Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

Alert Status: Red – 60% decline
 

Identifying Features: The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker is Europe's smallest woodpecker and is about the same size as a sparrow It is a pied woodpecker like Greater spotted woodpecker but lacks the large white wing patches.
The head is black and white of the female, the male's has a crimson red patch: with a black nape and white forehead, cheeks and throat. The back, wings and tail are black, except for the white bars, resembling a ladder. The underparts are whitish-buff with darker streaks. The bill is black, the legs are grey-green and the eye is a reddish-brown.
Average Length: 15 cm
Average Lifespan: 5 – 10 years
Average Wingspan: 26 cm
 

Beak type: Specialist
 

Feeding:
Natural: Insects and larvae, nuts and berries
How to feed: Bird tables, feeders
What to feed:   Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers are not common garden birds, preferring woodlands and river valleys instead, but they have been seen at bird tables, feeding on sunflower seeds and suet.
 

Nesting: The nest is a hole in a tree and is excavated by both birds.
 

Where to see: Open woods, copses, parkland, gardens and orchards, but it tends to frequent the tops of trees. In the UK, it is mainly limited to the south with the highest density of population occurring in the south-east of England.