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Woodpeckers tend to be sexually dimorphic, but differences between the sexes are generally small; exceptions to this are Williamson's sapsucker and the orange-backed woodpecker, which differ markedly. The plumage is moulted fully once a year apart from the wrynecks, which have an additional partial moult before breeding. [8]
Holes left by a sapsucker As their name implies, sapsuckers feed primarily on the sap of trees , moving among different tree and shrub species on a seasonal basis. Insects , especially those attracted to the sweet sap exuding from sap holes, are often captured and fed to the young during the breeding season.
The female lays between 2 and 7 eggs, which are plain white. The eggs are incubated by both sexes, but the nesting period and other details are unknown. Like most other woodpeckers the ladder-backed woodpecker bores into tree-trunks with its chisel-like bill to hunt for insects and their larva, but it also feeds on fruit produced by cacti.
This bird lays a clutch of four to seven eggs, with clutches being larger for birds in the northern part of the range. [11] The eggs themselves are white and spotless, measuring around 24 by 17 millimetres (0.94 by 0.67 in). [17] During egg laying, the female is dominant, sometimes driving the male away from the nest. [22]
The eggs are the second-largest of the North American woodpecker species, exceeded only by the pileated woodpecker's. Incubation is by both sexes for about 11 to 12 days. Commonly the male will sit on the eggs overnight, and both the male and female will incubate the eggs during the day. [ 23 ]
Humans have a long history of eating eggs, both wild bird eggs and farm-raised bird eggs. [citation needed] Brood parasitism occurs in birds when one species lays its eggs in the nest of another. In some cases, the host's eggs are removed or eaten by the female, or expelled by her chick.
The red-naped sapsucker is a medium-sized woodpecker, [11] measuring 19–21 cm (7.5–8.3 in) long and weighing 32–66 g (1.1–2.3 oz). [12] Adults have a black head with a red forehead, white stripes, and a red spot on the nape; they have a white lower belly and rump.
Lewis's woodpecker nests in a cavity excavated from a dead tree branch. The Lewis's woodpecker, however, will not excavate its own cavity, but instead nest in a pre-existing cavity in a tree. The nest are usually made around 1 to 52 meters high from the ground. [15] The female will lay between 5 and 9 eggs, which are plain white in coloration.