Red-cockaded Woodpecker

A quick, squeaky burst of notes that carries surprisingly well through open pines. It sounds sharp, busy, and a little toy-like.

A year-round resident of the southeastern United States, from parts of Virginia and the Carolinas south through Florida and west to eastern Texas. It is now patchy and local, tied closely to protected tracts of mature pine forest.

Open pine savannas, pine flatwoods, and old pine woodlands are its sweet spot. It needs living, mature pines—often longleaf pine—with an open understory and room to forage on bark and branches.

This species does not migrate, so you can find it in the same pine stands all year. Spring is the busiest season, when family groups call more, defend cavity trees, and hustle food to chicks.

This crisp little woodpecker is all black, white, and attitude, with a bold white cheek patch that flashes on pine trunks. The male’s tiny red "cockade" is usually hidden, so don’t expect an easy look. Watch for it creeping up mature pines in open, sunny forest.