Bird: black woodpecker

Solitary by nature, this bird is very slow to form ties with a mate and other family members. When it does so, it uses a system of calls that allow it to communicate efficiently.

If you hear a repeated “kyik” call while walking through the forest, you might wish to beat a retreat. An angry black woodpecker is warning that there is a stranger in its territory.

Audio guide

Intersting facts

What you can see at this point

The black woodpecker’s lexicon

The black woodpecker has a variety of calls that it uses not only to warn of danger but also as an efficient means of communication with its mate. Woodpeckers will exchange a quieter “rurr” sound over food, while a “rururur” sound is used by a woodpecker in a tree hole to greet a mate arriving at the entrance to the hole.

A loner

The black woodpecker is characterised as having an antisocial and aggressive nature, and this is also how it behaves towards other members of its species. It is very slow to form ties with a mate and other family members. During mating season there is often tension between male and female, so disputes and fights are not uncommon.

Different holes for different purposes

A pair of black woodpeckers will use multiple tree holes at the same time. Some are for sleeping in, others are for nesting, and others again are used as refuges. The nesting hole is hollowed out by the female. A pair of woodpeckers will only move in after a few years, when it is suitably consolidated. In the intervening period it will sometimes be used as a nesting hole by other birds.