Summary
- Natural history: Red-bellied Woodpeckers colonized Vermont so recently that many field guides still show the state outside the bird’s normal range, even though single birds were first spotted in the Champlain Valley in the late 1970s and a pair was not confirmed until a 1989 sighting in Poultney. The species has since crept north for decades from the Hudson and Connecticut River valleys, likely helped along by backyard bird feeders stocked with sunflower seeds and suet. Young birds remain dependent on their parents for up to ten weeks after fledging, a notably long stretch of parental care for a woodpecker.
- Status in VT: Increased by 1800% (0 to 18 blocks). Greatest increase in Champlain Valley.
- Data from other research: No additional data for VT.
- Conservation status: State rank S3
- Other atlases: NY: 123%; PA: 86%; ON: 250%
- VT’s role in North American range: VT has not traditionally been a part of the range. Range gradually expanding northward into VT since the 1970s.
- Causes of change since first Atlas: Feeders improving overwinter survival and reproductive success at the northern edge of their range (?).
- Management/Monitoring recommendations:No current recommendations.
First Vermont Breeding Bird Atlas (1976-1981)
No Species Account Available
Second Vermont Breeding Bird Atlas (2003 – 2007)
Change in Distribution
