This woodpecker is notable for the extreme differences between the sexes. Males are black above, with white lines above and below the eye, a white rump, and a large white bar on the wing. The throat is red, the breast black, and the belly is bright yellow. The dark flanks are scalloped with white. Juveniles are like the adult, but duller and with a white throat. Females have a gray-brown head and a blackish back finely barred with pale tan, reminiscent of Gila Woodpecker. Female Williamson’s lack the white wing bar found on all the other sapsuckers. The white rump is obvious in flight. The breast is black, the belly yellow, and the sides are tan with black barring. Juveniles lack the black breast.

Length: 23 (cm) Wingspan: 43 (cm)

Voice:

Call is a harsh churrrr. Drum begins with a very rapid buzz, followed by several series of slow taps with gaps in between.

Habitat:

Coniferous and mixed forests.

Behavior:

During non-breeding seasons drills rows of small holes, known as sap wells, in conifer trunks.

Feeding:

Eats sap that accumulates in the wells. During breeding season, ants are dominant part of diet. Also eats fruit.