White-backed Woodpecker - Hvitryggspett

Skogsøy	Webshop	Home	Travel	Gullfjell	Contact
Tjeldstø	Galleries	Offshore	Equipment	U.K.	Links

White-backed Woodpecker - Hvitryggspett - Dendrocopos leucotos
Hvidrygget spætte - Vitryggig hackspett - Valkoselkätikka - Witrugspecht - Weißrückenspecht - Pic à dos blanc - Pico Dorsiblanco

Female White-backed Woodpecker, Hatten, Øygarden, November 2020

White-backed Woodpecker are a regular species close to Bergen, Norway. They breed just a couple of fjords east of Øygarden - indeed I used to see them in my garden when I lived near Gullfjell. So for local birders not really something to get very excited about. However, this is a rather sedentary species and is not often seen away from its usual haunts. There have been a number of probable sightings of this species in Øygarden by local birders, including myself over the years but none have been certain or documented given the perceived unlikely occurrence out here on the islands. The late Eddie Chapman told me once that he had seen White-backed Woodpecker at Sæle - but unless other records come to light the first documented find of this rather special woodpecker came in autumn 2020 with a male observed at Breivik and a female at Hatten. It was also recorded from Skjold and I am fairly sure I had one at Herdlevær too.....

I was away for much of the autumn but was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time when I received a tip-off about a bird in Hatten. After what some perceived as a scary drive I managed to turn up before the bird left. It fed on trees in the company of the much commoner Great-spotted Woodpecker giving ample opportunity for comparison.

Wintering White-backed Woodpecker, Hatten, Øygarden, November 2020

White-backed Woodpecker with Great-spotted Woodpecker, Hatten, Øygarden, November 2020
This bird came intermittently to a feeding station for a few weeks

White-backed Woodpecker, Hatten, Øygarden, November 2020

Arguably the best field guide for the UK and the rest of Europe

Female White-backed Woodpecker, Hatten, Øygarden, November 2020

Hatten, Øygarden, November 2020

White-backed Woodpecker

All pictures on this page taken with a DSLR and a 400mm telephoto lens

All content on this site, including Natural Born Birder logo, is copyright © 2006-2021
High resolution versions of most images on this website are available. Please contact me for details or other enquiries.