Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)

Abundance: Fairly Common; records in all Regional counties.

Status: Permanent Resident; Regional population probably stable (LINK to Regional Bird Monitoring Plan); photograph [male]: Stephen J. Stedman [using Edmund K. LeGrand's camera]; 7 March 2009; Rock Island State Park, Warren County, Tennessee.

Regional High Count and CBC/CBB High Count: 53 (18 December 2001; Clay County [CBC], Tennessee; m. ob.).; SBC/SBB High Count: 46 (10 May 2008; Putnam County [SBC], Tennessee; m. ob.); FBC/FBB High Count: 40 (3 dates; Putnam County [FBC], Tennessee; m. ob.).

Breeding: Confirmed (Recent). Undoubtedly breeds in all Regional counties but quite reticent during the breeding cycle so confirmations moderately difficult to obtain.

Habitat: Woodlands of various ages, mostly 25 years old or older; adapts fairly well to suburban and even urban conditions if sufficient woodland is retained within these zones. Pairs hold larger territories than are held by smaller species of woodpeckers; consequently, fewer Pileated territories can be monitored per unit of time spent or area covered than is the case for the smaller piciformes.  However, in optimal habitat Pileateds may become the most abundant woodpecker; for instance, during a 48-km (30-mi) hiking transect conducted 23 May 2000 along the John Muir Trail from Divide Rd. to Leatherwood Ford in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee, 28 Pileated Woodpeckers were counted, about 0.6/km (1/mi) in habitat considered to be optimal for this species (Stedman and Stedman 2002) but where fewer Red-bellied and Downy woodpeckers were counted the same day.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: 85 registrations (of 125 possible) during 2003 and 160 (of 206 possible) during 2004, each leading to an abundance rating of Common in Regional yards and neighborhoods, and each indicating that this woodpecker was more prevalent in those areas than within the Region as a whole.

Foray Results: Abundance and distribution based on UCR Foray data are mapped as follows:

• Clinton County Foray--12-14 June 2009
• Jackson County Foray--29 May-1 June 2009
• Pickett County Foray--22-25 May 2009
• DeKalb County Foray--23-26 May 2008
• White County Foray--28-31 May 1982
• White County Foray--25-28 May 2007

Remarks: x

Counties with Observations (boldfaced): 

To see a map (Figure 1) displaying data about this species, click on the boldfaced word in this sentence.

Literature Cited