Gallery: Middle Spotted Woodpecker

Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos medius by Nigel Sprowell. October 2010, Bukk Hills, Hungary. 

Quiz woodpecker 37

Which European woodpecker is this ? And why ?

Gallery: a pair of Syrian Woodpeckers

A pair of Syrian Woodpeckers Dendrocopos syriacus. Photo taken in Hungary by Nigel Sprowell.

Recommended Reading: The Cult of the Green Bird

This fascinating little book THE CULT OF THE GREEN BIRD - The Mythology of the Green Woodpecker by Antony Clare Lees details the remarkable role that Green Woodpecker Picus viridis has had in history, fable and legend. The species has been, across its European range, regarded as a  weather-forecaster, an oracle, the leader of tribes and even a monarch. It's well worth a look! It is published by Scotforth Books, 2002.

Green Woodpecker foraging on thatched roof

I received this note and photo from David Hosking in the UK: This male Green Woodpecker is one of a pair that has regularly visiting the thatched roof of a house in England during the autumn and winter months. They have done this since this roof was re-thatched 5 years ago and seem to probe through the wire netting for insects. 

Recommended Reading: Schwarzspecht, Grauspecht, Grunspecht

This excellent German language study and overview of three European woodpecker species (Black, Grey-headed & Green Woodpeckers) is a classic. It is number 300 is the Die Neue Brehm-Bucherei series published by Westarp Wissenschaften, Germany. Written by the legendary Dieter Blume it has been revised and edited with the last edition produced in 1996.

Anvil of Great Spotted Woodpecker

A woodpecker "anvil" (aka "smithy" or "workshop"). Probably that of a Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major. Two cones wedged into a broken tree stump. Near Tartu, Estonia, May 2009.