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Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocoptes medius) — photo 1 of 4
© Frank Vassen from Brussels, Belgium CC BY 2.0

Woodpeckers

Middle Spotted Woodpecker

Dendrocoptes medius

Year-round

Voice

Call

Sonothèque ADVL

0:06

Alarm

Yves Bas

0:05

Song

Sonothèque ADVL

0:35

How to recognize it

  • 20–22 cm, slightly smaller than Great Spotted Woodpecker

  • Red crown, no black moustache stripe

  • Black-and-white upperparts with white wing patches and bars

  • Flanks darkly streaked; pink vent

About the species

Often noticed high in the trees, the Middle Spotted Woodpecker moves quickly from branch to branch and spends much of its time in the canopy. Its voice carries more than its drumming does, with a slow nasal “gvayk gvayk gvayk” and a sharper “kik kekekekek.”

It does not spend long hammering at bark. Instead, it picks insects from twigs, leaves, and dead wood, and sometimes hangs from thin ends of branches the way a tit does. In spring it becomes more vocal, and pairs often change partners before settling to breed.

It lives in mature deciduous and mixed forests, especially where old oaks are common, and also uses old parks and orchards with large trees. The diet is mainly insects and larvae, with acorns, seeds, and other plant food taken more often in colder months. It stays in much of its range through the year, though some populations wander outside the breeding season.

Where to find

  • In mature oak-heavy parks and tree-lined avenues, scan the upper canopy — the Middle Spotted Woodpecker gives itself away with a slow, nasal call.

  • At the edge of city woods or old orchards with decaying trunks, watch for quick hopping from branch to branch while picking insects off twigs.

  • Along damp canal banks, pond margins, and reedy ditch lines, it may feed high above the water, especially in spring.

  • In quiet neighborhoods with a few veteran fruit trees, listen for the catlike contact calls coming from the treetops.

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Sources