Ladder-backed Woodpeckers in Arizona

Ladder-backed Woodpeckers live in Arizona all year. Low deserts stay mild and host many wintering sparrows and hummingbirds; the high country gets snow. That makes the cold months the time your yard matters most to them: their winter diet shifts toward insects.

Hot Sonoran and Mojave deserts in the south and west, with pine-oak sky islands and the Colorado Plateau rising above 7,000 ft.

Across Arizona, ladder-backed woodpeckers typically nest from March–June. Nest site: cavity in yucca, agave or mesquite. Females lay 2–7 eggs, incubate for 13 days, and young leave the nest after about 20 days.

Summer highs above 110°F in Phoenix and Tucson make water the single strongest attractant; the July monsoon triggers a second breeding pulse.

• Ladder-backed Woodpeckers don't use nest boxes. Keep dense native shrubs and trees such as black cherry, american elderberry, chokecherry for nest sites.
• Delay heavy pruning of shrubs until after June.

Of the regional native plants we track for Arizona, these 8 provide food or cover ladder-backed woodpeckers use:

A desert woodpecker of mesquite and cactus; small and quiet.

• Best foods: Suet.
• In Arizona's winter: Low deserts stay mild and host many wintering sparrows and hummingbirds; the high country gets snow.

Full diet breakdown for ladder-backed woodpeckers · Best feeder for ladder-backed woodpeckers