Northeast · Atlantic Flyway
Woodpeckers in Rhode Island
Woodpeckers in Rhode Island come down to 7 species with regular eBird records, led by the Downy Woodpecker. Together they account for 113,639 of the 2.3 million eBird records from 2020–2024 — 5.0% of everything reported in the state.
The full list: Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Red-headed Woodpecker. Woodpeckers are the birds you hear before you see: drumming on trunks, excavating nest cavities, and calling loudly from the canopy. Most are year-round residents, and the holes they leave behind become homes for owls, bluebirds, and other cavity nesters.
Woodpeckers in Rhode Island: every species, most-reported first
Every woodpecker with at least 25 eBird records in the state from 2020–2024, most-reported first. The status label is derived from each species’ own monthly share of all state records.
1. Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) — 39,736 records, 1.7% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
2. Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) — 30,247 records, 1.3% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
3. Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) — 26,224 records, 1.1% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
4. Hairy Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus villosus) — 10,878 records, 0.5% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
5. Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) — 3,158 records, 0.1% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
6. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) — 2,811 records, 0.1% of the state’s eBird total; a winter visitor, present mainly from October to March and peaking in December.
7. Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) — 585 records, 0.03% of the state’s eBird total; a winter visitor, present mainly from October to March and peaking in October.
When to see woodpeckers in Rhode Island
Adding up every species’ share of state eBird records month by month, woodpeckers are most prominent in October, November and April and least in July and August. 5 of the 7 species are year-round — Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Hairy Woodpecker and Pileated Woodpecker — so there is no month without them.
Winter visitors. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker arrives around October and leaves after March (peak December); Red-headed Woodpecker arrives around October and leaves after March (peak October).
Attracting woodpeckers to Rhode Island backyards
Suet is the food that brings woodpeckers to feeders, with peanuts and black-oil sunflower seed close behind. Leaving a dead tree or large dead limb standing, where it is safe to do so, is the single most effective habitat step.
In Rhode Island the woodpecker most likely to turn up is the Downy Woodpecker, a year-round resident, followed by the Red-bellied Woodpecker. Its own page covers month-by-month activity and attraction tips for this state.
Woodpeckers in Rhode Island: FAQ
How many species of woodpeckers are there in Rhode Island?
7 species of woodpeckers have regular eBird records in Rhode Island (at least 25 records in 2020–2024): Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Red-headed Woodpecker.
What is the most common woodpecker in Rhode Island?
The Downy Woodpecker, with 39,736 eBird records in 2020–2024, followed by the Red-bellied Woodpecker with 30,247. It is a year-round resident, reported in every month.
When is the best time to see woodpeckers in Rhode Island?
October, November and April, when the combined share of Rhode Island eBird records belonging to woodpeckers is highest. Winter visitors such as the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker arrive around October.
More birds in Rhode Island
Woodpeckers in other states
Woodpeckers in Rhode Island: sources
Every number on this page comes from the EOD – eBird Observation Dataset published by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and distributed through GBIF under a CC BY 4.0 license: Rhode Island records from 2020–2024, retrieved 2026-09-18. Species are drawn from the families Picidae; only species with at least 25 records are listed, and a species is called a year-round resident when its monthly share of state records stays above 30% of its own peak in ten or more months. “Records” are individual eBird observations, so they reflect how often birders report a species, not a population count.