Green Woodpecker
This is a juvenile Green Woodpecker hopping along the main drive at Dunham Massey in Cheshire. Unlike thw two other British breeding Woodpeckers (Great and Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers), Greens spend much of their time on the ground looking for ants. I'm pretty sure this juvenile is a female as there is no trace of red whatsoever in the moustache. She will begin a moult soon and will be indistinguishable from an adult female by early December. The young seemed to be quite vocal, frequently giving a single call note, similar to a single note from the usual repeated laughing "yaffle". Interestingly both male and female Green Woodpeckers "yaffle", whereas it is usually just the males in most birds, that call to establish a territory. The barring on the chest and belly reminds me a bit of Wryneck, the scarce migrant woodpecker cousin that no longer breeds in Britain. Wryneck also spends much of its time on the ground feeding on ants.
Green Woodpecker
This is a juvenile Green Woodpecker hopping along the main drive at Dunham Massey in Cheshire. Unlike thw two other British breeding Woodpeckers (Great and Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers), Greens spend much of their time on the ground looking for ants. I'm pretty sure this juvenile is a female as there is no trace of red whatsoever in the moustache. She will begin a moult soon and will be indistinguishable from an adult female by early December. The young seemed to be quite vocal, frequently giving a single call note, similar to a single note from the usual repeated laughing "yaffle". Interestingly both male and female Green Woodpeckers "yaffle", whereas it is usually just the males in most birds, that call to establish a territory. The barring on the chest and belly reminds me a bit of Wryneck, the scarce migrant woodpecker cousin that no longer breeds in Britain. Wryneck also spends much of its time on the ground feeding on ants.