General

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Medium-sized woodpecker with black-and-white mottled upperparts, white rump, and yellow-washed white underparts. Red throat has black border. Red crown and black-and-white striped face and neck are distinct. Wings are dark with large white shoulder patches; tail is black with black-barred, white center stripe. Female is similar but has a white throat. Juvenile is browner and lacks bright head and throat pattern.

Range and Habitat

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Breeds across Canada east of the Rockies to southern Labrador and Newfoundland south to the northern U.S. from North Dakota to New York and Connecticut and south through the Appalachians to northwest Georgia. Spends winters in the southeastern U.S., the West Indies, and in middle and high altitudes of Central America as far south as Panama. Preferred habitats include deciduous and mixed woods in foothills and lower montane regions.

Breeding and Nesting

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Four to seven white eggs are laid in a tree cavity lined with wood chips. Incubation ranges from 12 to 13 days and is carried out by both parents (male at night, female during the day).

Foraging and Feeding

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Feeds on sap, insects, fruits, and berries. Hammers trees for insects; also creates sap wells in bark to collect sap and trap insects; sometimes catches insects in mid-air.

Readily Eats

Suet, Sunflower Seed, Nuts, Sugar Water, Fruit

Vocalization

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Utters a nasal, cat-like "meow." Alarm call is "cheee-er, cheee-er." During courtship display, cries "hoih-hoih." Territorial and courtship hammering has a Morse-code quality and rhythm.

Similar Species

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: Red-naped Sapsucker has red nape.