Try GOLD - Free
The Flying Checkerboard
Birds & Blooms
|October/November 2020
Find out how to attract boldly patterned red-headed woodpeckers.

Flashing rich crimson, jet black and ivory white—the same bold colors found on a classic deck of cards—the red-headed woodpecker starkly contrasts with the muted colors of its natural habitat.
MAGNIFICENT MARKINGS
“The red-headed woodpecker has very distinctive, large color patches with no variegating, striation or striping,” says Emma Greig, project leader at Project FeederWatch, a winter-season initiative that surveys birds across North America led by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
This story is from the October/November 2020 edition of Birds & Blooms.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM Birds & Blooms

Birds & Blooms
Better Off with Bats
Rethink the unsung heroes of the night and why you should support them
2 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
Late Bloomers to Love
Keep garden colors going strong with fall perennials
3 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
IN THE COMPANY OF OWLS
On any given morning, you'll find A.J. Berard trekking through the woods and mountains of Montana with a 45-pound pack and his Siberian huskies.
3 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
Tree TLC
Discover tips for planting and tending to trees, from the roots up
2 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
EASY. BREEZY Black-Eyed Susans
Planting rudbeckia, with petals aglow in honeyed yellow, fiery orange and velvety burgundy, is like sprinkling sunshine throughout the garden.
3 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
Social and Adaptable
Find out how the house finch became a backyard regular
1 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
Tales from the UNDERSTORY
The dense forest floor is the perfect setting to nest and forage
3 mins
October / November 2025

Birds & Blooms
Tracking Tiny Travelers
Small, numbered rings reveal the secrets of hummingbird migration
2 mins
June/July 2025

Birds & Blooms
The Dirt on Millicompost
Learn how to use millipedes to increase soil health
2 mins
June/July 2025

Birds & Blooms
THE PERFECT PAIRING
Learn the best ways to use an abundance of blooms to attract more birds and beautify your feeder space
3 mins
June/July 2025
Translate
Change font size