Pileated Woodpecker Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesPileated Woodpecker
Male
Large woodpecker with white stripes on the face continuing down the neck and a red crest. Males have a bright red crest and a red stripe on the cheek.
© Thierry Grandmont / Macaulay LibraryQuebec, January 29, 2021Female
Large woodpecker with a heavy bill. Females have a red crest like the males but don't have the red cheek stripe.
© William Higgins / Macaulay LibraryVirginia, October 24, 2017Female
Very large woodpecker with mostly black body. Female has gray-black forecrown and red crest; she lacks the red mustache mark of the male. Often feeds in one spot for long periods as it works to get insect larvae from under bark or inside wood.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryMontana, January 01, 2000Not all videos have sound
Female
In flight shows white underwings and a white stripe in the upperwings. Flies with a distinctive, vaguely crowlike style.
© Caleb Putnam / Macaulay LibraryMichigan, April 12, 2020Male
Sometimes raises wings in display or aggression, showing white underwings.
© Michael Tate / Macaulay LibraryOntario, August 14, 2015Male
Often forages on fallen logs, using heavy bill to dig into rotten wood for carpenter ants and other insects. Males have fully red crown and red mustache stripe.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryArkansas, March 01, 2005Not all videos have sound
Male and juvenile
Excavates holes in holes in large trees for nesting.
© Hal and Kirsten Snyder / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, May 12, 2010Male
Excavates large holes, usually oblong in shape.
© Marc St. Onge / Macaulay LibraryOntario, January 17, 2009Male
Digs deeply into soft wood, leaving distinctive rectangular excavations. Powerful blows of the bill can be audible from far away.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryArkansas, July 29, 2004Not all videos have sound
Male
Typically found in wooded areas with at least some large trees.
© Lori McDonald / Macaulay LibraryMississippi, March 11, 2017Juvenile and female
Nestlings beg loudly from nest entrances. Both sexes feed the young. Adult female has gray-black forecrown and lacks red mustache stripe of male.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryNew York, June 05, 2004Not all videos have sound
Similar SpeciesRed-headed Woodpecker
Adult
Red-headed Woodpeckers are smaller than Pileated Woodpeckers. They have rounded, solid red head whereas Pileated Woodpeckers have a red crest and black-and-white stripes on the face.
© Jeff Stacey / Macaulay LibraryMichigan, July 05, 2015Similar SpeciesAmerican Crow
Adult
At a distance and in flight crows could look similar, but American Crows flap steadily instead of the impulsive, bounding motion of a Pileated Woodpecker. Crows don't have white in the wing that Pileated Woodpeckers show in flight.
© Ryan Schain / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, March 11, 2012Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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