Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos medius)

Species and habitat description

The middle spotted woodpecker is associated with older oak forests. Most of its food resource is under the bark of decaying oak trees (saproxylophagus). The species creates its nest inside of decaying trees. In Hungary, the species can be found in the middle mountains and in the floodplain forests of the Danube, but it can be also found in urban parks. During the pairing-season, unlike other woodpeckers, the male drums little with its beak on the trunks of the trees, rather it sort of meows, which can be heard from several hundreds of meters (MME 2019).

Major threats

The species is not directly at risk. However, due to their relatively weak beak, they create their nesting cages into rotting or soft trees, thus the decline of older forests could narrow down the distribution of the species (MME 2019).

Specific conservation action

Creating a variety of dead woods contributes to suitable microhabitats of the species. Its population can be enhanced with the increase of mixed forests, which includes old, decaying trees that can be planted (MME 2019).