Ladder-backed woodpecker
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
SPECIES
Dryobates scalaris
Life Span
4.5 years
Weight
21-48
0.7-1.7
goz
g oz 
Length
16-18
6.3-7.1
cminch
cm inch 
Wingspan
97.8-110
3.9-4.3
mminch
mm inch 

The ladder-backed woodpecker (Dryobates scalaris ) is a North American woodpecker.

Appearance

The ladder-backed woodpecker is a small woodpecker about 16.5 to 19 cm (6½ to 7½ inches) in length. It is primarily colored black and white, with a barred pattern on its back and wings resembling the rungs of a ladder. Its rump is speckled with black, as are its cream-colored underparts on the breast and flanks. Southern populations have duskier buff breasts and distinctly smaller bills. Adult males have a red crown patch that is smaller in immatures and lacking in adult females. The ladder-backed woodpecker is very similar in appearance to Nuttall's woodpecker, but has much less black on its head and upper back, and the range of the two species only intersects a minimal amount in southern California and northern Baja California. Hybrids are known.

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Ladder-backed woodpeckers nest in cavities excavated from tree trunks, or in more arid environments a large cactus will do. The female lays between 2 and 7 eggs, which are plain white. The eggs are incubated by both sexes, but the nesting period and other details are unknown.

Like most other woodpeckers the ladder-backed woodpecker bores into tree-trunks with its chisel-like bill to hunt for insects and their larva, but it also feeds on fruit produced by cacti.

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Distribution

Geography

The ladder-backed woodpecker is fairly common in dry brushy areas and thickets and has a rather large range. The species can be found year-round over the southwestern United States (north to extreme southern Nevada and extreme southeastern Colorado), most of Mexico, and locally in Central America as far south as Nicaragua.

Ladder-backed woodpecker habitat map

Climate zones

Ladder-backed woodpecker habitat map
Ladder-backed woodpecker
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Habits and Lifestyle

Seasonal behavior
Bird's call

Diet and Nutrition

Population

References

1. Ladder-backed woodpecker Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladder-backed_woodpecker
2. Ladder-backed woodpecker on The IUCN Red List site - https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22681152/118587827
3. Xeno-canto bird call - https://xeno-canto.org/706108

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