Range
It is found in the Coast Range, Klamath Mountains, Willamette Valley, West Cascades, East Cascades, Blue Mountains and Columbia Plateau.
Description
One of the most striking birds of the forest, it is black with bold white stripes down the neck and a flaming-red crest. Adults are nearly the size of a crow, averaging 16 to 19 inches in length, weighing around 9 to 12 ounces and with an average wingspan of 26 to 29.5 inches.
Diet and habitat
The pileated woodpecker feeds on insects such as carpenter ants, beetles, termites and other invertebrates, plus seeds, nuts, fruit and berries. It prefers nesting in large trees of 2 to 3 feet in diameter, where it excavates large holes. Pileated woodpeckers live in mature deciduous or mixed deciduous-coniferous woodlands of nearly every type.
Predators and threats
It is preyed upon by squirrels, tree-climbing snakes and hawks.
Reproduction
It begins breeding in April and produces a clutch size of one to six eggs that are incubated by both parents for about 12 days. For some time after the chicks fledge, the family group, including the parents and the young birds, remains together.