North America's smallest woodpecker species, a friendly year-round resident at Woodline Ranch that hitches up tree trunks and branches foraging for wood-boring insects.
Field Identification: Tiny size, straight chisel bill shorter than head width, black and white striped head, white back patch, and small red spot on male's nape.
Texas & Hill Country Notes: Downy Woodpeckers have special spongy bone skull tissue and shock-absorbing brain fluid that prevents concussions while pecking wood at 20 strikes per second. Their stiffened tail feathers act as a sturdy tripod prop against tree bark while climbing.
