THE BIRD
Interested in the red-cockaded woodpecker? Now you can learn more, listen to its sounds, and find out about its habitat.
For life-listing birders, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker ranks as one of Arkansas's major attractions. It has been listed as an endangered species since 1970 and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that only between 10,000 and 12,000 of them remain, fragmented into isolated populations in the pine forests of southern states from Texas and Oklahoma eastward to the Atlantic Ocean.
Approximately the size of the familiar Northern Cardinal, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker has black and white horizontal stripes on its back. Its cheeks and under parts are white. It has a black-capped head and small red spots - known as cockades - on each side of the cap, which are rarely visible only on adult males. Insects are the bird's primary food, though it supplements its diet with seasonal wild fruit.
The red-cockaded woodpecker nests in live loblollies and other live pine trees more than 60 years old. It is partial to trees infected with a fungus known as red-heart disease that softens the wood and thereby eases the bird's excavation of cavities. They keep pinesap flowing at the entrance of active nesting cavities apparently as a defense against predators. Their decline is attributed primarily to the reduction of pine trees of sufficient age for nesting and to fire suppression, which results in the encroachment of hardwood, mid-story vegetation in the open, park-like forests in which the bird prefers to nest.
VIEWING LOCATIONS
Habitat of the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker
Arkansas's largest contiguous population of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers can be found in the 65,000-acre Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge near the state's southern border. Because nesting sites can change from year to year, birders are encouraged to stop by the refuge visitors center located on U.S. 82 between El Dorado and Crossett and consult with refuge staff regarding current locations to view the birds. The center may be contacted by phone at (870) 364-3167 and by e-mail at felsenthal@fws.gov.
Another Natural State possibility for seeing the red-cockaded is on the Ouachita National Forest's self-guided Pine-Bluestem Buffalo Road Tour in western Arkansas.
AN IMPORTANT REMINDER
The Red-cockaded Woodpecker is an endangered species clinging to existence. Remain at a sufficient distance from its nesting/roosting trees so as not to interfere with its activities.