Drawings from the Garden Bird Suvey 2010 home page
Translation: Liis
Green woodpecker Greyheaded woodpecker
One immediately wants to call any green-coloured woodpecker "green woodpecker“ – makes life easier. I have noticed this automatic reaction in myself. But the green woodpecker has become rare on the Estonian mainland.
Margus Ots describes the two birds illustrated above as follows on the University of Tartu Natural History Museum home page:
The green woodpecker (Picus viridis) has become the rarest of Estonia’s woodpeckers during the last decades. There are only 50 – 100 pairs still left here and the best chances of encountering it is in mixed forests bordering on cultural landscapes. The plumage on the upper parts of the green woodpecker is green; only the rump area is yellowish green, and the underparts greyish green. The crown and nape of the green woodpecker are red. The eye area is widely black, the moustache stripe is black and red for the male bird, black for the female. Young birds are similar to the adults but with dots and streaks all over (particularly below). The call of the green woodpecker is a loud 'kyü-kyü-kyück' , very similar to the call of the black woodpecker. Because of this the green woodpecker cannot be identified only from its call. The green woodpecker seldom drums.
Another green-coloured woodpecker lives in our mixed forests – the grey-headed woodpecker or grey-faced woodpecker (Picus canus). The population in Estonia is estimated at 3000 – 5000 pairs. Because we have to do with a comparatively common species it is often encountered but frequently confused with the green woodpecker. In overall colour it really does resemble the green woodpecker – the upper parts are green, only the rump is yellowish green and it is greyish green below. The head however is grey; only the male bird has a small red patch on the forehead (the head of the female is all grey), the moustache stripe is black and narrow. To separate the green woodpecker and the grey-headed woodpecker one should look the bird in the face and observe the patterns on the head. The call of the grey-headed woodpecker is a loud klüü klüü klüü falling in pitch. It drums more often than the green woodpecker and the drumming lasts quite long (ca 15 seconds).
Tags: 
