Black and White Bird with Red Head: 18 Species It Might Be

If you love bird watching, you might have seen a variety of different birds that are black and white with red heads. But you might be surprised to learn that there is a huge range of birds that look like this! A simple Google search will bring up so many black and white birds with red heads that it might be difficult to pinpoint exactly which one you saw!

But don’t worry. There are some easy ways to identify different bird species that come in this color pattern. From size to extra patterning, there are many different ways to tell these birds apart. So, let’s go over the 18 species of black and white birds with red heads that you might come across during your bird watching adventures!

1. Red-Bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)

If you’re on the eastern side of North America, you may have come across a red-bellied woodpecker. To identify this bird, you will want to look for their distinctive black and white-barred back. Notably, male red-bellied woodpeckers have a distinctive red head, which extends to the back of their neck. Their bellies are an off-white color with a slight red tinge. Female woodpeckers of this species look very similar to the males, minus the red hind neck. Both sexes are about 9 to 10 inches long and have a wingspan of about 13 to 18 inches.

2. Red-Headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus)

Another black and white woodpecker species with a red head is the red-headed woodpecker. Similarly, this woodpecker is also found in North America across southern Canada and the east-central United States. The red-headed woodpecker has a very distinctive appearance. It has a red head, neck, and upper breast. As for the rest of its body, it has a white lower chest and stomach, a black back, wings and tail, and a white patch on its back and tail. It also has black eyes. A fully-grown red-headed woodpecker will be around 7 to 9 inches long, with a wingspan of 14 to 17 inches.