Red-headed Woodpeckers in Illinois

Red-headed Woodpeckers live in Illinois all year. Cold, windy winters in the north; the southern tip is milder and hosts more wintering species. That makes the cold months the time your yard matters most to them: their winter diet shifts toward stored acorns and beechnuts.

Humid continental, grading from the Lake Michigan shore and prairie north to the forested Shawnee Hills in the south.

Across Illinois, red-headed woodpeckers typically nest from May–July. Nest site: cavity in dead trees or limbs. Females lay 3–10 eggs, incubate for 12–14 days, and young leave the nest after 24–31 days.

Hot, humid summers; much of the state is farmland, so backyard native plantings matter.

• Red-headed Woodpeckers don't use nest boxes. Keep dense native shrubs and trees such as flowering dogwood, serviceberry, white oak for nest sites.
• Delay heavy pruning of shrubs until after July.

Of the regional native plants we track for Illinois, these 8 provide food or cover red-headed woodpeckers use:

A declining open-woodland species that visits yards with large dead limbs left standing.

• Best foods: Suet, Peanuts, Sunflower.
• In Illinois's winter: Cold, windy winters in the north; the southern tip is milder and hosts more wintering species.

Full diet breakdown for red-headed woodpeckers · Best feeder for red-headed woodpeckers