Black Woodpecker
The Black-Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius, Linnaeus 1758), is a bird of the family Picidae.
It is more present in the Alps while it is rare in the Apennines. In the Province of Salerno is possible to see it the Cilento e Vallo di Diano National Park.
It is the biggest woodpecker in Italy, thanks to its 45-50 cm of length and its 300-370g of weight. The body is completely black, expect for males which have a red stain that goes from the bill to the nape. The long beak is functional to find insects and grubs by digging huge holes. The eyes have a yellow irregular pupil.
Its typical call sounds like a krukrukru when it is flying, while when it stands the sound is more like a klihh-klihh.
This bird usually nests from March until the beginning of the Summer. Each couple needs a large portion of forest ( from 300 to 600 hectares) for breeding, by building a certain number of nests on different kind of wood and essences.
Photo gallery
Video
Notes
Iconografia degli uccelli d'Italia AA.VV. vol. 3 Ministero Ambiente - INFS
BirdLife International 2004. Dryocopus martius. In: IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Versione 2010.1