White-Headed Woodpecker
Dryobates albolarvatus
Not much of a traveler, the White-Headed Woodpecker lives in mountain areas of western USA in areas dominated by mixed conifers, where they stay year-round. It is a strategy that seems to work for them, as studies show that their population is stable throughout most of their range. They live in southern British Columbia, southern California, northeastern Oregon, and nearby areas of Idaho.
Discovered at the height of the California Gold Rush, John Cassin first gave these birds the genus of Leuconotopicus (white creeper). Later, scientists revised its genus to Xenopicus (strange woodpecker), but DNA studies in 2015 revised most of the birds in the genus to Dryobates (tree walker).
Taxonomists recognize two subspecies of White-Headed Woodpecker:
- D. a. albolarvatus lives throughout most of the range for the species, especially in the northern sections. Their range extends from Southern British Columbia south, through the mountains, to Washington, Idaho, Oregon, northwestern California, Colusa County, and along the Sierra Nevada range in eastern California, and western Nevada.
- D. a. gravirostris lives in the mountains of southern California, in the San Gabriel, San Jacinto, and Santa Rosa Mountains of southwestern California, extending to San Diego County.
Unlike many of their woodpecker cousins, these birds don’t drill deep holes in search of food. Rather, they gently lift bark flakes from the trees in their territory to look for insect prey, or they peck at cones to feed on seeds.
My best and most reliable meetings with these birds have occurred near the summit of Santa Rosa Mountain near the San Diego County border in southern Riverside County (California), but I’ve also met them 30 miles east of Yosemite in the Mono Lake basin.
24 Photos
White-headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: (Leuconotopicus albolarvatus) A meeting at one of my favorite places on the planet, the Springs on Santa Rosa Mountain in Southern Riverside County, California USA 2011-09-10. |
Date Taken: 2011:09:09 18:43 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/20 |
File Name: JCD2081-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2011 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: Peekaboo Shot at the Springs on Santa Rosa Mountain in Southern Riverside County, California USA 2004-08-05. |
Date Taken: 2004:08:04 17:50 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D1X, 400 mm, f/8.0, 1/60 |
File Name: JCD_8178WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2004 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: Female. Santa Rosa Mountain, Southern Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2004:07:26 10:05 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D1X, 400 mm, f/8.0, 1/60 |
File Name: JCD_7418WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2004 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: Separation of the red cap and the dark nape show this to be a juvenile bird. The Springs on Santa Rosa Mountain in Southern Riverside County, California USA 2004-07-26. |
Date Taken: 2004:07:25 19:25 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D1X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/60 |
File Name: JCD_7240WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2004 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: (Leuconotopicus albolarvatus) Cut-out image of an encounter at the Springs on Santa Rosa Mountain in Southern Riverside County, California USA 2005-09-07. |
Date Taken: 2005:09:07 10:13 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 440 mm, f/5.6, 1/20 |
File Name: Cut_JCD1024WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2005 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: (Leuconotopicus albolarvatus) Coming in for a drink at the Springs on Santa Rosa Mountain, Southern Riverside County, California USA 2010-08-13. |
Date Taken: 2010:08:13 13:07 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 550 mm, f/6.3, 1/8 |
File Name: JCD5719.WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2010 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: Santa Rosa Mountain, Southern Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2010:08:12 18:37 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/6.3, 1/40 |
File Name: JCD5475.WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2010 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: At "The Springs" on Santa Rosa Mountain. Southern Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2011:09:11 11:32 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/160 |
File Name: D3X2568-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2011 Jack Daynes, (shadetree-imaging.com) |
White-headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
|
Description: (Leuconotopicus albolarvatus) An encounter at the Springs on Santa Rosa Mountain in Southern Riverside County, California USA 2005-09-07. |
Date Taken: 2005:09:07 10:13 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D2X, 440 mm, f/5.6, 1/20 |
File Name: JCD1024WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2005 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: At a roadside monument to the historic Mono Mills, along State Route 120. Mono County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:08:08 15:22 |
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Location:
Mono Mills |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/200 |
File Name: D3X7720-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: At a roadside monument to the historic Mono Mills, along State Route 120. Mono County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:08:08 15:22 |
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Location:
Mono Mills |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/400 |
File Name: D3X7707-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: At a roadside monument to the historic Mono Mills, along State Route 120. Mono County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:08:08 15:19 |
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Location:
Mono Mills |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/200 |
File Name: D3X7695-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:06:07 9:54 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/1250 |
File Name: D3X5754-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:06:06 13:52 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/160 |
File Name: D3X5377-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:06:06 13:50 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/80 |
File Name: D3X5361-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: (Leuconotopicus albolarvatus) A bird meeting at "The Springs" on Santa Rosa Mountain in Southern Riverside County, California USA 2011-09-11. |
Date Taken: 2011:09:11 14:52 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/1250 |
File Name: D3X2682-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2011 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2015:08:13 12:40 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/100 |
File Name: D3X4432-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2015 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2015:08:13 12:21 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/320 |
File Name: D3X4353-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2015 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2015:08:13 12:20 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/125 |
File Name: D3X4342-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2015 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2015:08:13 9:50 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/100 |
File Name: D3X3934-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2015 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2016:06:10 17:44 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D7200, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/400 |
File Name: D722245-WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2016 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The Springs at Santa Rosa Mountain. Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2016:06:10 17:44 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D7200, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/640 |
File Name: D722242-WhiteHeadedWoodpecker |
| © 2016 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: The springs on Santa Rosa Mountain, at 7500 feet elevation in southern Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2016:08:30 16:30 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D7200, 550 mm, f/8.0, 1/1000 |
File Name: D723533-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2016 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |
White-Headed Woodpecker(Dryobates albolarvatus) |
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Description: At the 'Springs' on Santa Rosa Mountain. Elevation 7400' on southern Riverside County, California. |
Date Taken: 2014:08:29 18:45 |
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Location:
Santa Rosa Mountain |
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Camera Information: NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/6.3, 1/60 |
File Name: D3X8164-WhiteHeadedWoodPecker |
| © 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTree-Imaging.com |
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