We have been here in Lake Havasu State Park for a month now,
and almost daily I get a fleeting glance of a woodpecker in the Arroyo De
Camino Cactus Garden. From my experience at Buckskin Mountain State Park, and based
on range maps I was confident I was seeing a Red-naped Sapsucker. A few days ago while leading my guided bird
hike we got a little longer view and I was explaining to the group about
looking at the back of the head, or nape, to spot the red marking. Oops, this bird did not have the red mark,
only the red crown! This sent me back to
the bird guides for some serious study.
Yesterday morning before the hike I went down to the cactus garden and
was lucky enough to get some photos.
After more comparisons and confirmation from eBird I now can pronounce it
is a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and a rare sighting this far West.
Hey looks like the one's here who always help themselves to the hummingbird feeder- but more likely the RedNaped kind. This one is so pretty with the red and yellow. Good eye!
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