Puerto Rican Woodpecker

The Puerto Rican Woodpecker is endemic to Puerto Rico, where it is a common and adaptable species found from forest interior to urban parks and gardens. Its combination of black upperparts, pale face and underparts, and a bold black chest band gives it a distinctive appearance found nowhere else.

As one of relatively few woodpecker species restricted to a single island, it is an easily learned and locally very familiar bird.

• Upperpart and crown feathers are black, with males showing a red patch on the crown
• Facial and underpart feathers are pale cream to buff-white
• A bold black band crosses the chest, contrasting sharply with the pale underparts above and below it
• Wing feathers are black, occasionally showing subtle pale edging
• Tail feathers are black and stiffened, typical for a trunk-foraging woodpecker

Males show a red crown patch; females have a black crown without red. Juveniles are duller, with a less crisp chest band and softer overall contrast. A single molt follows the breeding season.

• Endemic to Puerto Rico, found island-wide
• Occupies forest, forest edge, plantations, and urban parks and gardens
• Resident and non-migratory

This adaptable species forages on trunks and branches for insects and also takes fruit on occasion, readily using both natural forest and urban green space. It gives sharp, chattering calls and drums to communicate. Nest cavities are excavated in dead wood, including utility poles and ornamental trees in urban settings.