Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Gallery

Sphyrapicus varius

eBird describes the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker like this:  This woodpecker specializes in drilling rows of sap wells into tree bark. Eats insects attracted to the sap. Larger than Downy Woodpecker and smaller than Hairy; often looks disheveled compared to these species. Look for the vertical white stripe on the shoulder. Adult males show red cap and throat; females have red cap and white throat; and juveniles are messy brownish-gray overall. Nests in cavities.  All About Birds adds this descriptive information for the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker:  On a walk through the forest you might spot rows of shallow holes in tree bark. In the East, this is the work of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, an enterprising woodpecker that laps up the leaking sap and any trapped insects with its specialized, brush-tipped tongue. Attired sharply in barred black-and-white, with a red cap and (in males) throat, they sit still on tree trunks for long intervals while feeding. To find one, listen for their loud mewing calls or stuttered drumming.

I saw and photographed my first Yellow-bellied Sapsucker on the morning of Sunday, October 25, 2020 as I traveled Short Cut Road.   About half way between Youngs Creek and the Highway 78 intersection I saw her (yes, it was a female) working a tree a short distance from the road.  I was delighted to finally meet this bird, as it had been on my mind lately.  I just missed one at Christmas Mountains Oasis, and one had been recently spotted at the parking lot water drip at Crescent Bend Nature Park.  A beautiful and energetic bird!

In this shot you can clearly see the red head and the prominent white vertical stripe on the shoulder. October 25, 2020, Short Cut Road.
In this shot you can see that the area under the beak is white, identifying this bird as a female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. October 25, 2020.
One more picture of the female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker I watched on Short Cut Road on the morning of October 25, 2020.

Mid February of 2021, central Texas experienced a brutal cold snap that also included several days of snow.  During this time I was feeding the birds in my yard extra food in an attempt to help them through this highly unusual cold snap (it got down to below 10 degrees for several days!), and while watching the feeding station I set up by my oak tree in the front yard I was delighted to see a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.  Here are a couple of pictures.

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker I saw during the great blizzard of 2021! February 15, 2021.
Another shot of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker I saw in my front yard on February 15, 2021.


“Cool Facts” about the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker from All About Birds…

  • The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker makes two kinds of holes in trees to harvest sap. Round holes extend deep in the tree and are not enlarged. The sapsucker inserts its bill into the hole to probe for sap. Rectangular holes are shallower, and must be maintained continually for the sap to flow. The sapsucker licks the sap from these holes, and eats the cambium of the tree too. New holes usually are made in a line with old holes, or in a new line above the old.
  • The sapwells made by Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers attract hummingbirds, which also feed off the sap flowing from the tree. In some parts of Canada, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds rely so much on sapwells that they time their spring migration with the arrival of sapsuckers. Other birds as well as bats and porcupines also visit sapsucker sapwells.
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers have been found drilling sapwells in more than 1,000 species of trees and woody plants, though they have a strong preference for birches and maples.
  • The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker frequently uses human-produced materials to help in its territorial drumming. Street signs and metal chimney flashing amplify the irregular tapping of a territorial sapsucker. The sapsucker seems to suffer no ill effects of whacking its bill on metal, and a bird will return to a favorite sign day after day to pound out its Morse code-like message.
  • The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is the only woodpecker in eastern North America that is completely migratory. Although a few individuals remain throughout much of the winter in the southern part of the breeding range, most head farther south, going as far south as Panama. Females tend to migrate farther south than do males.
  • The oldest known Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was a male, and at least 7 years, 9 months old. It was banded in New Jersey and found 6 years later in South Carolina.