Gila Woodpecker

Overview
Gila Woodpecker: Medium woodpecker, black-and-white barred upperparts and central tail feathers, buff-gray neck and underparts. Buff-gray head has a small red cap. Wings have large white patches visible in flight. Its abandoned nesting and roost holes provide shelter for birds, mammals and reptiles.

Range and Habitat
Gila Woodpecker: Resident in southeastern California, southern Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico. Preferred habitats include low desert scrub with saguaro or mesquite trees for nesting.

The Gila Woodpecker is considered to be Least Concern at this time. This rating has been granted as a result of the stable population and large range of the Gila Woodpecker. The previous rating of this bird was Lower Risk in 2000. The Gila Woodpecker is native to the United States and Mexico. The population of this bird species is believed to exceed 3 million individual birds. There are no known dangers or threats to the Gila Woodpecker at this time which might endanger the population of this bird species.

INTERESTING FACTS
When a pair of Gila Woodpeckers excavates a nest hole in a saguaro cactus, it typically does not use it for several months. Drying time is required for the inner pulp of the cactus to form a solid casing around the cavity. The male forages mainly on the trunk and main branches of saguaro cacti, while the female concentrates on the periphery and diseased areas. A group of woodpeckers has many collective nouns, including a "descent", "drumming", and "gatling" of woodpeckers.