Black Woodpecker in flight
The Black Woodpecker is Europe's largest woodpecker and is closely related to the Pileated Woodpecker of North America. It occurs in a band from Europe right across Asia wherever there are mature woodlands with lots of dead wood. It never made it to Britain and is unlikely to as it does not migrate so the English Channel would probably be a barrier to it (but I do hope I'm proved wrong). It is about 50cm long with a wingspan of 75cm, but can reach even bigger than this. For comparison, Britain's largest woodpecker is Green Woodpecker which is about 33cm long with a wingspan of about 50cm. Most woodpeckers fly with an undulating flight but Black Woodpecker has a direct flappy flight, making it look quite crow-like. This is a male with a red crown (but otherwise all-black plumage) and was photographed at Bialowieza Forest in Poland.
Black Woodpecker in flight
The Black Woodpecker is Europe's largest woodpecker and is closely related to the Pileated Woodpecker of North America. It occurs in a band from Europe right across Asia wherever there are mature woodlands with lots of dead wood. It never made it to Britain and is unlikely to as it does not migrate so the English Channel would probably be a barrier to it (but I do hope I'm proved wrong). It is about 50cm long with a wingspan of 75cm, but can reach even bigger than this. For comparison, Britain's largest woodpecker is Green Woodpecker which is about 33cm long with a wingspan of about 50cm. Most woodpeckers fly with an undulating flight but Black Woodpecker has a direct flappy flight, making it look quite crow-like. This is a male with a red crown (but otherwise all-black plumage) and was photographed at Bialowieza Forest in Poland.