking holes in trees. Some scientists still call this bird Picoides scalaris.
Contents
What They Look Like
The ladder-backed woodpecker is a small bird, about 16.5 to 19 cm (6½ to 7½ inches) long. It is mostly black and white. Its back and wings have stripes that look like the rungs of a ladder. This is how it got its name!
Its bottom feathers are a creamy white with black spots. Birds living in warmer, southern areas might have darker chests and smaller beaks.
Adult male woodpeckers have a red patch on top of their heads. Young birds have a smaller red patch, and adult females do not have one at all.
The ladder-backed woodpecker looks a lot like another bird called Nuttall's woodpecker. However, the ladder-backed woodpecker has less black on its head and upper back. These two birds mostly live in different places. They only meet in a small part of southern California and northern Baja California. Sometimes, they even have babies together!
Where They Live
The ladder-backed woodpecker is quite common. It lives in dry, bushy areas and thickets. It can be found all year round in many places.
These birds live across the southwestern United States. This includes parts of southern Nevada and southeastern Colorado. They also live in most of Mexico and some parts of Central America, as far south as Nicaragua.
What They Eat
Like most woodpeckers, the ladder-backed woodpecker uses its strong, chisel-like beak to drill into tree trunks. It does this to find insects and their young (larva) to eat.
These clever birds also enjoy eating fruit. They especially like the fruit that grows on cactus plants.
Life Cycle and Reproduction
Ladder-backed woodpeckers make their nests inside holes. They dig these holes into tree trunks. In very dry places, they might even dig a hole inside a large cactus!
The female bird usually lays between 2 and 7 plain white eggs. Both the male and female woodpeckers take turns sitting on the eggs to keep them warm. This helps the babies grow inside. We don't know exactly how long they stay in the nest after hatching.
Images for kids
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Female - South Padre Island, Texas
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Juvenile male showing ladder back
See also
In Spanish: Pico mexicano para niños
