Expert: Julia Booth - 3/5/2010

Question
Hi!  Why are red-bellied woodpeckers called that?  I have some coming to my suet and have identified them as such from internet pictures, but I don't see any red on their bellies!  I love birds and have 5 different birdfeeders.  I have downies and also flickers in the summer.  

I was curious!

Answer
Red-bellied Woodpeckers do not have bright red bellies, which sort of makes their name kind of pointless, or at least not nearly as red as their occipital patches. What they do have is a rusty tinged patch on the lowest part of their abdomen, which appears more orange than red. That is the fieldmark by which we identify them and separate them from any similar looking birds. Which is ironically rather difficult to see because of the stance they usually take, when perched vertically to the tree's surface.

You're going to come across a lot of birds that don't see aptly named. Like Purple Martins, for instance, which do not appear to be purple.

Here are some good images of the Red Bellied Woodpecker:

http://www.sdakotabirds.com/species/red_bellied_woodpecker_info.htm

Hope this answers your question,


Julia