Woodpecker Bingo

How to play

Pick your side of the country, deal a card for each player, and head outside or settle in by the window. Tap a square when you see or hear it. The first player to get five in a row across, down, or diagonally calls “Bingo!”. The center square is free.

For a longer game, keep one card going all season and try for a blackout, where every square is marked. Print a card for each player so everyone gets a different one.

What the squares mean

• Downy Woodpecker Our smallest woodpecker, with a short, stubby bill.
• Hairy Woodpecker Looks like a Downy, but bigger, with a bill as long as its head.
• Northern Flicker A big brown woodpecker with a black bib and spotted belly.
• Pileated Woodpecker Crow-sized, with a flaming red crest.
• Woodpecker at a suet feeder Suet is the easiest way to bring woodpeckers in.
• Hear drumming A fast, even drumroll on wood, used like a song.
• Drumming on metal Gutters, chimney caps, and signs carry the sound farther.
• A sharp “pik!” call The Downy's call note. The Hairy's “peek!” is louder.
• Climbing up a trunk Woodpeckers hitch upward, bracing on stiff tail feathers.
• Bouncy flight A few flaps, then a glide, so it flies in swoops.
• Flicker on the ground Flickers often feed on lawns, digging for ants.
• Flash of color under the wings Flickers show yellow (East) or red-orange (West) in flight.
• Male with red on the head Downy and Hairy males have a small red patch on the back of the head.
• Female (no red patch) Female Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers have no red on the head.
• Downy and Hairy together Seeing both at once is the best way to learn them.
• Rows of small holes in bark Sap wells, drilled by sapsuckers to feed on sap.
• Big rectangular holes The work of a Pileated Woodpecker digging for ants.
• A woodpecker nest hole A round, neat entrance hole in a dead tree or branch.
• Parent feeding a young bird Look in early summer, when fledglings follow adults.
• Woodpecker on a utility pole Poles are favorite drumming and feeding spots.
• Woodpecker hanging upside down Often at a suet cage or a pine cone.
• Woodpecker on a dead tree Dead trees (snags) are woodpecker grocery stores.
• Woodpecker and nuthatch on one tree Nuthatches go headfirst down. Woodpeckers go up.
• Wood chips at the base of a tree A sign of fresh digging overhead.
• Red-bellied Woodpecker Zebra-striped back and a red cap. The red belly is hard to see! (East)
• Red-headed Woodpecker Whole head bright red, with big white wing patches. (East)
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Drills neat rows of sap wells. Common in fall and spring. (East)
• Woodpecker at an orange or jelly feeder Red-bellied Woodpeckers love oriole feeders. (East)
• Acorn Woodpecker A clown-faced woodpecker that lives in noisy family groups. (West)
• Acorns stored in a tree Acorn Woodpeckers pack thousands into “granary” trees. (West)
• Lewis's Woodpecker Dark green and pink, and catches insects in flight. (West)
• Red-breasted Sapsucker A bright red head and breast. Pacific Coast and mountains. (West)
• Ladder-backed or Nuttall's Woodpecker Small, with black-and-white ladder stripes on the back. (West)
• Woodpecker at a hummingbird feeder Some western woodpeckers sip nectar too. (West)

Bring the woodpeckers to you

Suet is the fastest way to fill your card. Downy, Hairy, and Red-bellied Woodpeckers all visit suet feeders, and so do flickers, especially from late fall to spring. A field guide settles any Downy-or-Hairy arguments.