Bird guide · Picus viridis
Green Woodpecker
What the green woodpecker eats, where it lives, when it comes to feeders and how to recognise it – with sightings from across the UK.
- Season
- Year-round resident
- Size
- 13 in (33 cm)
- Eats
- mealworms
- Feeds
- ground
- Most common
- England, Wales, Scotland
Food
What do green woodpeckers eat?
At feeders, green woodpeckers take mealworms.
Usually seen on lawns feeding at ant nests rather than at hanging feeders.
Feeder that suits it
A low tray or platform feeder, or seed scattered on the ground below your feeder.
Range
Where do green woodpeckers live?
Across much of lowland Britain; absent from Ireland and much of north-west Scotland. By share of all bird sightings, green woodpeckers are most common in England (0.5%).
Season
Does the green woodpecker migrate?
Year-round resident. Across the UK it is reported in every month; its share of bird sightings is highest in August.
Share of all bird sightings in the UK that are green woodpeckers, by month.
Identification
How to identify the green woodpecker
Adults: Green above, paler below, yellow rump, red crown and a black moustache with a red centre.
Size: 13 in (33 cm)
On camera
Getting the green woodpecker on a feeder camera
Most visits happen on the ground or on low trays. A camera feeder with a wide tray, placed low near cover, catches far more than a hanging tube.
Questions
Green Woodpecker: questions
What do green woodpeckers eat?
At feeders, mealworms.
Do green woodpeckers migrate?
Year-round resident. Across the UK it is reported in every month; its share of bird sightings is highest in August.
Where do green woodpeckers live?
By share of all bird sightings, they are most common in England, Wales, Scotland.
What does a female green woodpecker look like?
Similar but the moustache is all black.
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