In the Oljka hunting area, Šmartno ob Paki, we took photographs of three species of woodpeckers as part of the EOW, StepChange and CRP projects. This family is characterised by a strong beak, which they use to find food in cracked wood, to make a burrow, to communicate by drumming on the log, and also to mark their territory.
The largest of these is the black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius), which, as its name suggests, is black with a red head. More similar are the green woodpecker (Picus viridis) and the grey-headed woodpecker (Picus canus), which are most easily distinguished by their size and colouring – the green woodpecker is larger and has black-coloured feathers that extend from the bill to the middle of the head. Our cameras also captured a juvenile green woodpecker, which can be identified by its spotted feathers and the absence of a black face mask.
